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Transformer Station
Dob Utca 10, Budapest
1969
Like a gigantic block made of brick this electric power transformer substation is located the Jewish Quarter, surrounded by the sleepy and somewhat run-down streets.
The architect Erno Lestyán respected the height of the eaves of the surrounding larger buildings and situated the building offset in relation to the neighbouring constructions.
Nevertheless, the building is of a remarkable monumental effect. In its directness, this intervention in the innercity urban space was probably possible only in
the late sixties and in the seventies. In the immediate vicinity of several art nouveau buildings and synagogues, this modernist brick construction appears like a provocation.
At the same time, the building is to be seen as a sign of a progressive period in the shadow of the Soviet regime. The building is conceived as a towering volume,
which is structured horizontally and vertically structured by two combined ventilation and window strips and a massive dark bar. The use of brick gives the building
a small-scale texture and enlivens the façade surfaces. In this sense, the use of brick for this building is to be understood as a key design principle.
The architect Erno Lestyán respected the height of the eaves of the surrounding larger buildings and situated the building offset in relation to the neighbouring constructions.
Nevertheless, the building is of a remarkable monumental effect. In its directness, this intervention in the innercity urban space was probably possible only in
the late sixties and in the seventies. In the immediate vicinity of several art nouveau buildings and synagogues, this modernist brick construction appears like a provocation.
At the same time, the building is to be seen as a sign of a progressive period in the shadow of the Soviet regime. The building is conceived as a towering volume,
which is structured horizontally and vertically structured by two combined ventilation and window strips and a massive dark bar. The use of brick gives the building
a small-scale texture and enlivens the façade surfaces. In this sense, the use of brick for this building is to be understood as a key design principle.