AECCafe: Bálna Budapest in Hungary by ONL [Oosterhuis

ArchShowcase

Sumit Singhal
Sumit Singhal loves modern architecture. He comes from a family of builders who have built more than 20 projects in the last ten years near Delhi in India. He has recently started writing about the architectural projects that catch his imagination.

Bálna Budapest in Hungary by ONL [Oosterhuis_Lénárd]

July 11th, 2015 by Sumit Singhal

Article source: ONL [Oosterhuis_Lénárd]

Bálna (formerly known as CET / Central European Time). Bálna is also a synonym for a whale. The Mixed Use Development Bálna at the Közraktárak between the Petofi and the Szabadság Bridge is both. The Bálna concept refers to Budapest as an important metropolitan centre in the heart of Central Europe. The Bálna shape refers to the smooth and friendly streamlined body of a whale. The new Bálna development has the potential to put Budapest once again on the map of the world. Name and shape of the Bálna symbolizes its cultural potential and commercial pole position in one of the best preserved cities in the world.

Bálna seen from from the Buda side of the danube river, Image Courtesy © Romeodesign

Architects: ONL [Oosterhuis_Lénárd]
Project: Bálna Budapest
Location: Közraktárak, Budapest, Hungary
Photography: Romeodesign
Software used: Pro Engineer, Oasys, Rhino, 3DMax, VR4Max and Revit, Autodesk
Design team: Kas Oosterhuis, Ilona Lénárd, Gijs Joosen, Owen Slootweg, Bas Wijnbeld, Anna Nagy, Bujdosó Attila, Márku Judit, Romvári Péter, Tom Krzempek, Rafael Seemann, Paulina Gurak, Michael Gorczynski, Lidia Badarnah, Jan Gasparik, Petr Vokal.
Partners: MTM Statika – Lead structural engineering, SMG-SiSu – MEP engineering
Client: Porto Investment Hungary Kft., Budapest
Gross floor area: 27.000 m2
Stories: 5 stories, 2 stories parking garage
Parking garage: 7500 m2
Year of design completion: 2012

Front of the Bálna building, Image Courtesy © ONL [Oosterhuis_Lénárd]

Flow. The river Danube fascinates in Budapest for its fast flow on its trajectory downward from the Schwarzwald to the Black Sea. While the Danube both separates and unites Buda and Pest, the Bálna aims at re-establishing visual contact at this point between the two sides of the river. Newly planned inviting terraces will visually open the once hermetic Közraktárak to the University and the Gellért Hotel. Hopefully a watertaxi system will be re-introduced to create direct connections for the people between the two sides as well. The body of the Bálna landmark building is developed along the flow of the Danube. Its architectural and urban expression evolves with the direction of the flow. The Bálna’s origin stems from the side of the city centre, grows in size between the two parallel existing buildings of the Közraktárak and then culminates at the south side, the side of the National Theatre and the new Cultural Centre, in a striking landmark building representing the state-of-the-art in architectural design and building technology, its impact on the city will be not unlike the removed Elevator Building from the 19th Century from where the goods were distributed to the 6 warehouses which originally occupied the banks of the Danube.

Front of the Bálna building seen from the side, showing the nose, Image Courtesy © ONL [Oosterhuis_Lénárd]

Connection between the old and the new part of the Bálna building, Image Courtesy © ONL [Oosterhuis_Lénárd]

The interior of the event space, Image Courtesy © ONL [Oosterhuis_Lénárd]

The tail of the Bálna building seen from the entrance, Image Courtesy © Romeodesign

The interior of the basement floor of the Bálna building, Image Courtesy © Romeodesign

Connection between the old and the new part of the Bálna building, Image Courtesy © ONL [Oosterhuis_Lénárd]

The internal atrium of the Bálna building, Image Courtesy © ONL [Oosterhuis_Lénárd]

Connection between the old and the new part of the Bálna building, Image Courtesy © ONL [Oosterhuis_Lénárd]

Site plan of the Bálna building, Image Courtesy © ONL [Oosterhuis_Lénárd]

Ground floor plan of the Bálna building, Image Courtesy © ONL [Oosterhuis_Lénárd]

Detail section of the Bálna building, Image Courtesy © ONL [Oosterhuis_Lénárd]

Detailed section of the buidling, Image Courtesy © ONL [Oosterhuis_Lénárd]

: Detailed section of the buidling, Image Courtesy © ONL [Oosterhuis_Lénárd]

Contact ONL [Oosterhuis_Lénárd]

Tags: Budapest, Hungary

Categories: 3dS Max, Autodesk, Conference Center, Gallery, Retail, Revit, Rhino, shopping center

This entry was posted on Saturday, July 11th, 2015 at 8:08 am. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.