Projects

Buildings form “People and the City” project

St. George Rotunda 4 century

The building is considered the FIRST IN AGE building in Sofia. According to the historical research, it was initially planned to be a mausoleum of the Roman Emperor Galerius, but Constantine the Great turned it into a church. Later on, in the 15th c. the building went through another transformation – it was turned into a mosque – the minaret of that time is still preserved. As a Christian temple however the Rotunda was frescoed with unique medieval mural paintings, parts of which are older than 1500 years. Nowadays the Rotunda is a UNESCO monument.

The Royal Palace 1880-1895 г.

This is the FIRST ARCHITECTURAL BUILDING – SYMBOL OF THE MONARCHIC POWER in Bulgaria. It was built on the spot where, during the Ottoman period in Bulgaria, the Turkish administration and court building was located. According to some historical notes, the Bulgarian national hero Vassil Levski was locked in one of the cells of the Turkish court, and in one of the court rooms the process, in which he was condemned to death by the Turkish authorities, took place. The adapting of the building to the needs of the Royal administration and family was done by Colonel Von Witte and the Russian army. Later on the Viennese architect Viktor Rumpelmayer added the west wing building, designed especially as a Throne Hall. The project for a new building of the Royal Palace was done by the famous European architect Friedrich Grünanger, who incorporated elements of the Viennese Neo-Baroque. The east wing was where the apartments of the royal family were located, but some service premises (including a lift) were also located there. The interior is renovated with extremely valuable materials, which were donated by the French Republic. The walls and the ceilings of the rooms, the parade foyers and the staircases were richly decorated with Rococo style ornaments by the Viennese master Greis. In the period 1946-1955 this unique building was used for the needs of the Ministry Council. Only after that the National Art Gallery was established there, which now shares the building with the National Ethnographic Museum. A large part of this “treasury” was devastated during the bombing above Sofia in 1944. Untouched however stay the remains of a Neolithic settlement, which are still in the garden of the Gallery. Nowadays the National Art Gallery acts as a partner of all kinds of contemporary arts and often hosts various exhibitions of modern Bulgarian and foreign artists.

Ivan Vazov National Theatre Official opening in 1907 г.

The building is of the THE OLDEST AND MOST AUTHORITATIVE THEATRE IN BULGARIA AFTER THE LIBERATION, when the thirst for new culture and art turned out to be unquenchable. The building of the theatre was built close to the Royal Palace, according to the design of the Viennese architects Hermann Helmer and Ferdinand Fellner. The construction was finished at the end of 1906 and the Theatre was open for performances on the 3rd of January 1907. Several years later, in 1923, during one of the shows, a fire breaks out; this causes serious damages to the theatre. The building was finally reconstructed in 1929 with the help of the German architect Martin Dülfer. At the time of the bombings above Sofia (1943-1944), the building of the theatre was again seriously damaged, but got quickly renovated in a 1-year period. The last grand reconstruction of the theatre in architectural aspect took place in the period 1971-1975, when a special chamber hall was created. The last reconstruction of the unique architectural building-symbol of culture and art in Sofia, was carried out in 2007. For the painting of the facades a rubber-containing paint was used – it is resistant to atmosphere influences. The gold-plated decorative elements of the façade were covered with new sheets of gold foil. Nowadays in the theatre there is a well-equipped big stage – it has capacity of 750 spectator seats. The chamber hall, on its turn, contains 120 seats and the stage on the 4th floor – 79 seats. Since the beginning of the 90s till now, with small breaks, director of the National Theatre has been Prof. Vassil Stefanov. Some of the most successful performances, shown on the stage of the theatre, were created by the extremely talented Bulgarian theatre directors: Alexander Morfov, Margarita Mladenova, Leon Daniel, Ivan Dobchev etc.

St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral 1904-1912

The building is a unique of its kind 5-cross-domed cathedral, situated in the very heart of the Bulgarian capital. It is the FIRST BULGARIAN TEMPLE AND ARCHITECTURAL MONUMENT, CONSTRUCTED IN MEMORY OF ALL WHO FELL IN THE STRUGGLE FOR THE LIBERATION OF BULGARIA. The idea was given by Russian Tsar Alexander the II. St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral is THE FIRST BULGARIAN TEMPLE-SYMBOL OF THE NEW BULGARIAN STATE, WHICH UNITED THE SPIRIT OF ALL BULGARIAN PEOPLE. For erecting of the building about 3 700 000 gold Bulgarian leva were collected and 2/3 of this amount was donated voluntarily by the common people of Bulgaria. The foundation stone was laid in year 1882: by an old Bulgarian custom, in the foundations of the temple, a metal box with the names of the Bulgarian statesmen – members of the government of the time – was laid. The design of the building was done by the prominent Russian architect Alexander Pomerantsev. The cross-domed basilica is designed in Neo-byzantine style having as a main accent the central gold-plated dome. For the interior and the decoration of the temple extremely valuable materials have been used: multicoloured marbles, onyx and alabaster. In the crypt of the temple some of the most precious Bulgarian icons are being preserved. The 12 bells in the belfry were especially made for the temple by the skilful Russian Moscow masters. The temple is unique in size on the territory of the Balkan Peninsula: its 3170 sq. m. area can welcome up to 5000 visitors. St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral Александър was officially announced a national monument of culture in 1924 and ever since it has been filling the souls of Sofia citizens and guests with a feeling of admiration and humbleness.

St. Kliment Ohridsky University of Sofia 1924-1934 г.

This is THE FIRST HIGHER EDUCATION BUILDING in Bulgaria. The University was initially established as a higher course of pedagogy in 1888 with a decision of the National Assembly. A competition for architectural projects for the University building was announced in 1906 and was won by the famous French architect Breanson. The project however turned out to be too ambitious and the construction plans did not get finished by the beginning of World War I. After the war and the first national catastrophe, the Bulgarian government had to leave the grand building plans and to urgently build a more modest building for the needs of the University. The construction of the central wing started in 1924 under the guidance of architect Milanov and took 10 years until its final completion. The construction became possible due to the general donations done by the brothers Evlogi and Hristo Georgievi, whose bronze statues, done by the sculptor Kiril Shivarov, will now still meet you at the central entrance of the University of Sofia. The unique decoration of the main building is a creation of the sculptors Michailo Parashchuk, Luben Dimitrov and Lubomir Dalchev. The main building impresses not only with its unique architecture but also with its dimensions – area of 18 624 sq. m., 324 study halls, 65 of which auditoria, with a capacity of 6000 students. In 1940 the construction started of the two additional wings of the building, which were “assigned” to architect Luben Konstantinov. The building got accomplished in 1985. Meanwhile, in the mid 1930s the construction of the unique University Library started – the project for it was prepared by the architects Ivan Vassilyov and Dimitar Tsolov. The building of the Library was completed and inaugurated together with the building of the University on 16th of December 1934.

Law Courts 1929-1940

The building has been erected on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the establishing of the Bulgarian justice after the Liberation of Bulgaria from Ottoman Rule. It is the FIRST OFFICIAL BUILDING OF THE JUDICIARY POWER IN BULGARIA. In 1941 the judicial year was officially opened in the new building, which was situated next to the representative centre of Sofia city. The horizontal-silhouette rectangular corpus, the various architectural elements – syenite plinths, the white limestone facing, the impressive cornice under the last level – harmonize with the general architectural pattern of the nearby big representative buildings – Sheraton Hotel, the Central Department Store, the National Assembly building and the Bulgarian National Bank building. The Exterior of the Law Courts building felicitously tells about the building’s purpose: unpretentiously, with a straightforwardness and strictness of the shapes, typical for the customs and the social consciousness of the Bulgarian people. The monumental sizes, the strict style, the accentuated frontal staircase system with five big doors between the imposing colonnades tell clearly about the character of its social purpose. The general design and the internal arrangement of the building show that the exterior and the interior composition plan are in a close uniformity and correlation between each other. They logically ensue from the numerous services “sheltered” in the building. In compositional sense, there are two leading principles: a most expedient distribution of the service premises to be accomplished and a best management of the large flow of people to be carried out. These two functional considerations have had a reflection upon the whole architecture composition of the building.

National Palace of Culture Official opening in 1981

This is the FIRST OF ITS KIND BUILDING IN SOFIA BUILT AS A CENTRE FOR CULTURAL EVENTS. The palace’s official opening took place in 1981. Main architect of the building is Alexander Barov. The building has an iron bearing construction designed by a team of specialists from the Higher Institute of Architecture and Construction in Sofia, under the guidance of Prof. Milcho Braynov and Ir. Bogdan Atanassov. The building is constructed upon an area of 123 000 sq. m., there are 8 floors and 3 underground levels. The unique complex contains 13 halls and 8000 seats. The biggest hall alone has a capacity for 5000 visitors and offers opportunities for “accommodating” of 100 up to 4000 participants on stage. For the realization of the grand project more than 10 000 tones of metal have been used – a quantity larger than the one used for the construction of the Eiffel Tower. In 2005 the National Palace of Culture became the winner of one of the most prestigious awards of the International Association of the Congress Palaces: it was announced the “Best Congress Centre of the World”. For the period of its 26-year history, the National Palace of Culture has turned into a significant spot of the cultural life of Sofia citizens.

Panel residential building Middle to the end of the 20th century

THE FIRST PANEL RESIDENTIAL BLOCKS appeared in Bulgaria in the middle of the last century and quickly encompass the big cities with “slender residential complexes”. The need for them arose during the intensive urbanisation process of the Bulgarian population: the people who were left with no private land in the villages, started moving to the big city in search of work and living. The panel buildings turned out to be a successful and quick solution for the residential problem of the people who moved to the city. Nowadays however the architects of Sofia and the specialists of the National Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology blame the large-scale high-panel-block overbuilding for the greenhouse effect and the smog in the city. The utmost lifespan of the panel residential buildings is set between 80 and 100 years. The problem with the old panel blocks is not only a Bulgarian one: it bothers also the citizens of almost all ex-socialistic countries. Nowadays in the ex-DDR the municipalities in the big cities work on the programme for restoring of the panel complexes. Since 4-5 years until now Sofia Municipality has been researching the possibilities for applying of the foreign experience in Bulgarian conditions and has started a programme for insulation of the panel residential buildings on the territory of the capital: the buildings constitute 40% of the residential fund. The “insulation project” for the panel residential buildings includes also refining of the environment around the buildings with children playgrounds, parking lots and sport complexes. Whether this plan for reviving of the old panel complexes will be fulfilled – it depends on the Municipality and the interests of the people living in the panels. One thing however is clear: the time of the old panel complexes in the city has passed. The future is in the energy-saving buildings and residential complexes which will be much more in harmony with the natural environment.

Winslow Energy-Saving Residential Complexes 21 century

The buildings of the future will be in harmony between nature and city. The residential complexes and the business centres of today are designed amidst more and more greenery. The first green complex in our country – Winslow Gardens – will be built in Sofia as a complex of energy-saving buildings. The green areas will occupy more than 50% of its territory. Special anti-allergic tree species have been selected for the park, in order the residents’ comfort to be preserved. On the territory of the complex there will be no vehicle traffic, as the complex will dispose of an underground road net. This will also be the first residential complex in Bulgaria with individual gasification – each resident will have the possibility to control the process of gas supply by him/herself.
The Public areas of Winslow Gardens will dispose of restaurant, shops, medical cabinets, fitness, swimming pool and SPA centre, barber shop, laundry and dry cleaning, children centre, open-air basketball pitch. The FIRST GREEN RESIDENTIAL COMPLEX in Bulgaria will welcome its first residents at the end of year 2009. It is a look towards the future of the city architecture, according to the contemporary architects. Let us be closer to NATURE – preserve it and make it a part of our city.

Comments Off