Palace at Rytířská 29 | Gabriela Kaprálová

EXTERIOR The principal objective was a general renovation of the facades and the palace lighting. Renovating the Horice sandstone surface, restoring the abundant sculpture, and refurbishing the historic windows and metal accessories with custom-tailored technology in compliance with historic monuments care requirements, was carried out by top professionals. The beauty and dignity of the neo-Renaissance palace has been accentuated by extremely subtle linear xenon soft lighting, barely visible on the façade. OPERATIONS The new operational design is logical and efficient, using every space available. The cash sector located on the first floor leads directly to the count room. That floor also houses retail banking consulting services for regular clientele. The ATM zone has been moved to the corner of Rytířská and Melantrichova Streets, visible from Wenceslas Square. The underground gallery received a new street entrance independent of the bank’s business hours, and brand new facilities. This first-rate site is now ready to hold exhibitions and social events. The second floor has been given a new large open area of consulting stations (private and commercial consultants, Expat Center). The delightfully versatile marble hall on the second floor has been put back to work as a conference room with an adjacent café, which can also be used by caterers. On the third floor are the new, plush ERSTE private banking quarters for VIP clients, as well as bank staff offices and accommodations. The fourth floor holds the offices of the Commerce and Developer Center, and IT offices. Every floor has modern facilities. The underground floor houses vaulted bank safes, safe deposit boxes, utility rooms, maintenance, storage, and a gallery. INTERIOR DESIGN The top priority of the interior design has been a meaningful union between the new and the old. It is the building’s tectonics that informs the proportions, arrangement, geometry, quality of artisanship, and quality of materials. The new streamlined additions complement and compliment the building in an architectural dialog with history. Instead of competing with the rich neo-Renaissance ornaments, the new component’s simplicity highlights them. Simplicity, however, does not mean dullness. The overall design emulates the original surface gradation; the understated ground floor lets the richness and elegance of the second storey shine. Downstairs, single-color walls and arches temper the effect of the new floors and bright decorative furniture. In contrast, the second storey ornamental ceiling and vestibule are paired with bare, unobtrusive monochromatic floors and furniture. Frequently used new materials include terrazzo, wood, glass, and 2tec2. The beige, brown, brick red and blue-grey echo the colors of the original neo-Renaissance décor. RESTORATION The neo-Renaissance palace is rich with art. The restoration focused on gilding, stucco, wall painting and sectional repairs (e.g. lunettes in the entrance vestibule, spandrels in the hall, etc.), original stone mosaics, ceramic tile, natural and artificial stone components, sculpture, original metal work, selected original lights, glass (three skylights), interior windows, doors and sills. The extent of the work was guided by restoration research. As the reconstruction progressed, new discoveries were made: a stone mosaic in the vicinity of the ATM machine, a first floor lunette painting by an unknown artist depicting the missionaries, Cyril and Methodius, and decorative figural paintings by V. Mašek in the Expat Center and the second floor café. There were also original lunettes in the banquet hall with genre figural scenes by V. Mašek. TECHNOLOGY The new technology in the building is smart and sustainable. The proposal for the indoor environment systems (indoor climate control, air-conditioning, heating and cooling) was to implement green principles in the historic protected building. MERCHANDIZING – SHOP WINDOWS The preparations in 2004 - 2006 included a proposal to replace the first floor shop windows and promote Česká spořitelna and its products through these vast spaces in the heart of Prague. The frontrunner business strategy proposal was a Window Gallery across the seven shop windows on Melantrichova Street lined with vertical blinds carrying advertisement messages in oversized letters.