Breda Department Store

Opava’s icon, the Breda department store, has been closed for more than ten years and only memories of its former glory remain. This building, which was rebuilt in 1928 according to a design of architect Leopold Bauer, is a fascinating combination of diverse structures that together tell the story of the rich history of the building. Our project responds sensitively to these layers of history, revealing their uniqueness and adding a new dimension that connects naturally with each of them.

Breda is located in a key location – at the beginning of Opava’s green ring that encircles the historic city centre. However, this ring ends just behind the building and has been replaced by a new shopping centre, the so-called “new Breda”. The central motif of the design is thus a materialized crossroads, a public promenade that will seamlessly connect the green ring with the old and new Breda. This path will wind around Leopold Bauer’s iconic dome, leading visitors across all floors to the new terraced roofs, making the dome space once again the heart not only of the building, but of the whole city.

An important specificity of the brief was the requirement to find an appropriate future use for the Breda. Our aim was to create a place that would be alive all day long and sustainable for the city, both financially and environmentally. Therefore, we chose a mix of space uses, with 30% of the area being a public cultural platform and 70% spaces dedicated to various forms of rental. Their use is then based on the specific possibilities of the existing interior spaces – both spatially and economically – which forms the basis of the concept “space for spaces”.

We based our design on an extensive research of the Bauer archive at the Albertina Museum in Vienna, where we discovered original and unrealised plans, such as terraced rooftop or glass floors on the ground floor that bring light into the basement spaces. In line with our concept, we have renewed every corner of the building, from “the basement to the attic”, and returned Breda to its rightful position in the heart of the city.

The revitalisation of Breda is part of Kateřina Šedá’s participatory project and will be carried out gradually, building on the efforts of the Association for the Rescue of the Breda Department Store. In 2023, the association organised the Light up Breda event, initiating the purchase of the building by the city. Our process will begin by opening up the rooftop, which will serve as a laboratory for the project. The opening up of the building will then proceed deliberately in reverse – from top to bottom – until all the spaces are vibrant with life again. This process will culminate in the complete light-up of Breda, this time from the inside, as a symbol of its return to life.

As the building stands at one of Opava’s most important hubs, the revitalisation of the surrounding public spaces is also part of our proposal. The relocation of the existing road will create a new piazzetta that will extend the ground floor of the building and connect its inner life with the rest of the city. Breda will thus shine again as a glorious and living symbol of Opava.

Breda

credits

project: Reconstruction and revitalization of the Breda department store
location: Opava
year: 2024
status: competition, 2nd place
together with: Traumnovelle, Kateřina Šedá, Petra Mlýnková
team: Georgi Dimitrov, Natálie Hodková, Petra Mlýnková,
Kateřina Šedá, Jakub Čevela, Daniel Struhařík, Johnny Leya,
Vojtěch Heralecký, Elisabeth Terrisse de Botton, Tanguy Ricard,
Tereza Čamborová, Radek Zabloudil, Jan Urbášek,
Ondřej Machač
images: willbe studio
topics: transformation, research, reconstruction and revitalization,
space for spaces, Leopold Bauer, variability of space,
participation, working with model

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