beyond your map

In the late 1930s, the Baťa company expanded globally, leading to plans for administrative buildings. A 17-storey skyscraper, Building No. 21, was chosen for its space efficiency and modern features. The reinforced concrete structure had a glazed facade and a distinctive vertical appearance. The building featured various elevators, air conditioning, and advanced technology. Interiors followed an open office concept with prefabricated partitions. After 1945, the building was repurposed, hosting the Shoe Museum in 1959. A 2004 renovation restored the original appearance on the eighth floor, now housing the Zlín Regional Office. The building also has a green terrace and a bronze model of Zlín in 1950. The mobile office is still used in a special visitor regime.

Designed in 1966 by Portuguese architect Álvaro Siza, the Leça Swimming Pool complex remains an architectural gem. Nestled on the Matosinhos coastline near Porto, Siza's early masterpiece integrates seamlessly with the natural environment. The complex features two pools, strategically positioned to offer a sensory experience, while preserving ocean views and harmonizing with existing rock formations. Siza's intentional blurring of the ocean's edge connects the pools with the vast Atlantic, showcasing his adeptness at reconciling modern design with nature. The Leça Swimming Pools are celebrated for their enduring architectural significance.

In Basel's Gundeli district, Walter Maria Förderer's unmistakable touch is evident in the unique blend of concrete sculpture and a primary school. Known for his bold Brutalist churches and innovative designs for the University of St. Gallen, Förderer's angular and massive concrete sculptures retain a playful and experimental spirit in this project. The complex includes a main wing, sports hall, assembly hall, kindergarten, and outdoor play areas. After a thorough renovation in 2014, the main building, resembling a brutalist volcano, features metallic lava flows by Saskia Eden, adding a silvery, shimmering dynamic to the sharp-edged architecture. Anticipation rises for the next eruption.

Founded in 1955 in Bern, Atelier 5 played a key role in bringing exposed concrete housing to Switzerland. While Flamatt I openly drew inspiration from Le Corbusier's influential unité d'habitation in Marseille, Flamatt II embraced the graceful curves seen in the Palace of Assembly in Chandigarh, India. This elevated box structure comprises two identical units and a spacious studio area, complete with a private rooftop garden.

Walter Maria Förderer's St. Nicolas Church, completed in 1971, is a neo-expressionist marvel in the Swiss Alps. The fortress-like structure, a blend of local concrete and wood, stands resilient against winter elements. Förderer's legacy, marked by geometric abstractions and a unique bell tower symbol, transcends his death in 2006, embodying a synthesis of contemporary art and spiritual excellence.

This cooperative apartment block, a result of a second competition with architect Josef Marek, combines compact and dispersed construction. The lower floors are solid, while the upper floors form three wings. The block includes 25 shops and six residential entrances on the ground floor, with a total of 118 flats. 'Avion' features a simple Functionalist design with right-angled rectangular forms and distinctive comb-shaped loggias. It successfully combines a unified urban parterre with a Functionalist dispersion of masses in the upper floors.

The monument, a result of a 1959 competition, features a simple square volume above a plinth, reflecting a departure from historicist ornamentation. Hindered by political objections until 1963, architect Kuzma collaborated with sculptor Jozef Jankovič, whose 'The Victims' Warning' sculpture became central. The building's aesthetic centers on exposed concrete, forming two shell segments housing the museum of the Slovak anti-Fascist partisan movement. Glass sides and freely suspended ceiling slabs add to its unique design. The 'memorial entrance hall' anchors the composition, while the ground floor houses various facilities. A listed national landmark, the monument blends architectural and sculptural elements seamlessly.

After World War II, the old Bratislava city market hall, repurposed as Slovak Television studios, prompted the construction of a new hall on the city's edge. Designed as a 'container' in the machine aesthetic, the hall features a solid ferroconcrete skeleton housing sales and service areas on both floors. Entrance staircases are situated at both ends, and the glass curtain wall gives it a technological appearance. The cellar houses a supermarket, while the main areas accommodate individual stands for various products.

Nestled at the foot of the Lesser Carpathians, the crematorium integrates seamlessly with its surroundings. A sweeping pathway leads to the building, characterized by lengthwise walls and transparent transverse walls offering panoramic forest views. The main funeral hall provides a captivating perspective, while cremation facilities are discreetly underground. Notable sculptures by Kompánek, Uher, Tóth, and Milučký contribute to its significance in Slovak postwar architecture. Influenced by Scandinavian modernism, the crematorium has been a registered national landmark since 2003.