Jur Hronec University Dormitory

In addition to accommodation and catering facilities, at the time of its opening, the building of the university dormitory offered a number of functionally attractive spaces for cultural, social and sports activities for students and the general public. Its compositionally and operationally integrated parts included a large event hall, a small theatre hall, an indoor swimming pool and a gym with appropriate social and operational-technical facilities. Due to the natural wear and tear of the interiors and the lack of financial resources for their renovation over the years, only the event hall and the gym are currently available to users. 

“The characteristic features of the interior architecture are the timeless tectonics, the materials used and the arrangement of the facing components. In the context of the artistic design, the artistic or graphic articulation of wall surfaces, floors and ceilings dominates. The architects placed great emphasis on the building interior, which is exemplified by the elements of the heating equipment that are still preserved today and the built-in vent grilles. From today’s point of view, many components of the building interior have a specific and timeless character at the same time. The quality of craftsmanship is evidenced by the fact that many of the surfaces are still preserved today despite the lack of maintenance. Furthermore, as regards the function of the interiors, there are not any opulent furnishings.” [5]  

The interior of the event hall has been preserved in its original form with only minor modifications. “The wall opposite the entrance is decorated with a unique large-format work of art by an artist whose name could not be found. The positives of the room include excellent acoustics and lots of natural light. Large-area glazing adds grandeur and visual lightness to the interior. A former advantage was also the direct connection to the adjacent terrace accessible through the door wings. The hall space is decorated in light tones, complemented by the dark colour of the window elements and the muted colouring of the abstract artwork on the front wall. In addition to the original parquet flooring, the ceiling has been preserved, although the classical spherical suspended light fixtures have been removed. [5]

The gym space is designed and furnished rather austerely using classical materials. As part of the ongoing maintenance, only minor reconstruction was carried out, when the walls were re-plastered and the wooden Tatra profile panelling was replaced. The interior of the now disused indoor swimming pool has a number of interesting elements embedded in it, especially the colours used and the materiality of the wall facing. A special feature is the large-scale glazing along the entire wall of the room. Thus, daylight penetrates into the interior and enhances the pleasant atmosphere of the place. The comfort of the visitors or residents was also ensured with the underfloor heating, which was technologically advanced for that time. In the interior, all the original elements have been preserved except for the starting blocks and the large-scale windows, which are complemented by vent windows.” [5] Walls, floors and other building components are tiled with small-format ceramic elements of grey-green, light green, sand and white colouring. They complement each other, visually blend and together create visually interesting, colourful scenery. The red-coloured benches with backrests, the graphic markings as well as the red and blue stripes at the bottom of the currently empty pool add colourful accents.  

“The interiors described above would need to be renovated and their operation restored. It is a great pity they are not used, given the possibilities and potential they offer. They would be a benefit not only for the resident students but also for the general public.”  [5]