Introduction - the meaning and importance of the place

Is there an architecture typical of Pécs? While the answer, after a short speculation, is probably yes for a Hungarian architect, for a foreigner, knowing less about the country, it may seem absurd even to ask such a question. Yet there is a real basis: Pécs is one among the Hungarian cities, where over the past fifty years an authentic architectural culture has developed, characterized by unique features. Although the strong features of this special architectural micro-climate nowadays seem to dissolve, with the disappearance of post-modernism the architecture of Pécs is more unified and facing towards the international interpretations. However, the theoretical foundations are still alive.
What we call nowadays „Pécs-ism” on the field of architecture, is composed of several factors. One is the city’s uniquely rich historical past, that is strongly present in the everyday life with its built heritage. Walking through Pécs one can easily encounter the remnants of the 1600-year-old Roman precedent of the town (now a World Heritage site); the museum, that holds the ornamental statues of the large medieval cathedral; or the traces of the cultural center of the Renaissance era. The buildings of the 150 years of Turkish occupation, mainly from the 16th century, became important parts of the townscape and they provide some Balkan-style details into the city’s views. From the role of the anonymous rural town, losing its importance by the 18-19. century, Pécs was saved by the famous Zsolnay factory, which left its eosin-coloured stamp indelibly on the city with its architectural ceramics. The industrial city-character lasted until the second half of the 20th century, this period donated for example the country's top-quality prefab-built neighborhood, the Uránváros (Uranium city). The inter-war period is still thought as an architectural golden age: many amongst the Hungarian followers of Bauhaus had their origins in Pécs: Marcell Breuer, who later moved to America, Alfred Forbáth, who emigrated to Sweden - and who stayed at home, but during the Second World War became victim of a Soviet soldier, Farkas Molnár.
The geographical location is also a characteristic that must be considered in assessing the architectural heritage and the present life of Pécs. The city's diverse cultural traditions arise primarily from its passage-house character: until the beginning of the 20th century Bosnians, Croats, Germans and Hungarians lived in the city. Today still exists Croatian high schools and theater, Roma high school and German cultural center.
With these statements, we thought to emphasize and confirm the argument that „Pécs-ism” does affect the architects’ work. This may work through two consequences. First, such importance of context makes it clear that - if we are looking for stylistic categories - architecture in Pécs is bound closer to critical regionalism, rather than to other contemporary tendencies or neomodernism. On the other hand, in the city - and this applies to both professional and cultural public life - it is of particular significance, that the architects of a project are from Pécs or not. The architects of Pécs are mostly linked to a group of intellectuals, formed around the local university, and more or less involved in the cultural debates. Perhaps it is not superfluous to re-emphasize: Pécs is one of the few towns where the professional work and the public participation of the architects have a real weight.

The way to contemporaneity

The last golden age of architecture in Pécs can be found in the eighties. This was also due to the nature of the city: the intellectual group, that was formed in city and combined the organic theory with the modern practices had the opportunity here to develop architectural gestures, which in a Budapest-sized city would have simply go unrecognized - however, in Pécs they led to real discourses. Although this golden age can neither be interpreted with the commonly used theoretical concepts, and certainly there is some provincial taste in its results; but it was original, daring and sometimes reckless: exactly what a provincial town needs to be if it does not want to be recognized simply from the distance measured to the capital.
By the sudden transition from state-socialism into capitalist market economy in Hungary, architects were left no legs to stand on - both in economic and design aspects. The post-organic movement has become weightless with the loss of its intellectual superiority against the state ideology, its followers have changed approach by now, or got isolated. The role of the independent studios has decreased, but the significance of architectural training is notably increasing.
In the nineties the two dominant architectural trends crystallized in Hungary: one of them is the new-bauhaus, born for the particular representational needs of the new citizenship and exceeded by technicist trends until today, the other is the brick-architecture reflecting effects of the vernacular, whose impact is still evident.
The turn of the Millenium consolidated, the European Capital of Culture title for 2010 brought a new boom for the architecture of Pécs. Although the scale of the work called as the „cultural urban development” and the associated investments appeared scary at first glance, the city has proven its ability to cope with the challenges, even if contiuously fighting problems, even if belatedly. The developments - finished or currently under-construction - of the ECC programme will determine the public life (and the financial budget) of Pécs for decades, but for now it seems that the model can be successful.

Buildings and architects of contemporary Pécs

The architecture of today shows a salutary diversity, however the slice of it showed here, are characterised by the respect for the principles of modernity and functionalism, the consideration of the built environment and social realities, generally the preference of the common weal. The latter does not mean however, that the city’s contemporary architecture would lack the outstanding works.
On the Brick Award ’06 contest the Barbican House was chosen as the best European brick building. The building, completed in two stages, not only restores the dominant role of brick as a building material, but gives the effect of an organically grown whole in the heterogeneous environment of the northwest corner of the historic core of the city. Its designer, the Budapest-based Építész Stúdió, played a decisive role in the nineties in both of the above-mentioned architectural trends. Not so significant as the Barbican House, but a typical and good example of the principles of Hungarian brick-architecture is the family house of Építész Stúdió. Older, almost archetypal example of the trend is the Gandhi High School designed by György Skardelli, with its airy arrangement of masses and dim historicism. The family house on the Tettye hillside by Tamás Getto can be also classified into this group.
The other works of Getto, like the buildings erected for the village center of Pellérd, can rather be evaluated as a continuation of the inter-war modernism. The functionalist theory, however, is combined with examination of the landscape values, nor is he afraid of applying spontaneous means. The three, so far completed new public buildings of Pellérd, provide a new, town-scale for the village, in the same time form a benchmark of quality.
Most of the family house designed by Getto stand on the southern slopes of Mecsek hills, in the neighborhood named Tettye. The urban contours of the hillside area overlooking Pécs evolved during the Turkish era, in the 16. century, and over centuries it was inhabited mostly by Bosnians. The specific Balkanian atmosphere, hidden in the irregular mass of the houses, the improvised solutions and the pictoresque qualities of the spaces, is the main character and value of the neighborhood today. Tettye works as an exciting melting pot of contemporary architecture too, besides Getto noteworthy architects working here are Zoltán Karlovecz and József Koller.
Although the Mediterranean character, often mentioned in connection with the city, is not more than a common illusion, this illusion, however, sometimes creeps down from the hillsides into the city's streets. In the case of the Croatian Centre for Education (Pécsépterv Stúdió) this can be caught primarily in the use of bright colors and in the interior design, by the buildings of the Enlargement of the University of Pécs and the new High Court of Justic it lies in the choice of material. Remarkable, and it also reveals the possibilities of the city, that each of these architectural projects, the three largest of the last decade, are renovations and enlargements of blocks dating from the sixties and seventies.
On the contrary, few young architects pronouncedly moves apart form local traditions, and set international trends as benchmarks for themselves. Such pursuit is Balázs Orlovits’ DDKVF office building and many of Bálint Bachmann’s works. The latter's father, Zoltán Bachman, designer of the city's dominant public buildings, can be also classified here. By his Cella Septichora Visitors Centre the contemporary application of forms and materials and the innovative structural solutions are supported with exciting thoughts. The older Bachman and his son, with whom he operates a common studio, are dominant figures of the Faculty of Architecture on the University of Pécs.
The actual weight of the Pécs architects was also apparent when architectural investments, five major projects and several public space rehabilitation were set as the key-features the European Capital of Culture programme. Although later a lot of things formed otherwise as prevously hoped, and the most promising investment, the new city gallery would not be realized, the new investments – already delivered or still under construction – will obviously have a large impact on the city. The Conference and Concert building is designed by Építész Stúdió – its masters already know the city well; the Regional Library and Knowledge Center’s designer is a newly arrived team, led by Mihály Balázs. The Zsolnay factory’s historic district will be renewed and in the future it will host cultural and community events. Although the young and the city’s architects played serious role during the competition period, the planning of the major projects were won mainly by architects from the capital. This inspired debate in the city, but the place of the initial aversion is now taken over by the local-patriotic approach – and this is the right way to the continuation of „Pécs-ism”. Dániel Kovács