Work of Art in Focus – July 2021
Petőfi Theatre is one of the four theatres of the Hungarian town of Veszprém. The Secession-style main building of the theatre is located in Veszprém's inner city: in Óvári Ferenc Street at the northern end of Theatre Park (in Hungarian: Színházkert). Designed by Hungarian architect István Medgyaszay, the Theatre opened on 17th September 1908 and was adjacent to the contemporary Korona Hotel and the Casino. The style exhibited by Petőfi Theatre reflects several years of István Medgyaszay's research work, who studied Hungarian folk art and the cultures of Hungary's oriental roots to produce this unique design. Of outstanding importance is Medgyaszay's mixing of the artistic presentation and use of reinforced concrete structures and ancient Hungarian traditions as decoration. Through this exceptional design, Petőfi Theatre could ultimately emerge as on of the most important symbols of Hungarian secession and the novel artistic trend called "new Hungarian style".
Necessitated by the need to completely modernise of the building, the Theatre was renewed in the 1980s. With respect to the historic and protected nature of the building, this reconstruction project posed a challenge also involving professional debates. The reconstruction works took place between 1984 and 1988. The plans were prepared by the Hungarian Public Building Construction Company in cooperation with architect Péter Szendrő, interior designer István Szenes and further other co-designers including structural and mechanical engineers, scenists, etc.
"Due to the development of technology and technical demands by theatre arts, the original building of the Theatre became increasingly outdated. The refurbishment of the electrical wiring and the never-ceasing development of stage technology both increasingly necessitated the Theatre's reconstruction and the extension of the building. Originally the Theatre was build to house performances rather than to be the home of a theatre troupe. For this reason and given that the theatre then had its own troupe already, bigger departments for the general management and facility management of the Theatre were established, a new studio theatre was built and new stage engineering solutions were also installed. The design of the works began in 1977, but the full reconstruction was completed only in 1988. [...] The full reconstruction included the refurbishment of the building's exterior and entrances, the renewal of the Theatre's adjacent urban areas, and the construction of a Studio Theatre and a service-purpose extension located partly underground. In addition to the installation of the stage and the renewal of the technical solutions afforded by the stage, refurbishment also included interior design purpose reconstruction István Szenes is an Ybl Miklós Award and Artist of Merit Award winning Hungarian interior designer."
István Szenes is Full Member of the Section of Applied Arts and Design of the Hungarian Academy of Arts and since 2017 he has been the Head of this Section. This exhibition entitled Imagination and Reality presents a wide selection of works designed in the scope of his 50-year-long career of interior design.
