František Alois Dvořák was one of Brno’s most prolific builders at the turn of 20th century. Unlike his colleagues, who gradually incorporated new tendencies into their architectural vocabulary, Dvořák remained faithful to the typology of strict late historicism throughout his life, not even abandoning it with the start of the new century. The ensemble of houses that he built on the northern tip of the block bounded by Koliště, Bratislavská and Ponávka Streets in 1901–1903 is typical of his work. Stylistically speaking, the facade design draws on the aesthetics of the Italian Renaissance and the palace scheme, which retains a strict symmetry even on such a large-scale project. In order to maintain the proportions of the five-storey building volume, Dvořák extended the rough bossage up to the third floor, making the entire ground floor seem much heavier. The ensemble’s bevelled corners are accentuated by rectangular oriels with turret-like superstructures. Oriels similarly enliven the facade on Bratislavská Street, while the side overlooking the park on Koliště is decorated with balconies of various sizes reflecting the ‘importance’ of their location within the building’s hierarchy. The buildings’ entrances have been designed as portals with broken pediments on half-columns, with half-reclining statues inspired by Michelangelo’s figures from the Medici Chapel in Florence resting on top of the pediments. The buildings’ ground floors are currently used for commercial purposes, while the previously large apartments on the upper floors have been sub-divided for use as offices and doctor’s surgeries.
Martin Koplík
