OTI
székháza - Budapest, Hungary
Architect
|
Marcell Komor,
Deszö Jakab,
Aladar Sos |
Date
Built
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Left Wing 1913
- Tower & Right Wing 1931
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Location
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Fiumei Ut
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Description
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Today, this building on Fiumei Ut, in
Budapest, is home to the National Social
Security Institute. It is, in fact, two
buildings constructed almost 20 years apart
but now appearing to be a cohesive
whole. The section of the building to
the left of the tower (seen below) was built
first, with construction starting before the
First World War. It was designed by the
architects Marcell Komor and Deszö Jakab.
At the end of the 1920s changes to Hungarian
laws related to working conditions increased
the work load of the department and as a
result more room was needed to accommodate
increases in staff. The new build
included a dramatic tower and a further wing,
to the right of the tower, that was higher
than the original building (see below).
The tower that you see today is quite reduced
from its original format which was 16 storeys
high with a dramatic Art Nouveau top complete
with clock. However, the structural
integrity of the tower was called into
question due to deterioration in the bauxite
concrete with which it was constructed.
So, in 1969 the top eight storeys were
demolished.
The building features some impressive
sculptures based on the theme of workers from
various trades.
It also features a number of relief panels
depicting hazards to the health of workers, a
sort of visual health and safety manual.
Among the artists who created these panels are
Maugsch Gyula, János Zsákodi Csiszer, Béla
Markup, Sidló Ferenc, László Hűvös, Bíró
Mihály and Antal Orbán. As you can see
below, some of the panels are signed.
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