Tea House Blatná

The reconstruction of the former civic brewery is a long story, reaching back to the very beginning of the 3rd millennium. At that time, a friend of mine, Pepa, approached me as an architecture student, showed me his new property, and confided his wish to one day operate a teahouse. A year later, a flood swept through the building, and the renovation could slowly begin. The original ideas changed in various ways during the implementation; Pepa often prepared unexpected surprises during the construction, sometimes to my delight, sometimes to my astonishment. However, over the long years of this spontaneous process (in which the construction was done based only on fragmented drawings and the moment's mood, the steel framework of the extension was designed by a third party despite my protests, and so on), his quirky personality was strongly reflected in the solution. Almost 18 years after the beginning of the story, it seems that the teahouse could be operational in the coming years. With sufficient distance, allowed by the pace of construction, it appears that the spirit that this building has always possessed has been successfully materialized in the end. This spirit withstood even the heavy trials of the past when the surrounding old suburb was disrupted by a road bypass and panel construction, and the house remained submerged and cramped under a blind retaining wall. Thanks to the new staircase extension connecting the original and raised levels, as well as another outdoor staircase subsequently built by the city, these wounds are at least partially healing, and the previously unfriendly peripheral zone is slowly rehabilitating, largely thanks to Pepa’s intention.