Ivo Oberstein: New Towns in Prague

4. 6. 2009, NoD/Roxy, lecture series of the Matador/Matadora Circle

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This time, the speaker was Prague architect Ivo Oberstein. In the lecture titled New Cities in Prague, he presented his projects from the 60s to the 80s. The discussion mainly focused on the Southwest City project in Prague, on which architect Oberstein spent many years and which is his key work. At the beginning, he mentioned competitions that architect Oberstein participated in during the 1960s, then he moved on to his role at the Office of the Chief Architect, where he engaged with issues of Prague's urbanism, a subject he has remained involved in to this day. The influence on Prague's urbanism was largely due to the period of the 1920s and 1930s, which was highlighted here in relation to the later construction of housing estates after World War II. Ivo Oberstein pointed out the gaps that began to be systematically filled during that time, and within the urban development of greater Prague, the construction of "new cities" followed.
The design of the Southwest City, unlike other projects, aimed for good orientation and transportation infrastructure. The urbanism system "it's raining, it's raining," as architect Oberstein calls it, was something he wanted to avoid here. He was particularly attracted to the traditional character of historical cities. He uniquely employed methods such as comparing the Old Town Square through cut-outs with the design of residential centers. Ivo Oberstein designed residential areas with great attention to detail and social aspects; the urbanism is thoroughly thought out, and he maximally tried to utilize or preserve the surrounding environment, also involving younger architects, such as T. Brix and V. Králíček, who had the opportunity to express themselves "freely" and complement the character of the estate with their postmodern inputs. Artistic works by artists such as Magdalena Jetelová, Kurt Gebauer, or Jaroslav Róna then create stopping points along the way. At the end of the lecture, the 1990s were evaluated, a time that variously influenced the development of the Southwest City. Ivo Oberstein did not disappoint his position as an expert on Prague's urbanism, and when asked from the audience what he would recommend to Prague today, he replied: "Caution."