Gazebo, Tyršovy sady, Šternberk, 1935, photo: unknown author, source Archive of Photographs NPÚ, u.o.p. in Olomouc
In the Moravian town of Šternberk, originally Sudeten Sternberg, we unexpectedly find a reflection of Czech Cubist architecture, in the form of a small gazebo intended for operating a confectionery. The creation of the gazebo is associated with the establishment of the city park (Stadtpark), today's Tyršovy sady. In an article in Deutsches Volksblatt from 1936, former Šternberk mayor Hieronymus Schlossnikel summarized a decade of development of the Šternberk city park.[1]
The history of the park's construction dates back to 1908 when the old cemetery next to the hospital church in the Olomouc suburb was abolished, and the idea emerged to transform this resting place for the dead into a recreational area. The first proposal was presented by the Beautification Society led by Professor Wilhelm Herzog. However, the society's plans were too large for their resources, and so the city took over the execution of the project in 1926, despite loud protests from citizens. For this purpose, city representatives established a separate committee consisting of chairman Franz Schmidt, a teacher, treasurer Franz Czerný, a master tailor, and Mr. Hieronymus Schlossnikel, the former mayor. The then-mayor, Stefan Maly, initially approached Viennese landscape architects and asked them to prepare a project, but due to their high financial demands and expected considerable costs of implementation, he ultimately entrusted the project to the young city cemetery gardener, Edmund Riedl.
The park committee was very active and acquired the necessary financial resources from donations, collections, concert proceeds, and other events. In 1928, a collection was held in twelve city districts for this purpose, which raised 7,546.50 CZK. By that same year, Šternberk had largely completed a beautiful city park where both young and old could rest, enjoy themselves, and refresh. The city band, led by conductor Rudolf Baschny, held Sunday concerts, and from their proceeds, a music pavilion with a commemorative plaque was built in 1928, informing future generations about the circumstances of the park's creation.[2] Today, neither the pavilion nor the commemorative plaque exists. In March 1931, local resident Therese Stubenvoll, who was 95 years old, also contributed to the local association for building the park. In the Commemorative Book, we also learn that on March 3, 1931, the construction of the confectionery—the gazebo we are observing, called Trinkhalle by the Germans—was completed, and the park committee rented it to confectioner Hans Hoffmann with the assumption of use during the summer season, from May 1 to September 30 each year.[3] According to archival materials, alcohol was not allowed to be served here, but refreshing drinks such as iced coffee, lemonade, ice cream, pastries, or open-faced sandwiches were available. The festive opening of the gazebo on May 23, 1931, was accompanied by a concert by the railway band.[4] For further decoration of the park, architect Friedrich Hermann Lange provided vases and a fountain free of charge, and builder Moriz Helm constructed the restrooms.[5] Further information about the expansion of the so-called Stadtpark or the construction of the confectionery itself has so far not been found, although the author searched the Šternberk city collection in the State District Archive in Olomouc, the building archive of the city of Šternberk, and periodicals.
We now turn to the gazebo itself, which is currently in a dilapidated state and hopefully awaits restoration. The building is located in the upper part of the gently sloping terrain of the city park Tyršovy sady. This small brick building, built on partially stone and concrete foundations, is covered by a metal hipped roof. The visually left part of the building consists of a square room with access to a small basement. The main entrance to the building is located on the central axis of the western façade, through double-leaf glass doors with a simple frame, which were protected from the exterior by a scissor folding grille, probably painted in a dark green color. On either side of the doors, the architect symmetrically placed corner square windows, divided by subtle mullions into eight panels, which protrude from the body of the building in an arrow-like manner, mirroring the relief conception of the façade itself. The northern façade is divided by a trio of similarly treated window openings. Attached to the south side of the square room is a rectangular veranda with a flat roof, supported by a single column. The two spaces are connected by an entrance, which was probably fitted with subtle glass doors, corresponding with the preserved windows. At the junction of the veranda and the room, a truncated chimney protrudes from the rear façade. The dynamic character of the architecture is emphasized by a continuous crown cornice that smoothly tilts diagonally from the body of the building.
Although no information was found regarding the author of the building, it is likely that it was one of the architects or builders active in the region at that time. For example, it could have been Šternberk's master builder Oswald Veth, Moritz Helm, or possibly one of the Mikulaschk family. Regional architects were often inspired by the works of colleagues from larger centers and thus sought to modernize local production. The gazebo, with its architectural division, resembles buildings from the Cubist movement, yet due to its time of origin in 1931, it is more a form of Art Deco, drawing from styles such as Cubism, Futurism, and Art Nouveau. Not many such objects were created, especially in places distant from centers of architectural development like Prague, Brno, or Olomouc. Modern trends in architecture were often transformed and simplified when reaching smaller towns. The source of inspiration for the author of the Šternberk gazebo was undoubtedly Cubist architecture, among whose main representatives were Josef Gočár, Josef Chochol, Pavel Janák, and Vlastislav Hoffmann. These creators introduced faceted planes into architecture, shaping dynamic volumes through light and shadow play. In the works of the first two mentioned Prague architects, we find characteristic elements of the aforementioned architectural style, whose reflection can be seen in the Šternberk gazebo. One of them is the slanted main cornice, which we can encounter, for instance, on the villa of Bedřich Kovařovic by Josef Chochol (Libušina Street No. 3, Prague) from 1912-1913 or on the villa of Adolf Bauer by Josef Gočár (Libodřice near Kolín) from 1912-1914. Another element, the arrow-like projecting window from the façade surface, applied to the Šternberk gazebo, could have been influenced by one of Gočár's other renowned realizations. This concerns the spa house in Bohdanč from 1912-1913, where angled windows are used that similarly extend from the surface along the central axis, but their dynamism is additionally supported by the angling at the upper and lower parts of the window frame.
The architectural quality of the gazebo is undoubted and in terms of stylistic typology, it ranks as one of the exceptional buildings within the region and is the only object of this style within the Šternberk building stock. A similar and unique example of a building influenced by Cubism is the garden gazebo in Příkazy, which is protected as a cultural monument for its architectural value. The gazebo in Šternberk also deserves similar protection. It has survived to this day in almost intact condition, with changes mainly caused by the passage of time, and it is therefore possible to sensitively restore it to its original appearance.
I would like to thank Mr. Oskar Jarolímek from Libina for the provided information.
[1] SOkA Olomouc, Archive of the City of Šternberk, inv. no. 411, sign. 4C, Typed Commemorative Book, 1828-1936, Gedenkbuch Stadt Sternberg, p. 130. [2] Ibidem, pp. 130-133. [3] Ibidem, p. 133. [4] Lukáš Beran, Endangered Building. Gazebo in Šternberk, In: Architect, 11/2004, p. 74; Deutsches Volksblatt für Mähren und Schlesien, no. 21, year 55, May 23, 1931. [5] See Typed Commemorative Book, (note 1), p. 133. [6] Michaela Čadilová, Proposal for Declaration of the Property as a Cultural Heritage Monument, 2008.
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