Slovak Governor Comes to Shanghai to Witness and Tell the Design Story of "Internet Famous" Buildings such as the Wukang Building International | Architecture | Design
Yesterday, the 2023 "Reading Architecture" International Study Camp opened at the Hudak Memorial Hall, featuring open forums, popular science lectures, on-site exploration of architecture, and other rich content research activities. Previously, the Shanghai Science and Technology Festival event - "Reading Architecture" Science Popularization Exhibition had opened at the Hudak Memorial Hall. The exhibition starts from the origin of architectural technology and extends to the evolution of architectural styles and construction techniques in various historical periods, allowing the audience to learn more about architecture.
As a science popularization base in Changning District, Shanghai, the Wudak Memorial Hall is open to the public for free all year round, creating the "Explore Wudak" science popularization brand. "Architectural technology is one of the earliest technologies developed by humans for survival and is a part of human civilization," said Liu Suhua, director of the Hudak Memorial Hall and director of the Hudak Cultural Development Center.
Architect Hudak, born in Slovakia, came to Shanghai in 1918. During his 29 year stay in Shanghai, he designed over 100 buildings, of which nearly one-third have become cultural heritage. He designed the first modern apartments in Shanghai, including the first air-conditioned hospital and Wukang Building, as well as the Great Bright Cinema, villas, and churches. The 84 meter high international hotel is also his work and has been the tallest building in Asia for decades.
International Hotel
"The number of buildings left by an architect in a city is so large, the variety is so wide, and the style is so diverse, which has created a legend in the history of world cities and architecture." Li Chunping, the second level inspector of the Foreign Affairs Office of the Shanghai Municipal Government and the director of the Europe Africa Department, said at the opening ceremony that Hudec and Hudec buildings are not only the city's cultural card, the cultural symbol that conveys the friendship between China and Sri Lanka, but also the witness of the city's character, and also the historical and cultural resources for deepening exchanges and cooperation between China and Slovakia and other Central and Eastern European countries along the "the Belt and Road".
This year marks the 10th anniversary of the opening of the Hudak Memorial Hall and the 20th anniversary of the establishment of friendly state city relations between Shanghai and Bratislava Oblast, Slovakia. On May 21st, the "Reading Architecture" Science Popularization Exhibition opened during the 2023 Shanghai Science and Technology Festival. The exhibition is divided into five themed exhibition areas. The Memorial Hall on the first floor has a timeline of "The Evolution of Architecture from Ancient Times to the Renaissance", and the second floor has four themed exhibition areas, including "The Origin and Early Architecture", "Architectural Styles and Construction Methods", "Classic Cases of Modernist Architecture", and "The Legend of Hudak Shanghai Architecture".
Wukang Building
Yurai Droba, Governor of Bratislava Oblast, Slovakia, attended yesterday's opening ceremony of the "Reading Architecture" International Study Camp. He said in his speech, "Ladislav Hudak has greatly changed the urban landscape of Shanghai. He is undoubtedly a bridge between Slovakia and China, as well as between Slovakia and Shanghai. In 2013, Hudak was the only foreigner selected for the 99 classic symbols of Shanghai."
Drogba introduced that Hudec brought new technologies and styles to Shanghai, such as neoclassicism, neogothic style, and decorative art, and only used high-quality building materials, perfectly combining art and function. "I would like to thank the Shanghai government for protecting the cultural heritage of the famous architect Radyslav Hudak and keeping it in good condition."
Liu Suhua expressed the hope that the content construction and exploration practice of the "Reading Architecture" science popularization exhibition and the "Reading Architecture" international research camp would guide more citizens and tourists to read architecture, a scientific and technological carrier, and taste its cultural connotation.