Reformed Church of Outer Kelenföld

Reformed Church of Outer Kelenföld

1115 Budapest, Ildikó tér 1.

Architect: István Szabó

Planning: 1978, construction: 1981

Documentation: February 2020

Photos: Judit F. Szalatnyay, concept: Márta Branczik, contributor: Csaba Gál

The documentation of the building was conducted in collaboration with the Hungarian exhibition project Othernity - Reconditioning our Modern Heritage at the 17th International Architecture Biennale.

In the early 1980s, the Reformed Church on Ildikó Square was built with special methods, using special materials. Even at that time, the socialist state system in Hungary did not support religious life, but rather tolerated it.  The churches and congregations could rely mainly on donations from their own congregants, and possibly on church help from abroad. Nevertheless, this situation encouraged cooperation, creative energy and the 'civilian courage' of the time. It was thanks to such an independent initiative, using simple building materials, that István Szabó designed and built the Catholic All Saints' Parish Church in Farkasrét, and it was on the basis of this work that the architect was commissioned by the Reformed congregation of Kelenföld. Originally developed for exhibition pavilions and temporary structures (based on István Szabó's design), the installation of the ‘Kipszer’ space grid was cheap and quick. The walls and roof of the hexagonal, tilted slab-shaped building are made up of a space grid interconnected in star shapes, with trapezoidal sheeting on the sides and wired glass on top to provide filtered light. The side walls were insulated and the roof was protected from the heat by shading, but as the building materials were not designed for this use, the insulation was still inadequate.

The church is a single large undivided space, symbolising the communal togetherness of Reformed believers, and its focal point is the pulpit and the altar, which is clad in glazed ceramic tiles with a grooved surface and accentuated by its bright dark blue colour.

The electric bell in front of the church is the work of goldsmith Zsuzsa Bartha.

GALLERY:

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