The restoration of the Chemical Technology Building – the historic building of the Warsaw University of Technology complex

Anna Wagner

Abstract

The Chemical Technology Building was erected in the 1930s. It is one of two buildings designed for the Warsaw University of Technology by prof. Czesław Przybylski, the then Dean of the Faculty of Architecture. The building was designed taking into account specific functional and technological solutions based on the most recent European and American patterns. In the architectural form of the pavilion Przybylski referred to the geometric avant-garde trends. The interlocking cascaded blocks were emphasising their structural elements, treated in a sculptural manner, with care taken to maintain unity of function and form. The whole design was referring to the mass-textural Warsaw functionalism of the grey brick current.
The building was seriously damaged during the Warsaw Uprising (destruction of the ceilings, burning out of the interior). Post-war reconstruction was more akin to modernisation than reconstruction, as the emphasis was put on improving and intensifying its utilitarian functions, omitting the reproduction of the original systems and historical decor.
The last few decades have resulted in a lot of modernization works to the University’s buildings. The building of Chemical Technology is a good example of this activities, where renovation and modernization works have been carried out for several years, aimed at restoring the splendor of the facades and adapting the interior to modern laboratories. An important part of these activities is the revalorization of the entrance hall and the main lecture hall. The performed work was based on historical and restoration studies. Thanks to the preserved original project of prof. Czesław Przybylski the spatial reconstruction of Auditorium and restoration of the original interior layout of the entrance hall were possible to accomplish. The use of modern material and technological solutions gave the interiors a contemporary character, without styling, while recreating the characteristics of the design of prof. Przybylski. Good cooperation between building administrators, the architect, the historian of architecture and the preservation and conservation authorities resulted in a good end effect – restoration of architectural values while increasing the utilitarian functions of the historical building of Chemical Technology, an outstanding representative of pre-war Warsaw modernism.