19. Andrássy Street is where luxury has moved in since September 2013, as Il Bacio di Stile has opened its doors. The home of top fashion brands was built by completely rethinking the original building’s functions, designed to preserve national cultural heritage, while re-establishing a beautiful landmark and taking it to the next level.
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Photo: http://epiteszforum.hu
The original building was erected in 1880-81 commissioned by Zsigmond Brüll, a wealthy produce merchant and it was constructed to serve the purpose of an apartment house. Before the development, the historical building – which is protected by the Monuments and Fine Arts Office - stood empty, waiting for someone to see the potential in it. After two and a half years of hard work, rethinking, planning and renovation, today, it is one of Andrássy Avenue’s most remarkable buildings, with a lot of new functions, a panoramic sky bar on its top floor, and more than 5000 m2 space that functions on 3 floors as a mall for world leading fashion brands, and also hosts offices and service areas. Brands like Valentino, Bottega Veneta, Brioni, Giorgio Armani, Lanvin, Oscar de la Renta, Saint Laurent respectively can be purchased here – but it is not only the brands that make this building top-notch: the way it was renovated is remarkable as well.
From the budget of the reinventing of the building, a whole bunch of new flats could’ve been built, but the result worths it all. Designers chose to revamp the building by keeping its look on the outside, but came up with fresh and innovative ideas to transform the inside into something modern and never seen before.
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Photo: http://hungarian-success-stories.com/2013/09/10/a-new-luxury-temple-opens-its-doors/
The old building had no roof, since it wasn’t common in the 19th century, and of course the base and walls had to be renewed to follow 21st century standards. To create an easy to explore, open, airy space, the way of light had to be changed, and new staircases and elevators needed to be erected.
Photo: http://epiteszforum.hu
While keeping and renovating the wall and ceiling decorations, beautiful stucco creations, and most of the old furnitures and appliances, architects and designers decided to build a giant glass roof for the courtyard. The glass structure transforms the courtyard into a central hall, creating a new, full of light, easy to get around structure. Elevators and service stairs are located in the back of the building, which keeps the focus on the eyecatching, beautiful historical staircase.
Photo: http://epiteszforum.hu
The vaulted glass roof helps guiding the light, and gives a modern, high-tech look to the building. Above it, there is an extra floor, that grants an amazing view, and offers fine dining. l’Occhio di Stile is located in the “eye”of the building, hence the name (it means “The Eye of the Style”).
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Photo: http://epiteszforum.hu
Besides the all around first class feel in the building, the interior contains many referrals to the old days – for example, the dining table in one of the shops is an elegant hint.
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Photo: http://epiteszforum.hu
Similarly to BMC, Il Bacio di Stile managed to use a historical building as a shell, and create a whole new world in the inside. The duality of the traditional facade and the modern features inside (such as the escalators and bridges you wouldn’t expect in an old building) makes you feel like you’ve entered a building inside the building.
Photo: http://epiteszforum.hu
