Studio Seilern has designed a mixed-use development from a number of historic buildings in the UNESCO-protected Old Town, preserving their historic value while adapting their function to the modern age.
A major real estate development project, Boksto 6, has been launched in the 500-year-old city center of Vilnius, a city that celebrates its 700th anniversary this year. Architect Christina Seilern and her studio are simultaneously restoring and modernizing historic buildings that have been neglected for years so that they can finally become an integral part of the Lithuanian capital’s bustling life. The multi-unit complex has been used for a variety of purposes over the centuries, including housing the Polish Cardinal’s Palace, a Carmelite monastery, and a Soviet hospital.
The new plans include the development of two office buildings, several homes, two restaurants, a spa, and a small public park, while the former chapel will be used for events. In order to reconcile past and present, the architectural studio is carrying out the renovation in accordance with UNESCO regulations, retaining Gothic and Baroque features and restoring centuries-old frescoes. The new functions will, of course, require new structures and elements, but these will not be added in a pseudo-historical style but as a contemporary response to the original features—such as the ‘tower’, which will house a lift and staircase, a clean, modern counterpart to the slender and tall Baroque spires.
Source: Wallpaper
Visualization: Roland Halbe