Studio: Consequence forma architects – architecture, landscape, urbanism
Author: Martin Sladek, Janica Šipulová
Contact email: info@consequence.cz
Website: https://consequence.cz/
Social media: www.facebook.com/consequenceforma, www.instagram.com/consequenceforma
Studio address: Botanická 59, 612 00 Brno, Czech Republic
Project team:
Project coordinator: Nina Vlček Líčková
- Engineering: Barbora Bělunková
- Landscape architecture, architecture: Jan Šlejdr, Petra Buganská
- Partial collaboration: Prokop Matěj, Zuzana Včeláková, Katka Hlavničková
Design year: 2016–2021
Completion year: 2022
General description
We view the park area through the lens of urban, architectural, landscape, and social connections. The final design makes the park accessible while preserving its natural landscape values. At the heart of the concept is an open space in the center of the park with significant cultural and social potential. It is framed by a clearly defined ring of mature trees. We preserve and enhance this space, making it accessible through a circular promenade with a café and playground. Varying intensity of zone use is one of the foundations of the concept: the area around the café and the central space carry the greatest load, which gradually decreases toward the outer edge. The promenade beneath the canopy of mature trees offers tranquility, while the central part of the park provides opportunities for various types of active recreation and play.
Description
The park at Moravské náměstí in Brno has become a new place that creates its own aesthetic of calm and activity, sharply contrasting with the constant bustle and traffic movement in the city. The project represents a comprehensive approach to reviving a vibrant public space in the historic center of Brno that meets the demands of the 21st century. It incorporates blue-green infrastructure elements, meets environmental sustainability and biodiversity standards, and promotes community building and inclusivity.
The park’s defining feature is the central zone, which represents a new public place in Brno: an urban square. This is a meeting place at the very heart of the park, where a fountain creates a water mirror or cloud of mist. The square is defined by a massive bench that brings calm to this place and encircles the area in a ring. This unique space is exclusively for pedestrians and offers a new concept of shared comfort. The spacious bench provides freedom: here you can lie down, sit, rest, play. This brings the place to life. With the first rays of sun, the square comes alive. The fountain area transforms into a stage—there is always something to watch, something happening. This is a combination of activity and calm, reflected in the water’s surface. Everyone passing by is involuntarily immersed in their own movement. The water emphasizes each moment with a mirror reflection. The fountain’s operation noticeably influences activity in the park’s center—attracting people and encouraging interaction and play. In summer, the place fills with children, while adults also find moments for rest here. This location offers relaxation and active leisure, sunbathing and the opportunity to cool off—which is why the park earned the name “Brno Sea.” The central zone with its dynamic energy and poetic calm is the heart of the entire concept. The space changes its rhythm depending on the season and even the time of day.
It was also important to unlock the potential of the northern part of the park and integrate the café and playground into the new appearance of the area. Previously neglected sections have been transformed into a picturesque place with views of the cityscape and St. Thomas Church. The café pavilion has become a connecting link between the park and the city, emphasizing the urban character of Koliště Street, which was previously overloaded with traffic and is now gradually transforming into an urban boulevard. The café with terrace completes the circular shaded promenade beneath the canopy of old trees and creates diverse spaces for relaxation and socializing. There are amenities for visitors, nearby is a playground and a “speakers’ corner” where small theatrical, musical, and other events occasionally take place. The café is an important hub of social and public life—the true heart of the park.
The partially transparent roof structure of the café allows a tree to grow through it. The foundation supports an eight-meter ellipse—the Sun, integrated into the café roof. Half of the structure is mirrored above the roof. During the day, the polished steel ellipse disappears—and reappears at sunset thanks to lighting, delicately complementing the visual axis from the center. The theme of reflection, beginnings, and open questions about our society is set by the neon word “Budoucnost” (“Future”) on the café’s rusty facade—made from weather-resistant steel that gradually develops a patina of rust.
Light gravel beneath the tree canopy, casting shifting shadows, invites visitors to linger. A carousel, chairs, and tables of various sizes attract children’s attention. Original play elements are inspired by the concept of the city as a café-metropolis: white objects of various sizes are scattered throughout the park. In contrast to the lively café surroundings, grassy and meadow areas stretch along the promenade, offering calm and shade. The distinctive edge visually connects the park with its surroundings. On a walk, you can enjoy every season—thanks to perennials and bulb plants that bloom in the appropriate season. Flowers, shrubs, and trees form a protected environment—an oasis of calm and safety. Park entrances are designed according to the actual routes people use. This was achieved using a method of recording naturally formed paths: after snowfall, drone photography tracked the paths trampled by visitors in fresh snow. The key route consists of a wide main promenade, from which smaller radial paths branch off. These are complemented by a circular promenade, as well as narrow grass-covered paths.
Environmental sustainability
Blue-green infrastructure restores the water regime to its original state. These nature-inspired solutions maximize rainwater retention in the park: it safely infiltrates the soil and better nourishes vegetation. On hot days, the park and its surroundings have a favorable microclimate—particularly thanks to the fountain with cooling sprayers. Blue-green infrastructure is a key tool for climate change adaptation in urban areas, as it systematically and effectively helps combat floods and droughts. A park with blue-green infrastructure elements provides residents with ecosystem services under conditions of climate variability.
All paved surfaces have a slight slope that directs water into gravel ditches and channels. Part of the rainwater is used to irrigate floodplain areas, trees in gravel, and the green strip in the northern part of the park. New trees are planted in gravel on a structured substrate—a mixture of gravel enriched with biochar and compost—which retains moisture for a long time after rain, preserves air in the soil, and distributes nutrients. Additional trees complement the park’s perimeter. Species selection continues the existing diversity and adds non-native species resistant to climate change. Shrub canopies are gradually pruned, transforming them into individual trees.
Large lawn areas and understory beds receive and absorb a significant amount of water thanks to a deep gravel profile. There are three types of lawns: a picnic area in the central part of the park; grass and herbaceous plants in semi-shaded places under trees and in depressions; gravel zones around play equipment and seeded sections of granite paving.
A distinctive feature of the park is the border consisting of herbaceous cover, shrubs, and trees. This is a protected and clearly structured ecological system with good conditions for the development of diverse natural habitats. The relief with modeled depressions and elevations (mounds and hollows) is inspired by natural processes in periodically flooded biotopes—ridges in the relief of Moravian floodplain landscapes. Three types of habitats correspond to different moisture conditions: depressions, elevations, and a transitional zone. Next to the café is a wet lawn with grass and ferns.
Additional information
The city park at Moravské náměstí is planted with mature trees along the perimeter. For a long time, the park was in a neglected state, and the initial spatial structure was nonfunctional. The paths around the fountain only intersected, without creating a cozy space where one would want to linger. The star-shaped arrangement of paths, surprisingly, cut the park into segments whose depth remained unutilized.
Context – Urban planning
Moravské náměstí is a meeting place between the existing city center and the park ring road (Ringstrasse). We build on the strengths of both and affirm the status of Moravské náměstí as a park in the context of other Brno squares. That is why we complement the city park with a multifunctional central zone—an urban square consisting of a massive wooden bench and a fountain with a water mirror. The park has a new form with an open, unoccupied space in the middle, contrasting with the tall mature trees along the perimeter.
Concept – architectural and landscape solution
The concept takes into account varying intensity of use and delineates natural segments and recreational zones. The basic spatial structure is built on interconnected pedestrian paths and the existing tree arrangement. Based on the results of a dendrological survey, the area is cleared of unhealthy trees and neglected shrubs, some of which are transplanted. This solution makes Moravské náměstí more comprehensible for pedestrians. By designing a circular path beneath the massive tree canopy, we activate the park on both sides throughout its depth and create a special atmosphere inside. Along the perimeter, we complement and strengthen the vegetation belt, which balances the openness of the center. The circular path is complemented by a short diagonal connection between the center and the northeastern end of the park. Radial connections expand the route network. An urban arena is proposed as the main accent of the central part of the park. This multifunctional space embodies a new typology of park use in the historic city center in the 21st century. Oriented along the city’s visual axis from Rašínova Street, we positioned the Sun vertical and the park’s functional objects—the café and playground. Thanks to the southern orientation, a unique view of the entire park and the city panorama with St. Thomas Church opens up.
Special attention is paid to individual park surroundings. Existing trees create a pleasant and cozy atmosphere. The café serves as a boundary and connecting link. In summer, the space around the water mirror comes alive, and the mist sprayers completely change the dynamics of the place and its use.
From competition to completion
The park was renovated according to the winning competition project developed by the architectural firm Consequence forma architects. The authors of the architectural, urban, and landscape concept—Janica Šipulová and Martin Sladek—won the open design competition in 2016. The main goal was to design the park as a recreational and leisure zone for city residents.
After in-depth research in 2019, a project team was formed. It included landscape architect Klára Zahradníčková. Stormwater management is overseen by hydraulic engineer Jiří Vítek, and the development of individual play elements by artist Richard Loskot.
Serving as the main contractor for project documentation preparation, Consequence forma architects had the opportunity to continuously develop and refine the project. In particular, the central zone with seating and the café were worked out in detail during the process.
Before construction began, measures were taken to improve the condition of root zones of existing trees, and the cellars beneath the former German House were investigated. Throughout construction, trees were treated with special care.
The construction company Skanska, together with subcontractors, executed the work with exceptional thoroughness. Thanks to the high quality of all implementation stages and close cooperation with the Brno-střed municipal district, an exceptional park was created that won the Czech award “Park of the Year 2023.”