Restoration of the Church of Cserépváralja
In Hungary in the 1950s, due to the strict regulations of the dictatorship, churches could only be built in exceptional cases, on the same floor space as previously used.The church of Cserépváralja, consecrated in 1961, became László Csaba's first sacral building and is one of the hidden masterpieces of 20th century Hungarian architecture. The approved concept was built with local materials and with the active participation of the community under the technical guidance of the architect. The Roman Catholic church, which was declared a national monument in 2009, was in a very poor state of repair six decades after its construction. Despite good intentions, the interventions, both large and small, on the exterior and interior have not improved the overall appearance. In 2020, however, a glimmer of hope for the renewal of the church was given, as the Diocese of Eger received a state grant for the purpose.
The design for the renovation was entrusted to the Budapest architectural firm of Zoltán Major and Péter Müllner through several referrals. The designers tried to delve deeper into the building's history, to learn about its significance, and the design process focused more and more on the building's condition at the time of its construction. The exterior has undergone three major changes. One is the result of the accessibility improvements requested by the client. After much experimentation, the ramp was added from the vestry. The resulting retaining wall is a new element in the overall picture, but it seemed to be the best way to complement and shape the dynamic mass of the building. In addition, the vestry, which was only visible in places on the original plans, was completely rebuilt. The third change was the restoration of the original smooth plastered surface of the bell wall to its natural stone finish and its subsequent painting. In addition to these interventions, the renovation has restored the interior to its original colour scheme, with the reinforced concrete surfaces accentuated by a dark grey paint, eliminated the chaos of wiring that had developed a few years after the consecration, and renewed the ceiling and side lighting in a coherent concept. The sanctuary wall has been cleaned up. The previously demolished ambo has been rebuilt in a walk-around manner, slightly shifted from its original position towards the central axis, as a contemporary object but with an adapted surface finish. An almost imperceptible, subtle change is the repositioning of the bench rows, retaining the original masonry bench ends and inserting new timber frames between them.
Entering the Cherepváralja church today, one sees almost the same view as in the years after consecration. The new elements that have been added are restrained, but not neutral: they blend in with what already exists. Here, contemporary creativity is expressed in the absence of presence. The two architects gave priority to the original architect's answer to each question that arose, revising it only when unavoidable.
