The University of Debrecen’s Faculty of Engineering is restoring several of its significant artworks. György Z. Gács’s enamel mosaic on the building façade and Eszter Mattioni’s work entitled “I Live in Young Hearts” will soon be removed due to the modernization of the campus on Ótemető Street. However, both artworks will be returned to their original locations after restoration.
Above the entrance to Building “A” of the Faculty of Engineering is an 84-square-metre work by Munkácsy Prize-winning painter, glass designer and Merited Artist György Z. Gács. The monumental façade artwork, made up of enamel elements, was created in 1972 by one of the most innovative figures in 20th-century Hungarian monumental decorative art. That year, the Debrecen Higher School of Architecture was granted college status and continued operating as the Ybl Miklós Technical College.
“The artworks in the building are an important part of our faculty’s identity, history and built heritage. Visitors see György Z. Gács’s work first when they stop in front of our building, while Eszter Mattioni’s artwork is not merely a decorative element in the foyer but also a memorial preserving the memory of the former cemetery. We placed particular emphasis on the professional restoration of these historic works from the very beginning of the planning process. It is important to us that these artworks retain their original character and, after renovation, continue to serve the faculty community in a worthy manner in their original locations,” Géza Husi, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering, told hirek.unideb.hu.
The predecessor of the University of Debrecen’s Faculty of Engineering, the Debrecen Higher Technical School of Mechanical Engineering, was built on the site of a former local cemetery in the mid-1960s. At the time, a large decorative stone was installed on the exterior of the building on the Virág Street side, set into a curved concrete wall. Artist and painter Eszter Mattioni drew inspiration for her three-figure composition from the idea expressed in a line from Endre Ady’s poem “I Live in Young Hearts.” The artwork depicts a female figure symbolically rising above the former cemetery with its carved wooden grave markers, a young girl playing the harp and learning about technical culture, and a young male apprentice. The decorative stone was later moved to the faculty’s foyer, partly to preserve its condition.
“Restoration work will begin soon, and both artworks will be scaffolded and dismantled. Unfortunately, corrosion and weather-related damage are already visible in several places on the façade mosaic. For this reason, the enamel surface will be restored with the involvement of a metal restoration specialist. The decorative stone in the foyer will be transported by the contractor to a safe location for the duration of the renovation, where it will also be restored. In addition, specialists will restore the statues currently standing in the foyer, which once stood in front of the Hungarian Parliament Building,” Erika Tóth, Deputy Director for Services and Technical Affairs, said.
The modernization and expansion of the Faculty of Engineering’s Ótemető Street Campus began in 2023 and is being carried out in four phases as part of an investment worth approximately HUF 12 billion. The development will not affect the curved concrete wall on Virág Street, which will remain unchanged.
(unideb.hu)
