JANE STOJANOSKI architect

Concept, presented at the Rejuvenation exhibition of projects for interventions on abandoned and neglected buildings (13-17.06.2011)​

LOCATION: Ohrid​, Macedonia

YEAR: 2011

Built in 1958, the Palace hotel in Ohrid is the first high class hotel in Macedonia. It is located at the shores of Lake Ohrid, in the vicinity of all sights and places of interest in the town. Since its inauguration, the Palace has become a real institution for Ohrid and its citizens, and its bars, restaurants and terraces has become a focal point of the town's social life, making it an important part of its citizens' memory. Designed by the eminent Slovenian architect Edo Mihevc, the building has been shaped in a rationalist manner as a pure horizontal mass with a grid of deep loggias projecting on its southern facade. The communal areas are generously sized, as well as the hotel's courtyard, landscaped as a garden with a mediterranean charm. Also, many modernist interpretations of the local architectural tradition can be seen, such as the collonades in the courtyard, the porticos, the double-storey communal spaces, the use of the stone, the cerramic decorations etc. It's worth mentioning that the main feature of the building is the view to the Lake Ohrid, making all its spaces build a close relation with the exterior through the orientation, the size of the openings and their clever positioning. Unfortunately, many of these qualities have been lost with the later renovations, when the majority of the communal spaces were converted into guestrooms, in order to increase the capacity of the hotel, according to the needs of the mass-tourism practice of that time, a strategy which is questioned today. Having in mind the above mentioned qualities, the tradition of the hotel, as well as the strive to improve the standard of the accomodation in the Ohrid Lake region, this project proposes transformation of the Palace into a first-class hotel, which would bring it back the status the hotel had right after its inauguration. The first step towards this goal is the removal of the later (relatively unsuccessfull) interventions on the building, reintroducing the large communal spaces as the "living rooms" where the guests can socialize. The top floor is transformed into a wellness centre, which, with the use of transparent partitions and greenery, represents an interpretation of the initial design of this floor as a covered roof terrace. With the addition of a ballroom at the ground floor the program of the hotel is completed, making it comply with the contemporary needs. The image of an urban villa is even more emphasized by the application of greenery on the roofs of the lower parts of the building, as well as on the northern facade of the building, making it a real green oasis in the centre of Ohrid.