A Steampunk-Inspired Cultural Hub Rises in the Czech Republic

Acquired by the central Czech town of Řevnice 15 years ago, a defunct 19th-century railway warehouse found new life when a local art school began using the barnlike space for exhibits, concerts, and dances—earning it the affectionate name Dřevák, which is Czech for clog. A simple all-timber structure topped by a gabled roof with deep overhangs, the building has now been transformed into a 2,650-square-foot cultural events complex—a multiyear project that has retained the original’s charm and open central volume while adding such necessities as a kitchen, an office, and restrooms.

Interventions by local firm Sodomka Sodomková Architekti are bold but sympathetic; a massive freestanding steel-clad fireplace, for instance, brings an appropriately steampunk vibe to the main hall. Even bolder are four refurbished shipping containers strategically positioned around the site. One punctures an end wall to form a new entry vestibule, with a small bar and gallery tucked beneath the roof beams above. A second, housing the office, sits against the opposite end of the building, while the third and fourth stand nearby, accommodating the kitchen and restrooms, respectively. Rounded windows give the brightly painted containers the look of train carriages, and though their corrugated metal exteriors contrast strongly with the warehouse’s wood siding, they still belong—the former transshipment hub’s spirit reinterpreted in a contemporary way.