HUNGARIAN STATE OPERA reopens its doors to the public
After two years of renovationnot Led by architectural firm ZDA, the neo-Renaissance Hungarian State Opera House (1884) opened to the public earlier this spring in Budapest. The architects sought to recreate the original spirit using high-tech 3D modeling – a task carried out by The Greypixel in collaboration with MadeByLight.
Together, the team simulated hyper-realistic digital copies of the two main spaces of the Opera: the auditorium and the central staircase. Both are located in a historic public part and therefore constitute a fraction of the total area of the building.
all renders by The Greypixel
hyper-realistic 3d modeling of the auditorium and the main staircase
The Greypixel (see more here) managed 3D data collection by scanning both the auditorium and the main staircase from end to end inside the Hungarian State Opera. After processing and remodeling the scans, MadeByLight (see more here) acquired the simulated model to proceed with the lighting design.
‘In a very tight design and construction program, which essentially involved designing during construction, these most important spaces were privileged: the auditorium is obviously in the center because it serves all the other spaces, and the main staircase is become a complex problem,’ carry on the team.
3D scanning of the main staircase
create editable parameters to ensure optimal designs
Every parameter of the hyper-realistic 3D model was editable, so architects could test any changes in real time; in other words, all surfaces, colors and materials were modifiable to ensure an optimal end result. So if, for example, Gabor Zoboki, ZDA lead architect, had requested a slightly different shaped wall arm or removed all the others, it could be done in one fell swoop.
One of the challenges faced in the lighting scheme was to preserve the historical ambiance with “modern additions”. For one thing, the original gas burners, which gave off a faint glow, were unreliable, and no design of the original chandelier and wall sconces have survived. The solution, therefore, was to install robotic lamps on the existing lighting elements – a task that initially worried Ferenc Haász, the project’s lead lighting designer.
“But the result was different: the brain erases contemporary instruments, it only sees luster, it sees splendor. I looked around and agreed that it works unless you focus directly on the robotic lamp you won’t notice it. Even though the technical solution is today, the overall effect is more functional, more evocative of the original atmosphere,’ concludes Haasz.
elevation view
asset – consoles
main staircase
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