It may come as a surprise, but the Hangya Cooperative, which played a key role in the development of the Hungarian countryside, once had its Budapest headquarters built in the Art Deco style — a true masterpiece of modernist architecture.
In the early 20th century, as Hangya became one of Hungary’s most influential cooperatives, it established its headquarters in Budapest, then a rapidly growing and modernizing metropolis, near Boráros Square. The complex consisted of three riverfront buildings:
- on the corner, a still-standing four-storey residential building (Közraktár Street 34), whose ground floor once housed Hangya shops;
- a three-storey department store with a decorated façade (Közraktár Street 32), which was unfortunately demolished in 2006;
- and finally, the Hangya Cooperative Headquarters (Közraktár Street 30), still regarded today as one of the finest examples of Budapest’s Art Deco architecture.
Built in the early 1920s, the headquarters was designed by Dénes Györgyi, while the eight reliefs adorning its modern, streamlined façade were created by Lajos Mátrai Jr. and Béla Ohmann.
The project Memoria Națiunilor (Memory of Nations) is being implemented under the INTERREG VI-A Romania–Hungary Programme, with the support of the European Union through the European Regional Development Fund, and co-financed by Romania and Hungary.
