"The thing that impressed me most about Twice is exactly the lack of inhibition, the lack of expectation, the lack of premeditation for an answer, in the sense that, in spite of the fact that it is a definably built space, both in terms of interior organization and programmatic, it is a space that lives when people are inside as well as when people are not there. It is a space open to all possibilities, a space in which architecture is rediscovering itself. There are parts of it which are clearly defined and have the function of a bar or the function of stairs or the function of toilet, but no previous solution, no sort of premeditation, of pattern has been used. The fascination of the place is in the fact that being an existent construction, basement underneath a good part of the ground floor and the second floor, there is a very interesting connection between them because, in fact, they change their position in space, thus you can have the feeling that you are in the basement when on the second floor or that you are on the second floor when in the basement. This derangement or spatial disorganization is extremely challenging".

At the beginning of the history of the EUROPE HOUSE project (that moment with a blank sheet of paper in front of us), the location raised a major problem: On one hand, the Victoria Plaza is one of the few places in the central area of Bucharest where the argument of urban scale (determined by the eight great convergent boulevards) prevails, making possible the construction of some buildings with important volumes and spreading areas of the order of the tens of thousands of square meters. On the other hand, the terrains located at the end of a boulevard famous for its quiet displays of rather low fronts, consisting in buildings from the beginning of the 20th century, with remarkable qualitative architecture. The office spaces disposed beyond the glass plane of the façade are free of any structural element over an opening of 10 meters and on the entire length of 80 meters. Behind the terra-cota walls are the nuclei of vertical circulations, the restrooms, the offices and technical spaces from the first floor.
PROIECT: WESTFOURTH ARCHITECTURE PC/SA, PACIC SRL.
TEXT: ARH.CALIN NEGOESCU, WESTFOURTH ARCHITECTURE SA

The house of which we speak here (known as being that of the architect Iacob Melic) is among the oldest witnesses of those times – the oldest boyar style house existent in Bucharest. The year of its construction has been estimated to be 1760 by the architect Paul Smarandescu and H. Dj. Siruni, but it is possible to be even older. The house, as it looks today, after its last restoration in 1971, which tried to preserve its original image, is the living mirror of an old boyar house. N. Ghica – Budesti speaks about the "verandah on the corner, on the first floor, with interior wooden stairs, with the façade decorated with classical pilasters in Doric style, with a rich cornice, with wide overhanging eaves, and on the interior with a carved ceiling decorating the living room. A brief enumeration of beautiful architectural elements, as they were found in the period contemporary to the architect Ghica-Budesti.
TEXT: ARH. CODINA DUSOIU

"I remember the wide open space on which the National Theatre lies today, where we used to play ball after the classes from the "Spiru Haret" high school. There I had the privilege of becoming friends with Arsavir Acterian. Haig, his brother, two years older than us was a colleague of Mircea Eliade. Though they were older they were very friendly, we would hang out together… At that time I lived on the Salciilor Street, at number 9, which became later Iulius Fucik and now Thomas Masarik. In the middle of the center there was the Capsa café were a lot of seniors would come: Stamatiade, Minulescu, Ion Barbu and many others. We, the youngsters, watched them more through the window. I was together with Petre Comarnescu, Ionel Jianu, Eugen Ionescu, Belu Zilber, Misu Polihroniade who joined the legionary force and died in prison. We used to go to Corso, which was a great café and, across the street from the Romanian Athenaeum – Corsoleto – a very cute bar, that’s where we would gather up. There was also a theatre there that was pulled down, the Small Theatre was called. A hall as wonderful as a jewel. That’s where Elvira Popescu made her debut and that’s where I have seen her, Mihalescu, who appeared in the movie "Joan of Arc" by Dreyer, a great director. There was Iacobescu, Mihalescu, Elvira Popescu, an actor named Lefter. … who died broke. After the Small Theatre there was Jockey club, which was revived now.