45 Nowogrodzka Street is one of the most important and recognisable buildings of the interwar period in Warsaw. As the headquarters of the Telecommunications and Telegraph Office, the edifice became a symbol of modernity, technical innovation and functionalism in Polish architecture. No less fascinating is the biography of its creator, who set the tone for the creation of 20th century postal buildings.
Julian Puterman – architect with a musical soul
Julian Puterman, designer of the famous high-rise building at 45 Nowogrodzka Street, was not only an outstanding architect but also a talented cellist. As Tomasz Lachowski, an architect and researcher on the history of Polish Modernism, emphasises: “Every project created had to be a harmonious composition and resound loudly in the surrounding space”.
He came from a medical family, which influenced his approach to design – he always put people and their needs at the centre. It was his concern for users and the functionality of buildings that became his trademark. After studying architecture in Munich, Puterman began his career with prestigious projects, including the Sacré Coeur school and boarding school near Poznań and the monumental Excelsior Hotel in Iwonicz-Zdrój. He quickly gained recognition by realising the postal and telegraph office building in Gdynia, as well as winning competitions to design the new headquarters of the Ministry of Posts and Telegraphs and the Central Railway Station in Warsaw (one of three equal prizes).
A skyscraper like a note – the architecture of 45 Nowogrodzka Street
Puterman’s collaboration with the Ministry of Posts and Telegraphs resulted in a landmark building at 45 Nowogrodzka Street.
The architect subordinated the project to principles set out in several points, according to which the structure was formed by a steel skeleton, the form followed the function and was created from the juxtaposition of cuboid blocks of different scales. The solutions adopted made it possible to achieve wide strip windows and excellent interior lighting, as well as adapting the size of the storeys to the requirements of modern telegraph and telephone equipment.
As Tomasz Lachowski notes: “If we add to this the use of, among other things, stone cladding and noble plasterwork, chrome elements and modern furnishings, we obtain a recipe for modernism of the highest quality, in line with Le Corbusier’s postulates for modern architecture. The building has created a new aesthetic quality and cleaned up the development of an inner-city quarter located just a few steps from Jerozolimskie Avenue and the main railway station.”
Functionality and innovation – a training ground for modern solutions
The building was completed at the end of 1933. It was not only an aesthetic breakthrough. “The construction of the Central Telegraph and Intercity Telephone Building became a kind of testing ground where solutions were tested and developed, which were soon used on a larger scale” – Lachowski emphasises.
The building housed not only offices and operating rooms, but also staff housing, a teletechnical school and a postal and telecommunications museum. Such a broad spectrum of functions made 45 Nowogrodzka Street one of the most versatile and advanced public buildings of its time.
Today, Nowogrodzka 45 is not only a testament to architectural courage and innovation, but also a symbol of the development of Poland’s telecommunications infrastructure and the vision of an architect who was able to combine functionality with beauty and concern for people.
A timeless legacy
The postal infrastructure in the territory of the reborn Second Republic was far from sufficient. After regaining independence in 1918, we inherited many buildings from the partitioners that did not meet the requirements for modern post offices.
A team led by Puterman drew up the first comprehensive set of rules for the design of postal, telegraph and telephone buildings, using the experience of 45 Nowogrodzka St. “Their quality is evidenced by the fact that they remained in force without major changes until the outbreak of the Second World War, “says Lachowski.
When planning the new facilities, the architect paid a lot of attention to working conditions so that postal workers could focus on carrying out their tasks and also rest. It is worth mentioning that in the Second Republic, people employed in state jobs were widely respected and enjoyed great social authority.
Between 1931 and 1939, despite financial difficulties, more than 30 new post and telegraph offices were erected according to Puterman’s guidelines. He himself prepared designs for buildings in Kalisz, Sandomierz, Katowice-Szopienice, Rivne and Lutsk. He also realised the Postal Station Office in Bydgoszcz and extended the building of the Postal and Telegraph Office in Gdynia.
“These buildings have, for the most part, survived the war and are still being successfully used today, which testifies to the architect’s outstanding skills,” Lachowski adds.
After the end of the war, Julian Puterman, under the name Sadłowski, continued to work professionally, using the knowledge he had acquired during the construction of the building at 45 Nowogrodzka Street – he designed, among other things, the capital’s hospitals: the MSW at Wołoska Street and the Bielański Hospital.
source: press materials
Source of contemporary photographs (in colour): zEITGEIST Asset Management’s own materials
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