The Art Nouveau Sipeki Villa in Budapest has been restored to its former glory following a thorough renovation. Many of the original design features of the historic house, designed by architect Ödön Lechner, have been restored, whilst a new service building for blind and partially sighted people has been constructed just behind it. The project cost nearly 3.5 billion forints.
The Sipeki Villa in Budapest
The Sipeki Balázs Villa at 47 Hermina út was commissioned by Dr Sipeki Balázs Béla, a lawyer and county governor of Zala County. The design was drawn up by Ödön Lechner, one of the most important architects of the Hungarian Art Nouveau movement. According to the documentation, the project was carried out between 1903 and 1905. The asymmetrical structure features fanciful turrets, an elaborate roof and a large, glazed winter garden. Lechner drew on Hungarian folk art, European Art Nouveau and Oriental influences for his design. On the plastered façades, he employed organic floral motifs, some of which are recessed into the plaster surface. Inside the Sipeki Villa, the wooden staircase, joinery, decorative door frames and a fireplace with blue, iridescent Zsolnay ceramics have been preserved. The columns of the staircase balustrade are adorned with eosin-coloured glaze from the same company.
The building as a gift to the blind
Balázs Béla Sipeki and his wife had no children, so the owner bequeathed the property to the parish of Herminamező, the Association of the Blind and the National Association for the Care of the Blind. In 1953, the association was incorporated into the Union of the Blind, which later bought out the church’s share. The villa has thus remained linked to activities supporting blind and partially sighted people. Today, it is the headquarters of the National Association of the Blind and Partially Sighted of Hungary (Magyar Vakok és Gyengénlátók Országos Szövetsége). After the Second World War, the building required repairs due to damage caused by the fighting for Budapest, whilst in 1973 a modernist extension was built at the rear of the villa. At that time, the façade was also repainted, giving it a pink hue.
A 3.5 billion forint renovation
Preparations for a comprehensive renovation of the listed building began in 2018. Three years later, Miklós Kásler announced the allocation of 2.9 billion forints, and in July 2023 the government contributed a further 500 million forints to the project. The actual works, based on a design by the dmb műterem studio, began in 2021. The project was carried out by a consortium comprising Épkar Zrt. and Prím Építő Kft. During the renovation, the façades, roof, joinery, metalwork, winter garden, staircase and Zsolnay ceramics were restored. The building services, heating and cooling systems were also modernised. Analysis of the old layers of plaster and photographs made it possible to recreate the original colour scheme. The pink colour from the 1970s was replaced by a more austere, grey-white palette.
The Sipeki Villa and the new extension
As part of the works around the villa, the old service block dating from 1973 was demolished, and a two-storey service building was erected in its place. The designers did not replicate the forms familiar from the historic building. The new section features a façade of light-coloured artificial stone and profiled, sandblasted copolymer glass. It is connected to the villa by a small passageway, referred to by the architects as the ‘umbilical cord’. Inside, there is a Braille printing workshop, a textbook preparation studio, a service desk, a shop selling aids for people with visual impairments, and a conference room. The upper floor also accommodates a space for around 300 people. The entire complex has been adapted to meet the needs of blind people.
Nomination for the EUmies Awards 2026
The renovated building opened in February 2024. In 2025, the project received the Média Építészeti Díja People’s Choice Award. It was also nominated for the EUmies Awards 2026. The historic villa has retained its social function – in accordance with the donors’ wishes. Thanks to the meticulous renovation, the most valuable features of this icon of Hungarian Art Nouveau, designed by the master Ödön Lechner, are once again clearly showcased. The complex features a clear distinction between the early 20th-century architecture and the new section serving blind and visually impaired people.
Source: dmb műterem
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