Mainai – Public Building and Square in Kaunas

In our entry for the architectural competition, which earned 2nd place, we explored the concept of "Mainai" (Exchange). The name describes the essence of the site - a place defined by movement, change, and the historical layers of a square that once served as a marketplace for goods and ideas. We envisioned this space as a multi-layered urban organism where the gymnasium, office workers, and city residents interact daily.

Instead of forming a massive L-shaped volume, we decided to separate the buildings to highlight the entrance to the square and respect the human scale of Kaunas Old Town. For the building along Gimnazijos Street, we designed a new wing for the gymnasium, while the building on Šv. Gertrūdos Street provides flexible administrative spaces. We focused on an architectural language that resonates with the context: the ground floors are opened up for commercial use with distinct horizontal lines, while the upper levels use vertical lamellas and rhythmic window patterns to maintain a sense of continuity with the surrounding heritage.

We prioritized the public realm by integrating a market pavilion, café spaces, and restoring the historic fountain to its original location. To ensure the square remains genuinely green, we designed a green zone with a soil hill, allowing mature trees to thrive despite the underground parking. In the southern part of the square, we created an active zone with concrete ramps and surfaces for skating and recreation that also serve as informal urban seating. By using sloped roofs and fragmented facades, we referenced the silhouettes of the former market buildings, blending historical memory with modern urban needs. For us, "Mainai" is a metaphor for the ongoing dialogue between the city's past and its future.