Andreas Meck about a university atrium

Building design

Andreas Meck reflects on the importance of good everyday spaces. Here a university atrium.

Atrium of the university,
Andreas Meck,
1956 AD.

In their book “Reminiscence”, Benedict Esche and Benedikt Hartl portray the special relationship between building and architect. There, pioneering architects have their say, writing about their architectural influence and its impact on their own work. Here, Andreas Meck reflects on the importance of good everyday spaces:

“Is it really only the great icons of architecture that inspire and move us in our work? I think it is also the good everyday spaces in which we work and live and which we consciously and unconsciously perceive every day that have a decisive influence on our work. This is how I feel about the atrium of Munich University of Applied Sciences, built in 1954-56 by Adolf Seifert, Franz Ruf and Rolf ter Haerst. With its galleries, the lighting from the surrounding skylight under the barrel roof, the floor paved with natural stone like an outdoor space and the warm, wood-paneled walls, it is the focal point of the university’s activities.

Its daily use reveals ever-changing qualities of space and light. Its atmosphere is never the same. In everyday university life, it is a space full of discussion, creativity and life, comparable to the square of a small town. As an empty room, it impresses with its atmospheric silence, a contemplative, almost sacred space, the echo of footsteps under the barrel roof creates grandeur and expanse and an impression of grandeur. For me, it is one of the most beautiful and impressive communication spaces in Munich.”

You can find more information about the book here

POTREBBE INTERESSARTI ANCHE

Mies – Sitting and lying

Building design
Mies-van-der-Rohe

Mies - Sitting and lying 03 Photo: Mies van der Rohe Haus

To mark the 100th anniversary of the Bauhaus in 2019, the Mies van der Rohe House is organizing the themed series “Mies – Sitting and Reclining 03”.

To mark the 100th anniversary of the Bauhaus in 2019, the Mies van der Rohe House is organizing the themed series “Mies – Sitting and Reclining”. A double exhibition now focuses on the historical advertising photographs of the Thonet company with the Mies cantilever chair S 533.

The series is intended to shed light on practical, aesthetic and cultural-theoretical aspects of “sitting and reclining”. “Against the background of the contribution of one of the greatest architects of the 20th century, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, it can be shown that sitting and reclining is not only a question of function and construction. It is also a question of form, perception and materiality,” explain the organizers.

Double exhibition

In 1933, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe’s tubular steel furniture was photographed for advertising purposes for the Thonet company against the backdrop of Landhaus Lemke. In the exhibition “Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. Mies for all seasons”, the historical photographs are restaged with the Mies cantilever chair S 533.

Also for the exhibition “Mariko Takagi. I think in words and dream in pictures”, the historical Thonet advertising photographs were also the starting point. The German-Japanese artist, designer and scientist Mariko Takagi deals with the terms “sitting, book and apple” in a graphic-analytical and associative way – she compares aspects of Japanese and German culture.

The double exhibition runs until September 16, 2018 in cooperation with Thonet.

More information at www.miesvanderrohehaus.de

German Sustainability Award for Architecture 2022

Building design

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This year, for the ninth time, the German Sustainability Award honors exceptional achievements in architecture. Everything you need to know about the award and how to apply.

This year marks the ninth time that the German Sustainability Award has honored exceptional achievements in architecture. Last year, one of the winners was the SKAIO building created as part of the BUGA Heilbronn. Everything about the German Sustainability Award for Architecture 2022 and the application deadline of June 15.

Since 2012, the German Sustainability Award for Architecture has been presented by the German Sustainability Award Foundation in cooperation with the German Sustainable Building Council (DGNB). As the most prestigious German architecture prize, it honors projects that simultaneously solve their building task in an innovative and creatively sophisticated way while meeting exceptional sustainability standards in the areas of economy, ecology and society.

Clients, architects or users of buildings in Germany that have already been completed and put into operation at the time of application may take part. The properties must not be older than five years and must be used by people, i.e. they must be open to the public or be work or residential properties.

Your application can be submitted online here for a fee of 290 euros plus VAT per construction project and should include the following:

Around the end of July 2021, participants will be informed whether or not they have received a nomination. After the meeting of the expert jury in July, the finalists will be announced and on December 3, 2021, the award ceremony will take place for the winners, who are unknown until then. Due to the pandemic circumstances, the awards are expected to take place digitally in 2021.

The winning projects will receive the DGNB trophy. They can also adorn themselves with the seal of the German Sustainability Award for Architecture and communicate their success both externally and internally.

Topic: sustainable building

The DGNB, the organizer of the Sustainability Award, was founded in 2007 in awareness of finite resources and advancing climate change and now has over 1,300 member organizations internationally. The DGNB describes the idea of sustainable construction as the conscious use of existing resources, minimizing energy consumption and protecting the environment. The three core pillars of sustainability are aspects of the economy of the building, its ecology and the social coexistence of its users. In addition to these core issues, the three sub-themes of technology, processes and location also play a role for the DGNB in the planning and construction of buildings with future-oriented sustainability.

According to the DGNB, buildings should be appealing and sustainable. Starting with an appealing design, factors such as the right temperature in the building, ensuring indoor air quality, optimized lighting and sound insulation through to the accessibility of a building are important so that as many different people as possible can participate in it.

Examples of award-winning projects from previous years

SKAIO Heilbronn

Last year, the “SKAIO” in Heilbronn won the German Sustainability Award for Architecture. The SKAIO was planned by Kaden + Lager, completed in 2019 for the BUGA and is the first – and at 34 meters, the tallest – high-rise building in timber construction in Germany. Commercial and ancillary rooms on the first floor and 60 rental apartments with one to two rooms and a living space of 40 to 70 square meters are spread over ten floors. The building is a timber-steel-concrete hybrid. The reinforced concrete core was fitted with 24-centimeter-thick plywood ceilings. They are supported by steel girders on the sides of the façade clad with aluminum panels. The building achieves social sustainability through a high proportion of publicly subsidized social housing.

Alnatura Campus

The German Sustainability Award for Architecture 2020 (awarded in 2019) went to the “Alnatura Campus” in Darmstadt. The haascookzemmrich STUDIO 2050 office planned the building and realized it with the help of energy engineers and a clay farmer. The “Alnatura Arbeitswelt” is Europe’s largest office building with a rammed earth façade and integrated geothermal wall heating. 13,500 square meters of floor space offer room for more than 500 employees in an open office landscape. They are supplied with daylight on all floors as well as heat from geothermal energy and electricity from photovoltaics. In addition to the company headquarters, the five-hectare Alnatura Campus is also home to a vegetarian organic restaurant. There is also a Waldorf kindergarten and a large number of school and adventure gardens.

An overview of all projects that have won the German Sustainability Award for Architecture to date can be found here.

All further information, contact details and the application portal for the German Sustainability Award for Architecture 2022 can be found here.