Done: The future graduates of the state-recognized academy for the training of restorers of furniture and wooden objects in Munich will present their theses on 21 March. It is the crowning finale to the many months of projects and tinkering: the exhibition of the theses. Every year, students from the state-recognized academy for the training of restorers of […]

Done: The future graduates of the state-recognized academy for the training of restorers of furniture and wooden objects in Munich will present their theses on 21 March.

It is the crowning finale to the many months of projects and tinkering: the exhibition of the theses. Every year, students at the state-recognized academy for the training of restorers of furniture and wooden objects present their extensive work in their third year of study. In 2018, the future graduates, lecturers of the academy, former students and friends of the Goering Institute will meet on March 21. The venue is traditionally the Seidlvilla on Nikolaiplatz in Munich.

Naturally, the lectures are all about wood. Fabian Bodenmüller, for example, will report on “Alternatives to chemical wood protection”, Roland Depner will deal with “Research into asbestos-containing materials on furniture” and Sascha Troppmann will talk about the creation and use of bush-hammered wood. In addition, Magdalena Hartshauser will provide new information on wood painting in terms of history, material and technique. She carried out studies on a historicist cabinet. Ann Marie Löfflad presents her “Research on the upholstery fabric of an ensemble of seating furniture from around 1800”. A broad spectrum that invites professional exchange. You can find the complete program here.

For over 30 years, it has been possible to train as a conservator at the Fachakademie in Munich. The continuous development of the practical and theoretical training framework led from training workshops to a state-approved technical school for restorers to today’s “State-approved technical academy for the training of restorers of furniture and wooden objects”. The non-profit Goering Institut e.V. is the sponsor of the academy. Particular emphasis is placed on applied restoration practice. It takes up around 50 percent of the restorer course.

Pleaseregister by e-mail with Mr. Küglerto take part in the presentation of the specialist work :

kuegler@restaurierung-goering.de

At the beginning of 2016, the Wüstenrot Foundation awarded prizes in its nationwide competition “Church buildings and their future” for special projects that renovated, converted or repurposed churches.

At the beginning of 2016, the Wüstenrot Foundation awarded prizes in its nationwide competition “Church buildings and their future” for special projects that renovated, converted or repurposed churches. The 291 entries included many examples of how church buildings and community centers can be preserved as a visible part of cultural identity. We spoke to Dr. Stefan Krämer, Head of the “Science and Research” department at the Wüstenrot Foundation.

Churches in Germany are facing major challenges. Declining parishioner numbers, changing usage requirements and high costs for the maintenance and operation of church buildings require a sustainable strategy to preserve church buildings. However, we believe that it is not only the churches that are responsible for these tasks, but society as a whole, as churches are the bearers of our cultural identity. There has not yet been a general overview of the architectural transformation of churches. Although the Christian churches or the EKD Institute in Marburg, for example, present individual projects for the conversion of churches, a broader overview has been lacking to date. We therefore decided to launch the competition “Church buildings and their future” to contribute to the development of successful strategies for church conversion.

What developments do you see in this area?

The peak of this trend has not yet been reached. Viable strategies still need to be developed in order to save church buildings from decay and convert them in an economically, culturally and urbanistically sensible way. The city of Stuttgart, for example, is planning to set up a working group to develop a plan for the next 20 years. In my experience, Bavaria is only at the beginning of the process of finding a strategy for the future use of church buildings in the context of social change. A lot will definitely happen here.

Which projects in your competition did you personally particularly like?

I think many of the entries were very successful. This time, we awarded prizes to two particularly outstanding designs, otherwise there is only ever one “1st place” in our competitions. It was very important to us to highlight two different usage strategies, on the one hand the realization of a functional church and on the other a project that demonstrates the possibility of collaboration with a cooperative sponsorship. The newly created spatial structure of the Catholic Heilig-Geist-Kirche of the St. Martinus parish in Olpe enhances the quality of the building, also in terms of urban planning. A reduction in size with a new space utilization concept is the more common variant of a redesign. To preserve the Protestant church in the Bochum-Stahlhausen district, those responsible chose to work with a multicultural educational association. The church is now used both in a sacred setting and as a district center for social educational work. This project certainly serves as a role model.

Were there also projects in which stonemasons were involved?

We see ourselves more as an interface between architects and clients. In this respect, the focus was on the interaction between these parties. However, as far as I know, stonemasons were involved in some projects. For example, in the conversion of St. Joseph’s Church in Aachen into the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The conversion of church buildings into columbaria is particularly interesting both for the churches, as the sacred use can often be retained and a refinancing strategy is already integrated, and for stonemasons, who can carry out the work on the stone. As experts in the field of funerals, many opportunities open up for them. With burial churches, it is very important that an overall picture is created that captures the aura of the place, but also arranges the urn spaces efficiently. The aim was not to create walls of shelves like in a library, but a place that also creates islands for silence and mourning. Architects are not the only ones in demand for this design implementation.

What special insights were you able to gain?

In a comparison within Germany, the new federal states are probably the most advanced with their building projects in this field. As church buildings were no longer used in the GDR era and later – often for financial reasons – did not find their way back to their intended purpose, the question of their future has perhaps been around for a little longer. It is also interesting to note that, in my experience, it is often easier to convert Catholic churches than Protestant ones. Profanation is easier because Protestant church buildings often already have an integrated community center. Many memories of life in the parish are attached to it. The space takes on a different meaning.

In STEIN in June 2016, we take a closer look at the potential of redesigning sacred spaces for stonemasons. You can find out more about the “Church buildings and their future” competition and other Wüstenrot Foundation projects here.