(un)determined - Object & Place
Concept and Direction | Matthias Castorph, Christina Aschauer
This semester the Institute of Design in Existing Structures and Architectural Heritage Protection will look into the subject of (un)determined architecture in (un)determined places using the example of the high-rise building on Dietrichsteinplatz. The Dietrichsteinplatz forms the transition from an area characterised by the development of the fortress forecourt in the 18th century to the strict perimeter block development of the “Gründerzeit” and is now characterized by traffic. Furthermore, as a solitaire the late-modern high-rise building forms a dominant feature in the cityscape. However, the setting seems indefinite, does not care about the context.
The design task explores the question of the location of this indefinite building. With which architectural means can the building be better integrated into the context - both in the cityscape and in the immediate surroundings? What architectural interventions are necessary to bring the building up to today's standards? And how can the character of the building be retained?
The course will examine these questions and subject the building to a change of use. The office and residential building is to be transformed into short-term accommodation for exchange students. For the public and semi-public areas on the first two floors, depending on the design, suitable communal functions are to be defined and corresponding rooms are to be designed. In the projects, the question of how “shortterm living” differs from conventional living, what needs are associated with it and how these can be implemented in the existing building are examined individually.