Magazine

Every city has its own built fabric, which becomes interesting when incongruous elements are combined. The existing fabric is juxtaposed with the new in surprising ways that ultimately aim to become part of the whole.

The triangular building type creates a strong visual identity and an open character in the new city district. With its building edges of varying lengths and rounded corners, this building typology oscillates between solitaire and block. It thus succeeds in creating spatial references,...

Currently, buildings account for 40% of total energy consumption. In order to achieve the new climate targets, urban planners need to increasingly focus on climate-oriented design and energy efficiency. It is well known that smart buildings, i.e. buildings that are equipped with intelligent... Christiane Fath

A lofty warehouse is the striking urban figure of the new building complex in Cologne Deutz. A cube clad on all sides in translucent acrylic panels, it seems to hover above a glazed plinth. This pedestal area provides a view of the processes taking place inside. Opening up and...

Squares are public spaces in the city that enable democratic participation. Architectural elements include the framed space and the restraint of the periphery of the squares. The background can be designed as a delicate backdrop and should place people in the scene as actors.

Population growth, housing shortage, rising rents, the desire for livable accommodation — housing is a subject of intense political and social debate in Germany. Stakeholders in the housing industry are striving to meet the demands of people from all walks of life, both architecturally and... Christiane Fath

On the southern edge of Cologne’s city centre, a new urban city district is being created on the site of the wholesale market in Parkstadt Süd. Apartments and jobs for 10,000 people will be created. This is the largest urban development project in Europe in an inner-city location. For...

The site-specific approach always has a special relevance. Be it as a reference to the architectural context or to the scenery of the surrounding city and its history. The design references contemporary buildings in the vicinity.

In the midst of rapid climatic changes, urban space is also currently undergoing a phase of upheaval: open spaces and regionality are gaining in importance, the city is becoming greener and spending time in urban space is taking on communal characteristics. Architects, the city and its... Christiane Fath

The guiding principle of a “Lively City District for All” was used as the basis for an urban planning competition, which was subsequently realised. The task for the participating architectural firms was to implement the “code” from the public participation. Our concept aims to...

Every new building today has to respond to the old existing fabric. Appropriating these forms is often deemed to be conservative or bourgeois—a stigma that “creative” architects prefer to avoid. Architects should strive to reflect the past, revisiting questions and solutions of the...

In the second podcast episode, Christian Heuchel speaks with Kathrin Möller of Cologne’s residential housing company GAG Immobilien about housing being a crucial part of city life.

Of particular importance is the colour palette of this new urban district. Analogous to cities such as Paris, London or Venice, which all have individual, unmistakable colour hues, O&O Baukunst has developed a special colour scheme for Parkstadt Süd that refers to the colour...

Still life painted in three colour planes. The Italian painter Gorgio Morandi delighted in the small things of everyday life and the colour atmosphere of his still-lifes is world famous. He was obsessed with the interplay and the juxtaposition of objects. The colour palette builds on...

Can lighting design support a city’s identity and be individually adaptable? Who are the decision makers? Can a product be multifunctional and sustainable as well as meet our aesthetic demands? Is it possible to combine efficiency and emotion?

The hotel is situated in a prime location. On the roof terrace you can feel the proximity to the cathedral. When the sliding windows are opened, small doorways are created that offer a view of historic Cologne, the WDR buildings, the Rudolf Schwarz buildings and the Cologne Opera...

The main façade is plastered in a subtle grey tone. Grey has been used as an elegant colour, as an expression of simple refinement and as an invitation to the neighbours to cultivate togetherness. For the grey of the four buildings, O&O Baukunst has proposed the tones Jade 35, Moos...

„Heute sind Bauten selten geworden, die durch ihre pure Größe den Stadtraum definieren können. ROSSIO heißt der erste Block, den man vom Zug aussieht, wenn man von Osten in Köln einfährt. In ein sanftes Rotorange eingetaucht, erstrahlt die geformte Stadtfigur.“

ISH, the world’s leading trade fair for heating, water and air-conditioning solutions, will be held in a purely digital format with panels, matchmaking and product presentations from 22 to 26 March 2021. The programme also includes talks with architects, curated by... Martina Metzner

Parkstadt Süd will be a “city with special characteristics”. Thanks to the new buildings the city can acquire a local face and a new identity. Sechtemer Strasse residential building integrates into Cologne’s urban fabric. It refers to the urban characteristics of the city and refines...

A vibrant urban district demands mixed architecture. Getting stuck on staid academic views no longer offers an answer for democratic urban society. It is well worth devoting intense scrutiny to the challenge of such projects.

It is a stable urban framework that allows for different uses. In order to regenerate the city at this prominent location between Cologne Cathedral and the Rhine, the urban space is configured with simple cubes that are restrained, unspectacular and flexible. The traditional city has...

New standards that bring together all smart building solutions and customizable, intelligent lighting are the key topics at the upcoming Light + Building. Martina Metzner

Whether it's networked cities or artificial intelligence designing houses together with architects, Professor M. Hank Haeusler is certain that the integration of digital technologies into architecture will improve life in challenging times. Martina Metzner interviewed him about his... Martina Metzner

Be it for a museum, a workplace or a cruise ship—lighting designer Carla Wilkins from Lichtvision Design is looking for new solutions regarding control and customization at Light + Building. Martina Metzner spoke with the lighting designer about regional lighting cultures and colored... Martina Metzner

Whether wallpaper, upholstery fabrics, curtains or acoustic textiles, there was no getting around environmentally friendly materials and production processes at Heimtextil 2020. Martina Metzner

Heimtextil (7 to 10 January 2020) is expanding its range of contract textiles even further with the Interior.Architecture.Hospitality format — World-Architects offers guided tours for architects, designers and interior decorators. Martina Metzner

Anyone planning an office today has to deal with a wide variety of possibilities in terms of both spatial and technological configuration. Working in the office has changed considerably in the last few years, new tools result in completely new concepts and also needs of cooperation—in real as... Thomas Geuder

Anyone planning an office today has to deal with a wide variety of possibilities in terms of both spatial and technological configuration. Working in the office has changed considerably in the last few years, new tools result in completely new concepts and also needs of cooperation—in real as... Thomas Geuder

The Geneva headquarters of the Swiss property company SPG gained a new "second skin" of light and vertical offset glass fins as part of an extensive refurbishment. During the day the fins shade the building and create high visual comfort and a good indoor climate for the workstations.... Kristina Raderschad

Scandinavia is seen as a pioneer for good work culture. Flat hierarchies, a strong team philosophy, and family life considerations are taken for granted, and statistics repeatedly ascribe workers from the Nordic countries higher productivity with less stress. With "work away from work,"... ERCO

Just as painters need brushes with different widths, lighting designers need luminaires with different beam angles. The contrast between narrow, precise lighting accents and floodlighting is a central means of design with architectural and presentation lighting. Flexibility through... ERCO

An architect from Sydney and his team acquired a listed commercial building. The newly furnished rooms show in an exemplary fashion how a lighting solution for offices that is based on perception-oriented lighting design can be both effective and pleasing. ERCO

Individually switching and dimming luminaires, setting up light scenes and integrating sensors — all are made possible by the new wireless method of control offered by ERCO in the form of Bluetooth-capable luminaires. Only a smartphone or tablet with the ERCO

Proven for decades, the ERCO track is, even in the LED era, an unbeatably flexible and economical infrastructure for lighting. It is now taking over modern offices: Jilly... ERCO

The cleanly designed loft office of communications agency mai public relations in Berlin-Kreuzberg has been upgraded with a new lighting solution from ERCO. Jilly downlights meet all the requirements of contemporary office lighting with LED technology.... ERCO