Fields of study
Architecture and Design
Elective subject building with natural materials | Bachelor and Master programme in Architecture | Carolin Hensch, Alexander Lichtenfeld, Jinxin Liu, Immanuel Loeffler, Magdalena Ochs, Mario Scheu, Joanna Un, Dominik Waldmann, Anna Weber, Timur Yelkenkayalar | summer semester 2022
12 students from the bachelor's and master's programme in architecture redesigned a former pigsty and current summer residence of the Vienna Boys Choir in Seekirn am Wörthersee in Carinthia (A) in a workshop from September 10-20, 2022.
Only found objects - objet trouvés - collected on site were used in the redesign. Particular attention was paid to the materials straw, wood and clay and their combination.
Practical knowledge in the implementation of building processes is of great advantage, especially in the use of natural materials. By working with the material on a scale of 1:1, possible applications, properties, but also difficulties in dealing with these materials become visible. While planning, implementing and exchanging experiences together, the participants again learn integrative working, the common flow of building processes of simple structures made of wood and renewable raw materials and the connection with sustainable building. The experiences and skills acquired in this way serve as essential support for further work in planning and implementation processes.
In the future, the newly designed existing building will serve as the starting point for a series of additional interventions to be developed on site by other universities in the coming years. The area can thus be made accessible and usable for visitors and cultural professionals in addition to the summer months. In addition, the Vienna Boys' Choir is planning to use the area as an artists-in-residence in the future, and further events for the cultural consolidation and use of the area are also conceivable.
The workshop was supervised by Andreas Arndt and Amanda Sperger, members of the Unisono association, who are familiar with the local conditions and experienced in workshop collaboration.
The state of Baden-Württemberg, MWK (Ministry of Science, Research and the Arts Baden-Württemberg), sponsored the workshop aspart of the Learning Backlogs program. After AA London and TU Vienna, HFT Stuttgart was the third university invited to this programme to realize a project.
The student research project was supervised by Prof. Juri Troy.
The workshop showed very well how important teamwork is in the creation of such projects. After the pandemic years, it was particularly important for us to consciously promote not only conceptual skills but also craftsmanship and, above all, social skills.
