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Youth Club in Stuttgart

Part 1 Project 2001
Annika Dyllick-Brenzinger
Carin Maria Lamm
Carin Maria Lamm
Harald Bartelt
Satu Marjanen
Simon Mahringer
University of Stuttgart | Germany
The centerally located building site is a slightly sloping patch of lawn. Its long, narrow shape and incline create the impression of movement towards the city centre. The site is flanked by rather small, multicoloured houses and an unproportionally big parking garage to the south. The function of the park to invite people to rest is destroyed by the giant shadow of the garage.

Nevertheless we considered the park to be of great importance, since it is virtually the only recreational space for the inhabitants of this urban area. We decided not to plan an "ordinary" house but to incorporate the park and make it a decisive factor in our project. We folded up a part of the park to create space for the youth centre and preserve a complete lawn surface. By lifting the lawn platform from the shadow and the noise of the streets we got a quiet and sunny spot as a result. Furthermore we achieved a fluid shape of the green which underlines the character of a public park.

The building has a dynamic form. It captures the urban atmosphere, creates an object of identification for the youth and emphasizes the urban development situation.

Inside, the dynamic nature of the building makes itself felt through the strong perspective effect of the corridor, made completely of cast concrete. By way of contrast the rooms seem static. The floor and all objects designed to be touched are made of wood. Visitors are invited to stay and rest.



The project "Youth Club in Stuttgart" was completed within three months during a second year student workshop. The aim of the workshop is to simulate the process of planning in reality and thereby get to know the connections and interdependencies between all technical aspects of constructions.

Physics of building, building services, construction and legal reulations have to be considered and developed from the first draft to a realizable solution and constructive details on a 1:1 scale. The idea to interpret the youth centre as a part of a park and to fold up the landscape and create a sunny terrace has been realized in a consistent manner. The difficulties that were encountered, for example prevention of falling accidents, have been mastered in an innovative and imaginative way, always keeping in mind the realizibility of the project. The youth centre that has been created appropriately reflects the complex needs of adolescents and offers a transparent, pleasant and open atmosphare.

The students succeded brilliantly in not only solving the problems which arose during the process of planning but in using them as an impulse to give the builing its own unmistakable charcter. The project impressively shows that the architectural draft doesn`t end on a 1:200 scale but that the true character that constitutes the building reveals itself on a 1:1 scale.

2001
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