| |
|
Bibliothek der Fachhochschule
Eberswalde
(Eberswalde Senior Technical School Library)
Architects:
Herzog & de Meuron
Artists:
Thomas Ruff
Location and date of execution: Eberswalde,
Germany, 1999
The Eberswalde Senior
Technical School is divided among a group of buildings all constructed
in the XIX century, although differing considerably in size and
style. They are located on a roughly rectangular site with a beautiful,
old layout of trees and a small river, the Schwärze.

Click images to
enlarge.
Before the War, this idyllic place was an outstanding forestry engineering
training center and now, at the end of the century, it is to recover
its former importance. The extension of the library and a new seminar
building are important items in the improvement process of the technical
school infrastructure.
The two corners of the landscaped block, still unbuilt, suggested
themselves for the placement of the two new elements, based on the
existing urban structure, with its free layout of different types
of buildings. The new library is a simple rectangular construction,
with three similar levels for free access libraries. The tables,
chairs, and shelves follow a regular, repetitive arrangement. A
glassed passway links this new construction to historic building
housing work areas for administration staff and book storage.
The external aspect of the building is reminiscent
of a warehouse structure formed by three stacked containers. This
effect is due to the wide glass grooves that run around the façade
which seem to separate the stories between them. A clear, reflection-free
daylight enters deeply into the building through these big slashes.
The small rectangular openings are arranged in accordance with
the individual workplaces and provide views and spatial orientation
from the outside.
The prefabricated concrete panels are
similar to the glass belts of the groove-windows, and are imprinted
by screen printing. The motifs for the prints are based on photos
discovered by the artist Thomas Ruff in magazines he has accumulated
over the years in his private collection. From this collection
he selected the appropriate motifs and arranged them horizontal
belts surrounding the façade. The imprint on the entire
façade unifies the surface; the differences between concrete
and glass seem to be canceled out. A single band of pictures surrounds
the inside of the library.
|
|