Page 133 - AIT0426_E-Paper

Entwurf • Design Ecker Architekten, Heidelberg
Bauherr • Client Ecker Architekten, Heidelberg
Standort • Location Sofienstraße 3, Heidelberg
Nutzfläche • Floor space 230 m 2
Fotos • Photos Brigida González, Stuttgart
Mehr Infos auf Seite • More info on page 142

Von Ikea stammen modifizierte Regale und Schränke im Materialraum. • Modified shelves and cabinets by IKEA Grundriss • Floor plan

museum – it becomes a place of work. Precisely in this matter-of-fact approach lies its likewise follows a pragmatic approach. Simple pine shelving has been supplemented
quality as an example of the functional transformation of listed buildings. The furniture and extended. Here an understanding of sustainability becomes visible that prioritises
collection that has grown over more than 30 years reads like a condensed history of durability over replacement. Reuse and addition are not aesthetic statements but ever-
modern design: from the heroic early decades of the 20th century through Mid-Century yday practice. Each object is thus conceived several times over – as an autonomous
pieces to luminaires from the late 1960s to the 1980s. Many objects are regarded as unit and as part of a larger system. The quality of materials, durability of surfaces and
modern classics – yet their status as icons does not protect them from change. The combinability determine the selection – criteria that apply equally to the office itself
Eames fibreglass armchairs have repeatedly changed their bases and functions. Some and to the built work of the practice. Colour plays an active, structuring role at Ecker
originate from unusual sources – several of the fibreglass shells were formerly used in Architekten. Saturated tones are used deliberately, layered neutral shades create spatial
a prison. The Eames Hopsack chairs were a gift from the American Dental Association depth. The office rejects the often-used combination of white walls and black leather
after Robert Piotrowski redesigned its Chicago headquarters many years ago. A table by as an indifferent standard solution that seems to deprive spaces of identity. Chromatic
Jean Prouvé now serves as a central workplace, its characteristic steel frame combined decisions, by contrast, establish identity and orientation, creating cohesion between
with a custom-made wooden top by a local joiner. The iconic LC6 bases by Le Corbusier heterogeneous objects and historical building fabric – without levelling the individuality
form the foundation of all workstations – uniformly painted in RAL 7000 squirrel grey – of the elements involved. Sofie 3 is neither a staged showroom nor a nostalgic design
creating a visual link throughout the office. Standardised surfaces are not regarded as archive. It is a workspace in the truest sense, shaped by continuity, adaptation and
a dogmatic limit but as a starting point for further development. Through modification reuse. The relocation of Ecker Architekten brings together decades of experience within
the objects remain relevant: they may age, change and assume new roles. Design his- an architectural framework that not only permits transformation but presupposes it. His-
tory thus appears not as a closed chapter but as an ongoing process. Alongside these tory is not exhibited here but continued through daily use. The rooms prove themselves
well-known designs, functional elements shape everyday working life: printer cabinets, not as images but as a practice of working, discussing and designing. The matter-of-fact
shelving systems and material storage. Particularly characteristic are wall-mounted shel- way in which the team has embraced the new environment proves that this concept is
ves based on a design by Egon Eiermann, fabricated by a locksmith friend. They have successful. The view of the neighbouring river complements the spatial qualities – the
accompanied the office through several relocations over more than twenty years, acqui- Neckar provides a landscape presence that enables both concentration and openness,
ring patina and adapting to new spatial configurations each time. The material library adding a further dimension to everyday work.

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