Guillermo Padilla & Nina Gautschi

This project is born out of the fascination for the Werkhof. Not only by the activities it theatrically puts on display but also by the spatial quality it offers : an arena-like square built up by four longitudinal volumes. The new volumes added to the existing are shaped with a series of setbacks: a housing hill. These make an orientating gesture towards the square while at the same time creating distance, a threshold between professional and domestic dwellers.

Our intervention is informed by the existing. We adopted the pragmatic steel structure of the garages beneath. This has consequences for the dwellings above since the structure is visibly present and has an impact on the atmospheric qualities, raising the question of how to make a garage pleasurable for the domestic everyday life. Alexanders Pattern Language proved to be a valuable point of departure in articulating the specific pleasures we had in mind.

The formal expression of this project also makes a clear reference to the Werkhof and in particular to the fire brigade that will soon be moving out. It was of particular importance to us that the architectural language speaks to and about the context in which this project is embedded.

To have a conversation with those inhabiting the Werkhof today was crucial in order to understand their perspective and their thoughts on the possibility of such an addition. It soon became apparent that a mediation between the new residents and the current occupants would be needed. In our project we also contemplated possibilities, initiatives and spaces to spark a dialogue and foster positive friction between both interest groups; hoping it might result in a friendly regulatory framework, based on unspoken agreements and not prescriptive rules.

During this process, pleasure was our steady companion, it was an integral quality from the very beginning and not a secondary value subordinate to a logical system or architectural narrative. Being our directive, if offered us guidance through every step.