- Student:in
- Henry Deutsch
- Studio
- Leibniz Universität Hannover
- Jahr
- 2026
- Kategorie
- Gebäudelehre
- Studium
- —
Projektbeschreibung
How should we deal with a building whose construction logic practically implies, and perhaps even anticipates, continued adaptation and transformation? Especially at a time when façades are subject to increasing pressure from regulations and standards, the question arises: Is it still about preserving the existing building and its cultural value — or should the potential for adaptability inherent in a building be actively used?
This project explores these questions through a very specific yet unspecific university building that, from the outside, is hardly recognizable as a public building.
The result proposes a kind of reverse façadism: the existing precast concrete system is retained as a valuable resource, continuing to form the building’s primary structure, while being wrapped in a new envelope.
However, a new envelope must provide more than simply imitate the qualities of the previous one or create a new appearance. The proposed façade therefore provides spaces that can be appropriated by the building’s users, while simultaneously integrating a low-tech energy concept.
The second layer functions as a buffer zone throughout the year. During the day in summer, it serves as a permeable, open space. The solar shading elements are closed, while air can circulate freely through the open windows. At night, the mass of the components behind the second layer cools down and creates a stack effect, drawing warm air out of the interior and thus enabling natural night-time cooling.
During the colder months, the winter garden and the refurbished exposed-aggregate concrete panels on the second level absorb the incoming solar heat and transfer it to the heated interior, while simultaneously minimizing energy loss to the outside. This principle could help make the building more resilient to future regulatory pressures while providing high-quality spaces at the same time.
Inside, the strict structural grid results in small and narrow rooms arranged along long corridors in the existing building. Within this rigid logic, playful solutions were required to meet the needs of students and researchers while simultaneously conveying the character and a certain generosity of a public building.
The removal and rotation of ceiling elements, the reorientation of the internal circulation, the sequence of differently sized rooms, and the articulation of a clear entrance were key measures in achieving this.