โโAs Germany celebrates the Bauhaus Centennial in 2019, contemporary architects such as Ole Scheeren have reimagined German architecture, casting off stereotypes that German architecture is austere and utilitarian.ย
Walter Gropius, the architect who founded the Bauhaus School in Weimar in 1919, adhered to the tenet that form follows function. In practice, that meant the style of architecture reflected its purpose.ย
In Oleย Sheerenโsย TED talk โWhy great architecture should tell a story,โ he denounced the design adage. โFor much of the past century, architecture was under the spell of a famous doctrine. โForm follows functionโ had become modernity's ambitious manifesto and detrimental straitjacket, as it liberated architecture from the decorative, but condemned it to utilitarian rigour and restrained purpose,โ he said.ย
Sheeren, the principal of Bรผro Ole Scheeren Group - with offices in Berlin, Beijing, Hong Kong, and Bangkok, advocates that form should follow fictionโand by fiction he means the stories of people who live and work in the buildings. Scheerenโs visually stunning, inventive buildings such as Singaporeโs Interlaceโ31 apartment blocks, each six storeys tall, stacked in a hexagonal arrangement around eight idyllic courtyards that encourage human interaction and communityโproved that German architecture firms can successfully compete on the international stage.ย
An increasing number of German architecture firms compete internationally
โGerman architecture is notorious for being far more practical and pragmatic than being design focused, but this is changing,โ said Jo-Pearce, Head of Architecture at LVI Associates.ย โGerman architects and construction companies are trying to change opinions and there is a real desire to design and build eye-catching buildings. This is demonstrated by the huge increase in architecture firms getting involved in international competitions.โย
Although there is a trend to restore old-school German architecture, such as the restoration of the old cityย centreย or โthe Altstadtโ of Frankfurt which was destroyed during World War II, there is also a trend to build ultra-modern, innovative urban developments such as HafenCity in Hamburg.ย ย
โThe shift within the German market is seeing companies employ design-orientated architects to focus on infrastructure projects,โ said Pearce. โGermany as a country is trying to break the stereotype of being the flagship nation of grey boring design within the building and infrastructure sector. Projects such as the Hamburg underground station is a prime example of the new direction Germany is looking to take with their design identity.โย
HafenCity development attracts international investment
The opening of visually spectacular Elbbrรผcken Underground station in December 2018 was a significant milestone in the development HafenCity. Its ellipsoidal arch profile has been created by crossing arched steel frames that form a diamond-shaped grid pattern.ย
Now visitors to HafenCity can get off at the station and see the burgeoning HafenCity vista from the platform at the Elbe River. HafenCity has attracted international investment and is regarded as a 21st-century urban experiment.ย
Demand from construction companies increase architect job openings
โLarger construction companies are developing their design departments within urban planning and architecture, so they are able to influence designโ explained Pearce. โAlthough the investors and government want more design-orientated projects, those constructing the project want to ensure they maintain profitability. As I result, the demand from construction companies for architects has seen a huge increase in the last six to twelve months.โย
Opportunities will abound during the Bauhaus centennial and Germany will honour its past but continue to evolveโand architects will find an increasing number of openings with design-build firms. โWhat this will mean for the projects ideally is a world where they are completed within budget and on time but still having form as well as function,โ said Hayes.ย
Alex Hayes, Managing principle at LVI Associates, adds; โThis is so exciting for German architecture and really brings them into the 21st Century. At LVI we are working with the companies and the candidates that are at the forefront of this change and innovation. If there are any architects or engineers in Germany that want to be part of this revolution, they should definitely speak to one of our consultants.โ
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