Youth Meeting Centre in St. Georgen/Freiburg
The design, with its free architectural forms, perfectly suited the concept of an open meeting place. Its starting point was not a functional plan developed on the drawing board, but rather a model made of clay, based not on the concept of a house, but on the idea of a spiral cave into which young people could retreat. This earth-like, cave-like architecture encloses an inner courtyard and, with the majority of its volume, is embedded in the rising terrain, forming a footpath embankment. Thus, of the 3.5 staggered floors, only one rises above ground. All levels are accessible at ground level (for wheelchair users). Reflecting this adaptation to the terrain, the roof surfaces are curved and gently sloped inwards. The structure—a completely transparent glass architecture facing the inner courtyard—appears closed off from the outside, thanks to the wall shell with its narrow, irregular light slits and rounded top. This impression is reinforced by the minaret-like chimney rising in the inner courtyard.
