School of Architecture Bremen, University of applied Sciences Bremen/Germany

Master of Arts, winter term 2013/2014

Isabel Carrera, © all rights reserved

Guiding professor: Prof. Clemens Bonnen (School of Architecture Bremen, Hochschule Bremen)

The International Graduate Center Bremen set the task to design the new campus for master students on a 500 s.m. plot located in the Hohentor quarter and in the surroundings of the Neustadtwallanlagen (a wide public green space that belongs to the so called "green belt" of Bremen).

The cubature of the building sets a tangible gesture in the area and integrates in the cityscape. The plot area defines the shape of the building that elevates up to five floors. The roof was designed in polygonal shapes that incline to each other in order to reinterpret the roof shapes of the surrounding area.

There was a predetermined program regarding the effective area that was set by the International Graduate Center. The results are wide student facilities from the cellar up to the second floor, like an auditorium, several classrooms, a library and the student´s cafeteria. The lounge area in the ground floor was designed for the students to meet and communicate. The third and fourth floor were assigned for administrative use. They have the particular detail of letting natural sunlight into the building by setting a spacious atrium. Numerous offices take advantage of it and connect visually to each other to enhance communication.

The design and construction of the building were structured to work sustainable in terms of use. The outer walls and two inner walls serve as the load-bearing structure of the building so that every other wall could be moved or removed according to future use. The building connects the interior and exterior space through its large window apertures in the ground floor. The chosen materiality is reflected in the construction and the design. Precast concrete parts were set in a particularly way: they were pigmented in white and embossed with a special texture according to the design. This design selection integrates the building in the neighborhood and sets a landmark for the quarter.