KSO university of art and design offenbach am main

workshop

the new university of art and design offers a variety of uses and customisation. teachers and students actively shape and vitalise it. due to the open architectural design, the school is like a blank canvas, open to its users. the entire campus is one large, flexible workshop. materials such as polished screed, heraklith acoustic material, galvanized railings and doors create a workshop character inside.

the hybrid construction with ready-made concrete columns and gable beams is extended outdoors, creating a building yard including a crane runway in front of the workshops. exhibition rooms, workshop ateliers and the theater studio have direct access to the common square in the middle thanks to the folding doors on the front facades. this benefits internal and external exchange. the extension of ludwigstrasse thus leads here to a lively meeting zone that invites the public to linger and to experience the university in the midst of campus activities.

vertical, ground-based vegetation enhances the microclimate, offers passive shading and pre-cools the passive incoming air via window ventilation. the open atria act as vertical solar chimneys and draw outside air from the façade over the rooms to the roof. therefor even on windless early summer days, the air exchange in passive mode is sufficiently ensured. a combined PV and solar thermal system in combination with air-to-water heat pumps additionally increases efficiency in the winter months and reduces power consumption.

art in the park

campus and park interweave to form an open, green space. a multi-layered overlapping of soft and hard surfaces and textures enables an intensive and low-threshold exchange and flow of movement. the campus landscape offers all parties plenty of space, but also opportunities to retreat. the intuitive development through large-format fields can be used multifunctionally as exhibition, recreation and workshop space. the interior and exterior are in direct dialogue with each other.

the paved fields are embedded in open, walkable succession areas, which are subordinate to the use in their vegetation and reflect the dynamics of the place. Large islands, planted with native and climate-resilient trees and shrubs, form an intensive, green and space-dividing structure in their staggering. the trees shade the retreat areas in the islands and the evapotranspiration ensures cooling in summer.

the roof areas in their near-natural design as ecological compensation areas serve as quiet retreats and contribute to increasing biodiversity. stone and brick elements of the old harbor master's office are used as seating for students and as a habitat for small creatures. the habitat spaces are also used for local storage and evaporation of rainwater.