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German Museum of Architecture / Deutsches Architekturmuseum / Museo Alemán de Arquitectura en Frankfurt

1979 - 1984
UNGERS, Oswald Mathias

Frankfurt
Alemania

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The idea of creating an Architecture Museum in Germany that would house the most significant models of national architecture was already present in the years before World War I, but it could not become a reality until 1979. The German Museum of Architecture is located in a villa from the late 19th century, which was rehabilitated for its new use in the 1980s by the architect Oswald Mathias Ungers. He was in charge of transforming said building into the current museum. This building, which has a façade adorned by Ionic columns that look towards the Main River, was completely modified, but without losing the neoclassical style it had, since it was restored and emptied inside to place “a building within a building.”

Inside, the new core of the 5x5 meter building extends towards the top by means of 4 pillars, being enclosed in itself, that is, the existing façade from 1912 remains intact and keeps a core inside, this being the center of the museum. The 4 pillars support a protective roof at the top, alluding to the simple idea that, under a roof, anyone will find the necessary security. Around this core, the entrances, corridors and service areas are arranged that create a space between the original façade and the 4 pillars. To the south, there are the patios, an area also modulated like its entire interior used as a rest and expansion area. “The building within the building” is protected from the outside, by the entrances, corridors and patios that make it up, creating a miniature city away from the noise of street traffic.

MARIANO J. RUIZ DE AEL

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