gmp Architekten: The Latest Architecture and News

Upon winning the contract to design the new State Fire Brigade School in Wurzburg, gmp Architekten recently presented their design which involves a new practice hall on the site of the Fire Brigade School in order to meet the changed requirements of the training program. The site is in a very exposed location so that the new practice hall building will be visible from afar, and will clearly mark the position of the State Fire Brigade School within the Zellerau neighborhood. More images and architects’ description after the break.

Just this past Monday, gmp Architekten was awarded the contract to design the new Kunsthalle Mannheim, a decision made by the Kunsthalle‘s jury. Their winning design portrays a symbolic identity, both on the outside and on the inside. The idea was to create a place that is easily remembered, and which appeals with its functional and urban quality. Analogous to the chess board type layout of Mannheim’s inner city, the design is a composition of several cubes, the regularity of which is however broken by an offset arrangement in terms of height and width, and also by the arrangement of squares within the development. More images and architects’ description after the break.

Architects: gmp Architekten Location: Frankfurt, Germany Design: Meinhard von Gerkan and Jürgen Hillmer Design Team: Klaus Lenz, Sebastian Flatau, Ingo Beckmann, Kai Beckmann, Markus Carlsen, Christian Dahle, Henning Fritsch, Ben Joscha Grope, Markus Helmin, Matthias Holtschmidt, Silke Jessen, Eduard Kaiser, Raimund Kinski, Prisca Marschner, Rouven Oberdieck Project Leaders Susanne: Winter, Reiner Schröder Project Year: 2012 Photographs: Marcus Bredt

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Designed by gmp Architekten, Warsaw’s National Stadium prevailed against international competition and won the World Stadium Award in the best multifunctional stadium design and most innovative use of technology categories in stadium design. On the occasion of the 2012 UEFA European Football Championship, the stadium was reconstructed on top of the existing – but since 1988 no longer used and dilapidated – earth wall stadium (Stadion Dziesieciolecia), and re-opened in January of this year. More images and architects’ description after the break.

gmp Architekten shared with us their first prize winning proposal for the Trianel GmgH Corporate Centre in Aachen, Germany. The new building is located along a major road next to the Tivoli stadium. From 2013 on it is to be built in two phases, the first of which comprises 9,600 square metres of gross floor area and will accommodate 400 members of staff. In the second, optional phase the building can be extended by 4,800 square metres to accommodate a further 200 employees. The building’s sustainability concept merits a silver DGNB certificate. More images and architects’ description after the break.

gmp Architekten was recently awarded the first prize in the international competition to build the Culture Center in the newly created Changzhou city center. With a total floor area of 365,000 square meters, the building in this city of three million, between Wuxi and Nanjing, is six times the size of the Louvre in Paris. Reflecting elements of Changzhou’s southern Chinese culture and the city’s prominent water features, their design includes a number of museums such as an arts museum, a science and technology museum and a library, together with service facilities supporting the center for culture in the Xinbei district of the city. More images and architects’ description after the break.

In association with Jean-Baptiste Ferrari et Associes SA, gmp Architekten recently won the competition for a sports complex and urban re-design in Lausanne, Switzerland. The design manages to create an urban link between the diverse structure of the neighboring quarters, the new proposed residential quarter and the shores of Lake Geneva. Situated on a triangular lot, the site is defined in the south by the motorway and in the west and north by large arterial roads. More images and architects’ description after the break.

We recently had the opportunity to interview gmp architekten founding partner, Meinhard von Gerkan. Born in 1935 in Riga/Latvia, Gerkan completed his architectural studies in 1964 at the Carolo Wilhelmina Technical University in Braunschweig. In 1965 he co-founded with Volkwin Marg, von Gerkan, Marg and partners. They have completed together over 260 buildings, among them the Berlin-Tegel Airport (competition, 1st place 1965, built in 1970-75), the Berlin Central Station, Villa Guna, Christ Pavilion, and the Lingang New City, been recognized nationally and internationally for their designs and competition proposals.

The stadiums built by the architects von Gerkan, Marg and Partners (gmp) in Cape Town and Port Elizabeth for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa received the IOC/IAKS Award on 26 October 2011. In the context of the international Trade Fair for Amenity Areas, Sports and Pool Facilities (FSB), the International Olympic Committee and the International Association for Sports and Leisure Facilities (IAKS) selected the Cape Town stadium for first prize and the Nelson Mandela Bay stadium in Port Elizabeth for third prize in the “stadiums for competitions and events” category. The awards were received by Hubert Nienhoff, gmp partner in charge of the offices in Berlin, Frankfurt and Rio de Janeiro. More information on the projects after the break.

This week, with the help of our readers, our Architecture City Guide is headed to Beijing. Beijing has a range of architectural styles, but the three most prevalent are the traditional imperial style (the Forbidden City), the “Sino-Sov” style (boxy structures built between the 1950s and 70s), and lastly the explosion of a modern corporate style that is punctuated with Starchitect buildings like OMA’s CCTV TV Station HQ. We put together a list of 12 modern/contemporary buildings that we feel provides a good starting point. It is far from complete. There are dozens of other great buildings that are not our list, and we are looking to add to the list in the near future. Please add your favorites in the comment section below so we can add them on the second go around. Again thank you to all our readers who sent in their suggestions and photographs. The city guides would not be possible without your help.

To check out other cities visit our world map or our Architecture City Guide page. The Architecture City Guide: Beijing list and corresponding map after the break.

Almost six months till the 2010 South Africa World Cup kicks off. A while ago, we told you we’ll be featuring the stadiums that will host this huge competition. We started with Soccer City Stadium, designed by Boogertman Urban Edge and Partners in partnership with Populous. This week, we’ll be featuring three stadiums designed by gmp architekten. We’ll start with the Moses Mabhida Stadium, in the city of Durban. The stadium was also designed by Theunissen Jankowitz Durban, Ambro-Afrique Consultants, Osmond Lange Architects & Planners, NSM Designs, and Mthulisi Msimang.

More images and architect’s description after the break.