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Architects: ANNABAU
- Area: 800 m²
- Year: 2020
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Photographs:Hanns Joosten, LANXESS, ANNABAU, Wohnbaugruppe Augsburg
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Manufacturers: ComputerWorks, LANXESS Deutschland GmbH, Lucem GmbH, Mawa Design, Siteco GmbH
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Lead Architect: Moritz Schloten
Text description provided by the architects. The focal point of a new neighborhood square in Augsburg is dominated by this expansive, star-shaped seating and lounge sculpture that is made up of 165 cubes of solid-colored concrete, 22 cubes equipped with light-conducting fibers.
It is located in the midst of former anti-aircraft barracks are located in the northwest of the city of Augsburg. The barracks were built in 1939 and used until 1945. They then passed to the U.S. armed forces and continued to serve military purposes until 1994. Finally, the Augsburger Gesellschaft für Stadtentwicklung (AGS) acquired the former barracks area. As part of an urban development project, it is gradually converting the areas available for public use. In this context, a new quarter of the city of Augsburg with residential and commercial buildings has been created in the urban development area Kobelcenter-Süd.
The "Urban Star" represents a vestibule at the main access point to the new Kobelcenter-Süd quarter and serves as a link between the barracks area and the urban space. It is a meeting and resting place. A small urban center is being created here through the development of commercial buildings with a medical center, café, and shops. The square area of the "Urban Star" is an urban neighborhood square in the public space. Light gray natural stone paving forms the surface of the square.
Together with the concrete cubes, the paving creates a uniform joint pattern. The center of the square is formed by an extensive, star-shaped seating and lounge sculpture made of colored concrete blocks. 165 cubes are made of concrete colored through with pigments, 22 of translucent concrete with colored LED interior lights. In daylight, the colored concrete cubes dominate the appearance of the sculpture.
As dusk falls, the colored concrete cubes gradually lose their effect and the translucent concrete cubes begin to glow. The block-like structure of the cubes and the neon-like colorfulness of the concrete surfaces make a formal reference to American downtowns in the western United States.
