Review | Luise Kister in Stuttgart
As a prelude to the fourteenth November Series in Stuttgart, Prof. Markus Allmann (from Allmann Sattler Wappner Architekten) welcomes the guests and gives an overview of the four events of this year's series. It is striking, states Prof. Allmann, that this year only female architects report on their work and their standpoints on contemporary architecture. With a view to the Düsseldorfer Erklärung zum Städtebaurecht (Düsseldorf Declaration on Urban Planning and Building Law), topics such as the densification of housing space, social housing and environmentally conscious building will also be highlighted. According to its own statements, it is precisely these issues for which the Declaration presented last May in Berlin provides approaches for discussion as to how "beautiful and viable urban quarters (...) can be planned in the future and will not fail due to outdated legal planning restrictions."
The architectural office Haltmeier Kister from Zurich is particularly concerned with the question of economic and high-quality planning of living space. The architects' work is characterised by precision, appropriateness and a great love of detail, summarises Prof. Allmann, handing over to Luise Kister, who arrived that evening without her office partner, Liliane Haltmeier.
According to Liliane Haltmeier and Luise Kister, their joint studies at ETH Zurich and a study trip to Brazil laid the foundation for developing the idea of jointly setting up their own business. They already executed their first collaboratively developed project under the umbrella of their planning office founded in 2014. Since then, the team has grown continuously and Mrs. Kister reports impressively and with remarkably little fuss about the growth of the office community to include six employees and seven children. Kister and Haltmeier themselves contributed five children to the office family, which is the reason why the founders had to take turns in the office between 2017 and June 2019. Nevertheless, a considerable portfolio of competition designs and projects was created in these five years, which Mrs. Kister uses to provide an insight into the way her office works:
The firm's first own project required the planning of a replacement for a block of flats in a listed architectural environment in Kriens. The new building, which in terms of cubic volume and façade structure blends in perfectly in the street elevation, has a folding roof with several dormers, which compared to the previous building allowed a considerable extension of the living space volume. The architects also achieved a larger living space per unit by avoiding hallways and cleverly arranging the different zones of use. A principle that also benefits the Schneebeliweg project in Zurich Altstetten – a cooperative apartment building with 22 residential units. Luise Kister explains: "We are puzzle freaks and always manage to accommodate the largest number of apartments in an inconspicuous way." At the same time, the architects are uncompromising when it comes to the quality of their living spaces and are always looking for aesthetically interesting solutions. The Schneebeliweg project also demonstrates a great sensitivity to urban planning, which is brought to bear by the subtle positioning and design of the new building in dialogue with the built and mature environment. Thus, together with the buildings of an old farmstead, a suitable triad could be created that directs the observer's attention to the essential. The aforementioned planning approaches can also be found in the other housing construction projects presented, all of which also demonstrate a sure feeling for the use of texture, colour and materials, which is never obtrusive but moderately emphasises the spatial structure and cubic volumes.
Luise Kister concludes her lecture with a compact outlook on further competition entries. Especially the competition entry for a new building for the Wysslochgut Elementary School, which came fourth, firmly illustrates that Haltmeier Kister are well-versed in more than just housing construction and that it is worth following the office's future development.
The next lecture of the November Series will take place on Wednesday, 13.11.2019, and will be given by Francine Houben from Mecanoo in Rotterdam.
Interview-Video
Luise Kister spoke about her philosophy and her lecture at the November Talks in Stuttgart.
