Press Sheet: Wolf D. Prix / W. Dreibholz & Partner ZT GMBH

Wolf D. Prix / W.
Dreibholz & Partner ZT GmbH
press sheet
Spengergasse 37
1050 Vienna, Austria
T +43 (0) 1 546 60- 0
F +43 (0) 1 546 60- 600
office@coop-himmelblau.at
www.coop-himmelblau.at
Wolf D. Prix / W. Dreibholz & Partner ZT GmbH
press sheet
Spengergasse 37
1050 Vienna, Austria
T +43 (0) 1 546 60- 0
F +43 (0) 1 546 60- 600
is not a color but an idea

of creating architecture
with fantasy, as buoyant
and variable as clouds.
Wolf D. Prix / Design Principal / CEO / Co-Founder of COOP HIMMELB(L)AU 1968
Cloud 1968
The Cloud is an organism for living.
The structure is mobile, the space
can be modified. The building
materials are air and dynamics.
(Technique is a means to an end but
not an end in itself. Architecture is
content, not shell.)
The Cloud was designed for the
study Living forms for the future
and was planned as a realization
for the Documenta V. It was
thoroughly developed down to the
smallest detail in terms of concrete
form and structure.
The Cloud - COOP HIMMELB(L)AU, 1968
Erwin Wurm
10
under
construction
European
Central Bank (Ecb)
Muse
des Confluences
frankfurt, germany
competition, 1 Prize
20032014
lyon, france
competition, 1 prize
20012014
House of Music
Apartment Building
Liesing Brewery
aalborg, denmark
2003/20082012
vienna, austria
2002/20062011
Dalian International
Conference Center
dalian, china
20082011
Busan
Cinema Center
busan, south korea
20052011
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European
Central Bank (Ecb)
frankfurt, germany
20032014
project data
Program: Office
Competition Phase 1: 2003, 1st Prize
Competition Phase 2: 20032004
Revision Phase: 2004
Optimization Phase: 2005
Start of Planning: 2004
Scheduled Opening: 2014
Site Area: 120,000 m
Gross Floor Area: 185,000 m
Client: European Central Bank (ECB),
Frankfurt/M., Germany
concept text
Urbanism and Architecture
The location for the new headquarters of the European Central Bank
(ECB) in Frankfurts Ostend district has the potential of adding a new
landmark to the Frankfurt skyline that will be visible at great distances. The starting point for the design of the towers was the urban
perspectives of the city of Frankfurt.
At a height of around 185 meters, the double tower, with its polygonal shape and east-west orientation, has a striking profile that is
visible from all important reference points in Frankfurts city center,
as well as from the river Main. Thanks to its form and presence, the
double tower will become a characteristic feature of the Frankfurt
skyline.
Urban planning and integration
The imposing form of the Grossmarkthalle (wholesale market), which
so strongly characterizes Frankfurts skyline and the north bank of
the river Main, unites with the vertical profile of the towers to form
a significant ensemble that considers both the local urban design
environment and the general urban spatial context, thus creating a
tension between Frankfurts banking district and the Ostend area.
By concentrating the ECBs functions in the Grossmarkthalle, the
south side of the premises, facing the Main, can be largely kept free
of construction. The prominent view of the south side of the hall from
the Main embankment with the clearly visible profile of the high-rise
emphasizes its special position.
The architectural concept of the tower
The tower ensemble is the result of a design process inspired by the
urban links with the city of Frankfurt. Owing to its clear orientation
towards the important urban perspectives, the ensemble enters into
a dialogue with the important urban reference points in Frankfurt: the
Alte Oper, the Museumsufer and the financial district. Starting with
the economical typology of a double-slab high-rise, a second design
step combines the urban planning specifications with the geometric
transformation of the towers, in order to generate a multi-faceted
building structure while preserving its urban significance.
The vertical city
The atrium between the office towers becomes a vertical city.
Through platforms we are creating spaces, plazas and pathways
between the towers, just as they exist in a city. The connecting and
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transferring levels divide the atrium horizontally into three sections

of different sizes, with heights ranging from around 45 to 60 meters.
These connecting platforms, bridges, ramps and stairs form a network of links between the office towers. They create short paths
between the individual office floors in each tower and thus enable
larger, interconnected usable office spaces on one or more floors in
both towers, thereby also promoting informal communication. This
new typology supports a dynamic development of form and enables
differentiated office spaces with different panoramic perspectives.
The Grossmarkthalle a forum for communication
Our design reinforces the Grossmarkthalles existing potential as an
urban foyer housing a conference and visitor center, as well as a
library and restaurant, through the incorporation of a building for the
press center which traverses the structure of the Grossmarkthalle.
This so-called entrance building, in which ECB press conferences will
be held, occupies a special position in content, form and space and
thereby marks the entrance to the ECB.
Since the western parts of the Grossmarkthalle were reconstructed
after being destroyed during the Second World War and do not, therefore, represent part of the substance of the original building even
in the way they are constructed we propose, as agreed with the
historic preservation authority, that the incision for the new entrance
to the ECB be in this part of the hall.
We continued to develop the concept of integrating the extensive
functional areas into the Grossmarkthalle, as suggested during the
Optimisation Phase. As before, the required new facilities are being
placed in the spacious interior of the hall as independent building
structures (the house within a house concept). The building structures, which are at diagonal angles to the Grossmarkthalle, allow the
hall to be experienced along dynamic spatial sequences and this
not only in the public areas of the halls ground floor, but also on the
upper levels, which, with their conference and restaurant facilities,
are largely reserved for employees of the ECB. The restaurant structure, as a visible sign of the new functional areas in the hall, generously orients the employee restaurant and terrace towards the Main
in the south.
View from West, Gossmarkthalle and Tower / Isochrom.com
13
House of Music
aalborg, denmark
2003/20082012
project data
Program: Concert Hall, Education
Competition (1st Prize): 2003
Start of Planning: Hom II: Feb.2008
Net Area: 11,896 m
Gross Area: 12,052 m
concept text
COOP HIMMELB(L)AUs design for The House of Music in Aalborg combines Cultural and Educational functions with shared public spaces,
performance spaces and infrastructure in an open system enabling
synergy and exchange between the public, artists, students and educators a shared Hybrid space.
Client: North Jutland House of Music

Foundation, Aalborg, Denmark
Music, Creativity and Art are the centers of inspiration, both of the
shared-synergetic behavior and of the form and expression of the
architecture.
Formal and informal encounters and exchanges are enabled via
public spaces that are oriented towards the adjacent Culture Square
and Fjord, and are designed to serve as interchange platforms connecting the semi-public and private functions of the multiple institu-
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tions housed within, and providing areas of exchange of information,

knowledge and inspiration for the various residents and the public in
the House of Music.
A 1,300 seat, world class, symphonic concert hall is at the core of
a compact U-shaped block of music, educational and performance
support spaces which wrap around the Main Hall on three sides. The
Building composition opens to the north in a vertical public foyer
with views over the fjord and adjacent Culture Square. Three additional halls of various sizes and functions complement the Main Hall
and are organized below the Foyer in a vertical inversion of the classical front-of-house / back-of-house horizontal orientation, optimizing
floor space and providing a lively vertical social space with a mix of
users and visitors.
Main Entrance & Restaurant / COOP HIMMELB(L)AU
15
Dalian International
Conference Center
dalian, china
20082011
project data
Program: Conference Center
Competition: 03/2008, 1st Prize
Start of Planning: 07/2008
Start of Construction: 11/2008
Groundbreaking: 15 November 2008
Completion: 2011
Site Area: 40,000 m
Gross Floor Area Total: 117,650 m
Client: Dalian Municipal People's
Government, P.R. China
concept text
Architectural Concept
The building has both to reflect the promising modern future of
Dalian and its tradition as an important port, trade, industry and
tourism city.
The formal language of our project is not pictographic, but associative; it will combine and merge the rational structure and organization of its modern conference center typology with the floating
spaces of traditional Asian architecture as well as with a design reminescent of the soft surfaces generated by the forces of the sea.
The project combines the following functions within one hybrid building with synergetic effects of functionality and spatial richness.
Conference Center
Theater and Opera House
Exhibition Center
Parking, Delivery and Disposal
A public zone at ground level allows for differentiating accessibility
for the different groups of users, with the shopping and exhibition
facilities directly connected to the conference center providing dramatic sight axis within the building. The actual performance and
conference spaces are situated at +15 m above the entrance hall.
The grand theater, with a capacity of 1,600 seats and a stage tower,
directly opposite of a flexible conference hall for 2,500 seats, is
positioned at the core in the center of the building.
With this arrangement the main stage can be used for the classical
theater auditorium as well as for the flexible multipurpose hall. The
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main auditorium is additionally equipped with backstage areas like

in traditional theaters and opera houses. This scheme is appropriate to broaden the range of options for the use of this space: from
convention, musical, theater even up to classical opera, with very
little additional investment. The main auditorium has the option to
get equipped with a flexible floor providing all possible utilization
from banquet to parliamentary seating.
The smaller conference spaces are arranged like pearls around this
core, providing very short connections between the different areas,
thus saving time while changing between the different units. Most
conference rooms and the circulation areas have direct daylight
from above.
Through this open and fluid arrangement the theater and conference spaces on the main level establish a kind of urban structure
with squares and street spaces, which facilitates on the one
hand user orientation within the building by identifiable addresses, and on the other hand provides also the required informal
meeting places, chill-out and catering zones in between the halls,
with view on the outside an ideal atmosphere for modern conference utilization.
The access to the basement parking garage, truck delivery and
waste disposal is located at the southwestern part of the site, thus
freeing the front driveway to the entrances from transit traffic. The
main entrance from the sea side corresponds to the future developments, including the connection to the future cruise terminal.
Main Entrance View / Coop Himmelb(l)au
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Busan
Cinema Center
busan, south korea
20052011
project data
Program: Commercial Cinema, Outdoor
Cinema, Public Plaza and Home of Film
Festival
Site Area: 32,100 m
Gross Floor Area: 57,981 m (interior)
Built-up Area: 10,005 m
Volume: 349,700 m
Completion: 10/2011 (estimated);
Scheduled Opening: 11/2011
Building Costs: EUR 100 Mio (budget)
concept text
The Busan Cinema Center A multifunctional urban plaza
COOP HIMMELB(L)AUs design for the Busan Cinema Center and
home of the Pusan International Film Festival (PIFF) provides a new
intersection between public space, cultural programs, entertainment,
technology and architecture creating vibrant landmarks within the
urban landscape.
LED saturated outdoor roof elements acting as a virtual sky connect
building-objects and plaza-zones into a continuous, multifunctional
public urban space.
Media, technology, entertainment and leisure are merged in an openarchitecture of changeable and tailored event experiences. The result
is a responsive and changing space of flows acting as an urban catalyst for cultural exchange and transformation.
Client: P(B)usan International Film

Festival Organizing Committee
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Project Description
The concept envisions an urban plaza of overlapping zones including an Urban Valley, a Red Carpet Zone, a Walk of Fame and the PIFF
Canal Park. The urban plaza is formed by building and plaza elements sheltered by two large roofs that are enabled with computer
programmed LED outdoor ceiling surfaces. The larger of the roofs

includes a column-free cantilever of 85 meters over a multifunctional
Memorial Court event plaza. The urban zones of the complex are
formed by individual and recognizable building objects placed below
the outdoor roofs. The building objects contain theater, indoor and
outdoor cinemas, convention halls, office spaces, creative studios
and dining areas in a mixture of sheltered and linked indoor and
outdoor public spaces. The design of these spaces supports flexible,
hybrid functionality that can be used both during the annual festival
period and day-to-day use without interruption.
The urban zones defined by functional surfaces in plan are further articulated in a sectional dialogue between stone-clad ground forms
of the CineMountain and PIFF Hill, and the metal and LED clad sky
elements of the roofs. The materiality of the building objects differentiates the spaces and articulates the architectural concept. Through
their shape, placement and materiality, the various parts create a
dynamic and informal tension between the ground and the roof.
View From East, Urban Plaza / Isochrom.com
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Muse
des Confluences
lyon, france
20012014
project data
Program: Museum
Competition: 2001, 1st Prize
Scheduled Completion: 2014
Site Area: 20,975 m
Floor Area: 26,700 m
Building Costs: EUR 100 Mio
Client: Dpartement du Rhne,
Lyon, France
concept text
Crystal Cloud of Knowledge
The future society will be a society of knowledge. However this
knowledge can hardly be split into clearly defined fields.
Innovations develop within interspaces, within indistinctness, within
the overlapping and hybridising. Questions regarding the future will
be decided within transitional fields situated between technology,
biology and ethics that are the central themes of the Muse des Confluences. Mutations of form, penetrations, deformations, simultaneities, breakdowns and variabilities have an effect on architecture. The
resulting architecture is characterised by the interactions, the fusion
and mutation of different entities constituting a new shape.
The Muse des Confluences does not consider itself as an exclusive
temple for the intellectual bourgeoisie but as a public place providing
access to the knowledge of our age.
Stimulating a direct and active use, it is not only a museum site but
also a venue in town. The architecture hybridises the typology of a
museum with the typology of an urban leisure space.
Hard Space Soft Space
The concept of two complexly connected architectural units are a
result of the striking interface-like situation of the building site.
The crystal rising towards the side of the town is conceived as an
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urban forum and entrance hall for visitors. Its shape that can be read
clearly stands for the everyday world. In contrast to this the cloud
hides the knowledge about the future; it is a soft space of hidden
streams and countless transitions.
Within the Muse des Confluences the present and the future, the
known and the still unknown are conceived as a spatial arrangement
trying to spur public curiosity. As an extension of the park located
on the Southern top of the island a new urban space formulates
itself; a landscape consisting of ramps and surfaces merging the
inside and the outside and resulting in a dynamic sequence of spatial
events.
This movement is also followed by the alternating spatial structure
of the exhibition halls. Closed Black Boxes and free exhibition areas
alternate by exploiting the double room height of two levels. The
architecture is as changeable as the content entrusted.
The idea of the permanent reinvention of an urban event enables
Lyon to perfectly position itself within a regional as well as within a
global context.
Rendering, View from North West / Isochrom.com
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Apartment Building
Liesing Brewery
vienna, austria
2002/20062011
project data
Program: Residential, Shopping, Office,
Landscape
Expert Study: 20002001
Masterplan: 20012002
Design And Site Development
Competition: 20052006
Masterplan Subarea Implementation:
Completion: 2011
The Mixed Use Program contains:;
Housing: 23,000 m BGF
Office: 4,300 m BGF
Special Form of Housing/Housing For
The Elderly: 8.700 m BGF
Total: 36,000m BGF
Landscape Design:
Plaza: 13,200 m
Design of the Shopping Front:
Extile Front: 3,000 m (in Cooperation
with Artist Peter Kogler)
Glasfront Shopping: 1,300 m
Total Building Costs: EUR 32 Mio
Client: ARWAG Bautrger Gesellschaft
m.b.H. / WIEN SD Gemeinntzige Bauund Wohnungsgenossenschaft
22
concept text
The designs urban planning concept develops from the distinctive topography of an east-west ridge along the Liesing River.
In a zone between urban and suburban structures, the planning
area is characterized by the transition from enclosed building
blocks south of the Breitenfurter Strae, an open, fragmented urban fabric in the north, the long-stretched Liesinger Platz square
to the east, and the aqueduct in the west.
Planned as a backbone of the design is a distinctive, space forming, snake-shaped structure that redefines the urban space along
the existing topography as it stretches between the aqueduct and
the enclosed building fronts on the north side of Liesinger Platz; a
vertical connection is created between the levels of Breitenfurter
Strae and the levels of the old brewery cellar. The structure thus
becomes a built topography, which allows for a multilevel city
district.
A linear, southwardly terraced building extends between this
structure and Breitenfurter Strae, which through projections
and recesses adds dynamic to the spatial flow along the street.
The building height of the terraced houses diminishes toward
the west; a high building in the east defines Liesinger Platz and
simultaneously marks the entry to the shopping center and the
entire complex.
Between these two building structures variable, flowing public

squares and spatial sequences are created, which through the
shopping center are interwoven with the newly designed Liesinger Platz into an accentuated multi-level spatial continuum, defining the shopping center as an indoor shopping street.
At several strategic points this new east- west stretching urban
fabric is interrupted through broad gaps, so that on the one hand
the green spaces in the north and on the other the urban spaces
in the south can freely flow through. This creates a connection
of the existing housing south of the Liesing River with the public
spaces of the complex and the natural landscape in the north and
enables generous visual connections between the various urban
spaces.
Through the manifold connections between existing structures,
free spaces, and the topography of the natural green space, the
entire complex becomes a built urban landscape.
Model Photo, View from South East / Markus Pillhofer
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24
in
planning
The Open Parliament

of Albania
tirana, albania
competition, 1 Prize
2011
Energy Roof
Perugia
perugia, italy
2009
Strongoli
Art Museum
strongoli, italy
20092012
Museum of
Contemporary Art
& Planning Exhibition
shenzhen, china
20072013
25
The Open Parliament

of Albania
tirana, albania
2011-
Program: Office, Parliament

Site Area: 28,000 m
Client: The Republic of Albania, The
Parliament
26
Architectural and urban design strategies

As the future political center of the Albanian Republic, the Open
Parliament of Albania creates an outstanding architectural landmark
in one of the main parts of Tiranas urban fabric. Situated along the
compositional axis of the city, it is located in vicinity to the major
governmental institutions.
The design for the Open Parliament of Albania relies on three main
ideas:
To provide a strong urban statement in this exposed part of Tiranas
urban fabric;
To assemble the different functions in one building ensemble
that is compact enough to create a public forum and a park on the
southern part of the site;
To create a unique building for the most important public institution of the Albanian Republic with a contemporary architectural
approach shaped to optimize active and passive energy use.
The design incorporates fundamental democratic values such as
openness, transparency and public co-determination. The simultaneity of competing political concepts within a democratic society is
translated into the design concept: Different building elements are

not opposed, but coexist in one building ensemble with a contemporary aesthetic that allows visualizing new functions and meanings.
Energy Concept
The new parliamentary building for the Republic of Albania is designed to capture the natural resources and energy flows of its surroundings and employ them to provide optimal environmental conditions for its occupants. The spatial configuration of the building form
and the optimization of the building envelope together with the use
of renewable energy sources ensure an energy efficient design and
reduce dependence on fossil fuel energy sources.
The Parliamentary Hall
Spatially, the new Parliaments Chamber reflects a basic democratic
principle, the power of the electorate, by situating the public above
the elected assembly members while placing the chamber hall at the
physical and metaphorical center of the building ensemble.
COOP HIMMELB(L)AU
27
Energy Roof
Perugia
perugia, italy
2009
project data
Program: Energy Roof
Local Partner: Heliopolis 21
Architetti Associati, San Giuliano Terme
(Pisa), Italy
Civil & Structural Engineer: B+G
concept text
Location
The new glass gallery along Via Mazzini in the center of Perugia covered by the Energy Roof creates the entry point to the archaeological
underground passage that connects the city center with the mini
metro station Pincetto.
Ingenieure, Bollinger und Grohmann

GmbH, Frankfurt, Germany
Energy Design: Baumgartner GmbH,
Germany
Client: Universit degli Sudi di Perugia/
Dipartimento di Ingegneria Civile e
Ambientale, Italy
Urban Strategy
By means of a glass gallery along Via Mazzini, a new public space
and attractor is created. The place is defined by its history, dynamic
circulation flows and urban liveliness. The new paradigmatic design
of the Energy Roof creates a distinctive and highly recognizable icon
for the city and a statement for aesthetic sustainability corresponding with the ancient buildings of Via Mazzini. It assigns the entrance
to the archaeological underground passage leading through the history of Perugia.
Walking through history
The underground passage is not only a shortcut in between the city
center at Via Mazzini and the arrival point of the Mini Metro station
Pincetto but also an exhibition space. Historical documents show the
existence of the old Etruscan city wall in the area bellow Piazza Giacomo Matteotti which COOP HIMMELB(L)AU proposes to excavate as
part of an underground public gallery space exhibiting the history of
Perugia. Controlled views and look-out points make orientation easy.
Openings in the ground of the Piazza Giacomo Matteotti visually connect the underground passage with the Energy Roof.
Energy Roof
The roof design is driven by the generation of energy for the city.
While the orientation of the west wing is optimized in relation to solar
radiation, the east wing captures wind. The roof consists of 3 layers:
the energy generating top layer, the structural layer in the middle
and a layer on the bottom as a combination of laminated glazing and
translucent pneumatic cushions.
The top layer includes transparent photovoltaic cells to generate
electricity and shade the sun. The orientation of the individual cells
is generated and optimized by a computer driven scripting program.
Furthermore 5 wind turbines that are placed inside the structural
layer are generating additional energy. Both the roof and the underground passage are energy self-sufficient.
28
Generation of Energy - Photovoltaic

During the design process of the energy roof a special focus has been
put on using photovoltaic cells as functional and aesthetic elements.
To maintain visual connections to the surroundings we propose to
use frameless glass elements with integrated transparent photovoltaic cells for the top layer of the roof. Therefore sun-shading, energy
generation and architectural integration are all combined in one element.
The chosen geometry of the panels follows the overall shape of the
Energy Roof, and curved lines made of photovoltaic cells are created.
The photovoltaic elements are peeling off the surface and tilted towards the sun where the roof area is oriented to the North East. The
resulting gaps are closed by passive glass panels which appear similar to the active panels.
This installation creates a photovoltaic energy generator with a performance of around 73 kWp. The annual output of 100 MWh provides
a major contribution to environmentally friendly generation of energy. With the wind turbines and an additional performance of around
25 kWp a peak performance of around 100KWp is reached.
Structural Description - Preliminary
The roof consists of three layers with the structural layer in the
middle. The other two layers are the energy generating layer on the
top and the glazing layer on the bottom. In the summer, the east wing
of the roof, forming a rotor blade, captures wind, thus providing air
ventilation for cooling. The structure therefore has to be sufficiently
open to drive the fresh air to the street level from above.
The roof structure is approximately 80 meters long supported by
a tripod in the middle. There are ten members connecting the roof
structure and the tripod. The structure, forming a rotor blade, is 16
meters wide at the ends while in the middle part, around the supporting points, the roof slims.
The geometry of the structure is determined by crossed planes that
are arrayed in longitudinal direction. The intersection of the planes
and the geometry of the propeller describe the perimeter of the
load bearing structure. To provide the sufficient air-ventilation and to
reduce the self-weight of the structure holes are cut in the plane of
the planes in a way that the remaining areas are connected and are
performing as a rigid and optimized composition. These connected
planes consist of single beams and act as trusses.
View from South East / Coop Himmelb(l)au
29
Strongoli
Art Museum
stongoli, italy
20082014
project data
Program: Museum
Museum Curator: Carla Piscitelli
concept text
Visible from far away on the top of the Motta Grande, a hill just outside of Strongoli, the new Art Museum Strongoli creates a remarkable
landmark for the city in the heart of Calabria.
Not only is the museum a cultural institution, but also a generator for
the future development of Calabria, a place of cultivated entertainment and recreation and a destination for locals and tourists alike.
The hybrid form of the building is developed from the connection
of three functional bodies: an iconic, cone-shaped construction
with the public entrance, the main volume of a multifunctional hall
which houses the exhibitions, and a daringly cantilevered panoramic
restaurant. This sculpural merging of forms is enveloped by a curvated outer skin, which responds dynamically to climatic forces like
the sun, wind and also the conditions of view on the surrounding
landscape.
30
The public entrance in the cone-shaped foyer area is oriented towards the city. Its spiralling ramp which gives access to the exhibition zone makes it is also a spectacular event space. At the other
end of the building, the restaurant offers a great view to the sea
in the east and on the surrounding landscape from its panoramic
terrace. Between these two parts the visitors itinerary leads in a
loop through the two-storey flexible exhibition area. The spaces for
regular exhibitions are situated on its upper level, below lies the
VideoLab for contemporary media art. Both spaces are directly accessed by two elevators from the service area in the basement, which
includes also the administrative spaces lighted from the downhill
side. The multifunctional hall can also be used as lecture hall, auditorium, cinema, or just as an extension of the foyer when there are
public events. Thus the new Art Museum Strongoli is not only a place
to experience art, but also of cultural exchange, with the potential to
become one of the hippest destinations in southern Italy.
View from North East towards Motta Grande / Isochrom.com
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Museum of Contemporary Art

& Planning Exhibition
shenzhen, china
20072013
project data
Program: Museum
Competition (1st Prize): 2007
Start of Construction: 2010
Estimated Completion: 2013
Site Area: 21,688 m
Building Costs: 90 Mio.
Building Height: 40 m
Number of Stories: 7
Max Building Length: 160m
Max Building Width: 140 m
Clients: Shenzhen Municipal
Culture Bureau, Shenzhen, China &
Shenzhen Municipal Planning Bureau,
Shenzhen, China
Structural Engineering: B+G
GmbH, Frankfurt, Germany; Mechanical
Engineering (Hvacs): Arup/ Brian Cody,
Berlin, Germany
32
concept text
The design is an urban meeting point and serves as a dynamic element in the progressive system of the City of Shenzen in the middle
of their new center, the "Futian Cultural Center". The building integrates itself in the language of the established master plan with a
site area of approximately 30.000 sqm and represents the discovery
of an individual exciting object.
The form of the 40 m high building is a result of a vertical extrusion and rotation from the rectangular ground floor through to the
roof level. A new entry orientation has been achieved through this
rotation to the axial center of the cultural zone of the Futian Central
District and to the main circulatory flows. The resulting rotation generates a dynamic building in the form of an "active wave". By using
black anodized metal and black glass, the active wave is frozen into
an urban monolith.
Main Entrance View/ Coop Himmelb(l)au
33
34
recent
competition/studies
(selection)
Archaeological
Museum Egypt
tell el-daba, egypt
2010
Silver Cloud
cairo, egypt
2009
Mixed Use
Center Baku
baku, azerbaijan
2008
Zorlu Gateway
Center
istanbul, turkey
2007
35
Archaeological
Museum Egypt
tell el-daba, egypt
2010
Program: Archeological Museum

Client: sterreichisches Archologisches Institut IA, Cairo, Egypt
This project for a new Archaeological Museum in Egypt is situated

near the excavation site of Tell el-Daba in the eastern Nile delta.
Here, Archeologists could locate the remains of major antique trading
centers dating from more than 3000 years ago, including Avaris, the
Hyksos capital of the Middle Kingdom, and Pi-Ramesse, the capital of
the New Kingdom. Surrounded by agricultural land, the new building
will stand out as a landmark on the bank of the Elhosania Fakos River.
Starting on the ground floor, the exhibition continues on a large

ramp, corresponding to the exterior walkway and spiralling up to
the top level of the space, ending at the caf at the top level. To take
shortcuts the visitors can also use the elevators, which stand in the
middle of the hall as a towering multifaceted structure. The caf on
the top level can be opened to the general public. From here the visitors can turn back, or complete the round tour on the outside.
Concept
The design of the museum, influenced by the history of the site and
its specific conditions of topography and climate, and organized by
the functional program, lead to a unique architectural space which in
turn is responsive to its uses and the environment. The development
of the form, derived from the geometry of a truncated pyramid, has
been driven by four main strategies.
Seeing by walking
The exhibition concept follows the idea that the museum experience
will be more rewarding for the visitors when the round tour offers
more than rows of displays in a neutral space. While moving through
the subtle choreography stimulated by the fluidly differentiated sequence of spaces, the visitors of the Archeological Museum Egypt can
enjoy the continuous change of perception of perspective, lighting,
material texture and climate without disturbing the contemplation of
the excavation objects and documents.
Accessible Landmark
The building is a walkable monument. From the entrance plaza a spiral ramp leads upwards as a loop around the museum embedded in
its sloped exterior surface, thereby offering a gradually changing and
widening panoramic view to the surrounding landscape. The walkway
ends at the top in front of a caf and a secondary entrance, which
allows the visitors to start their tour inside not only from ground floor,
but also from high above.
Program
The main entrance plaza on 5.00m can be reached by a straight
ramp set at a right angle to the building. Passing by the ticket counter, the visitors enter the exhibition hall, a large and tapered space
reaching right under the top of the building volume, thus allowing to
accomodate very large exhibits. The hall is framed by the bookshop
and the library, while all service functions are hidden at the back of
the building.
36
The sun is cooling

The monolithic pyramid-like shape of the building maximizes the surface exposed to direct sunlight, which benefits also its environmental
sustainability: the building envelope has been optimized by integrating parameters like wind and sun into a computer based model for
an energy-active faade, a system which allows to use the heat of the
outside air to create a pleasantly conditioned ambience. The energy
faade contains a thermal air plenum that makes use of the intense
solar energy through adiabatic cooling to modulate the temperature
and humidity of the interior. The concept aims for a building that generates more energy than it is using itself. The flat top of the energy
faade also acts as a giant louvre, filtering down the bright desert
light to a diffuse, even illumination of the exhibition hall.
Coop Himmelb(l)au
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Silver
Cloud
cairo, egypt
2009
project data
Program: Automotive Showroom
Competition: 05/2009
Site Area: 7,424 m
Net Floor Area: 30,455 m
Footprint: 3,220 m
Volume: 195,950 m
Number of Floors: 7
Above Ground: 4
Underground: 3
Client: GB AUTO SAE
GmbH, Frankfurt, Germany
38
concept text
Urban Context and Concept
Egypt, with its strategic location, has become the second most populous country in Africa. Owing to its specific geographic conditions,
most urban development in Egypt has taken place in the Nile Valley
and Delta, which represent only 4 per cent of its total area.
Cairo has become the largest urban centre not only in Africa, but also
in the Middle East. The city's history has been closely related to that
of Egypt.
In recent decades this led to a massive process of concentration, with
the result that Cairo today is not only the capital of Egypt but also its
economic, social, service, and administrative centre. The city's size
and rapid growth have resulted in serious problems in most aspects
of the life of its population.
The government has attempted both to decentralize population and
activities from Cairo and to reorganize and manage its growth at the
national, regional, and local levels.
The establishment of new cities, satellite or independent, were introduced to be developed as growth centres in order to attract economic
activities and population from the core region. The cities are situated
along the major regional radials to tie the greater Cairo region to
other economic regions such as Suez, Ismailia, and Alexandria.
Their size is intended to be large enough to guarantee an adequate

level of self-sufficiency in terms of employment and services.
If these settlements continue to grow at the same rate, in a few years
an extensive urban corridor may appear along this regional road and
a new megalopolitan area may emerge. Such a metropolitan area
would house almost half of the Egyptian population.
The task of our project is to create a focal point, an instantly recognizable landmark of one part of the above mentioned urban development in an area called New Cairo.
The new settlements need to establish their own urban identity and
identification points to avoid the risk of just being faceless and exchangeable.
The outer skin of the building consists of three dimensional deformed
steel frames covered with stainless steel or aluminium panels to create a instantly recognise able building envelope even if just seen for
seconds out of a moving car.
Coop Himmelb(l)au
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Mixed Use
Center Baku
baku, azerbaijan
2008
project data
Program: Mixed Use Buildings
Competition: 2008
Gross Floor Area Total: 133,800 m
Gross Floor Area Program: 96,700 m
(Above Ground)
Client: ARENA JSC Elebrus Mammadov
concept text
Urban Context
The site of the Mixed Use Center Baku is located in the new city center; Nizami District of the City of Baku. The Old town Center and the
Fountain Square in the West, the Central Railway Station in the North
and the Government House in the South all together create a very
lively urban environment. The close Baku Bay shore park Boulevard
and many public parks and plazas around the area facilitate public
outdoor spaces and recreation sources in this new vibrant urban
development environment.
The Mixed Use Center Baku design proposes a high density Landmark
Building Complex that is an expression of the refinement of the inner
architectural qualities of the building elements which are shaped by
urban and climate considerations, economies of structure and materials as also program proposals and orientation of main views to the
city and the sea.
Architectural Concept
The high end luxury Residential Tower sits on the South west side on
top a lifted Shopping Center base. It is orientated to the public plaza
on Khagani Street and to the roof garden of the Shopping Base. The
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5-Star Hotel & Office Tower marks the building blocks corner in the
south east on Pushkin Street. The Shoppings Center base horizontal
strips are shaped according to visibility and react to main people
flows, entrances, traffic circulation and surrounding public zones.
The special features of the project proposal are a VIP spiral ramp
above the main entrance of the Shopping Center that provides a
spectacular drop off next to the upper main lobbies of the Residential Tower and the 5-star Hotel on the roof level 20m above ground.
Within the Shopping Center and Wellness; Spa area is a combined
pool aquarium feature that is the core of the shopping event space.
On the roof it provides an outdoor swimming pool for VIP guests and
residents and inside it offers spectacular views into a shark aquarium
that hovers above the Shopping Plaza; Foyer level. Visitors circulate
around the water tank including the swimming pool and it creates
atmospheric water reflections and skylight from above for the foyer
space of the Shopping Center.
Mixed USe Building with two iconic Towers SILKROAD CG
41
Zorlu Gateway
Center
istanbul, turkey
2007
project data
Program: Mixed Use Complex,
Shopping, Office, Residential
Competition: 2007
Site Area: 84,000 m
Floor Area: above Ground 229,860 m
Floor Area: below Ground 341,760 m
Client: Zorlu Property Development &
concept text
Monofunctional structures do not correspond to the architecture and
the urban development of the 21st century. Future urban development will mirror the complexity of peoples intellectual and material
lives. This is why not only the media represent the urban culture of
tomorrow, but architecture does too. For us, a city must convey diversity and tension.
Coop Himmelblau, 1990
Investment Inc., Istanbul, Turkey
In response to the brief for a new, 550.000 sq. landmark, mixed-use

facility for a prominent site in Istanbul, we propose a new model citycenter as a signal for future development and an iconic gateway to
the emerging new central business district of the City.
The Zorlu Gateway Center is formed by the overlapping of public
and private spaces of living, working, meeting, shopping and leisure
in a networked system of dense and lively public, commercial and
urban spaces.
The urban, functional and symbolic ambitions of the proposal explore
five main themes in a design that is organized around active indoor
and outdoor public plazas and generous terraced gardens;
Landmark and Identification
Density and Variety
Urban Liveliness
Landscape
Sustainability
42
Organization
A vast and fluid shopping city comprising 3 levels and covering the
total site footprint forms an urban landscape atop 4 levels of subterranean parking. A large and dynamic shaped cloud roof incorporating large skylit openings floats above the shopping area, itself organized around two main sunken plazas and lit by daylight from above
and diagonally. Entertainment and dining areas are incorporated
within the roof cloud, while its upper, landscaped surface is designed
as the Zorlu Park, providing garden and leisure activities for the
Residential Towers in a semi-private location with a view to the City
and Bosphorus beyond.
Penetrating and interconnecting with the Shopping City and forming
networks of dense points within it, a series of variable use and variable formed towers of about 100 m in height form the northern and
eastern perimeters of the site. The towers are typologically shaped in
relation to their use and responsiveness to sun, wind and view, and
express a variety of languages in an open aesthetic system.
At the northwest site corner along the main boulevard from the Bosphorus bridge, the tower buildings of the convention center, convention hotel and lifestyle hotel and serviced apartments are formed
as two landmark Urban Gates marking the approach axes to the site
and entrance to the new central business district and indicating the
landmark presence of the Zorlu Gateway Center. Three soft-folded
residential high rise towers are placed along the sites quieter, eastern edge with a commanding view to the Bosphorus and metropolis
of Istanbul.
Mixed USe Complex: Living, Working, Meeting, Shopping and leisure Isochrom.com
43
44
completed

(selection)
Martin Luther
Church
hainburg, austria
20082011
Pavilion 21
MINI Opera Space
munich, germany
20082010
Central Los Angeles Area

High School #9 for the
Visual and Performing Arts
los angeles, california, usa
20022008
BMW Welt
munich, germany
20012007
Akron Art Museum

akron, ohio, usa
20012007
Academy of Fine Arts

munich, germany
1992/20022005
Apartment Building
Gasometer B
vienna, austria
19952001
SEG Apartment Tower

vienna, austria
19941998
UFA Cinema Center
dresden, germany
19931998
Rooftop Remodelling
Falkestrasse
vienna, austria
1983/8788
Martin Luther
Church
hainburg, austria
20082011
project data
Program: Church
Completion: 04/2011
Site Area: ca. 420 m
Gross Floor Area: 289 m
Structural engineering:
Bollinger Grohmann Schneider ZT
GmbH, Vienna, Austria
Construction Survey: Spirk & Partner ZT
GmbH, Vienna, Austria
Client: Association Freunde der Evangelischen Kirche in Hainburg/Donau,
Austria
User: Evangelische Pfarrgemeinde A.B.
Bruck a.d. Leitha Hainburg/Donau,
Austria
46
concept text
In less than a year a protestant church together with a sanctuary, a
church hall and supplementary spaces was built in the centre of the
Lower Austrian town Hainburg, at the site of a predecessor church
that doesnt exist anymore since the 17th century.
The shape of the building is derived from that of a huge table, with
its entire roof construction resting on the legs of the table four
steel columns. Another key element is the ceiling of the prayer room:
its design language has been developed from the shape of the curved
roof of a neighboring Romanesque ossuary the geometry of this
century-old building is translated into a form, in line with the times,
via todays digital instruments.
The play with light and transparency has a special place in this project. The light comes from above: three large winding openings in the
roof guide it into the interior. The correlation of the number Three to
the concept of Trinity in the Christian theology can be interpreted as a
deliberate coincidence.
The church interior itself is not only a place of mysticism and quietude as an antithesis of our rather fast and media-dominated
times but also an open space for the community.
The sanctuary gives access to the glass-covered childrens corner,
illuminated by daylight, which accomodates also the baptistery. The

actual community hall is situated behind it: folding doors on the
entire length of the space between the two main chambers allow for
combining them to one continuous spatial sequence. An folded glass
faade on the opposite side opens the space towards the street.
A third building element, a longitudinal slab building along a small
side alley, flanks both main spaces and comprises the sacristy, the
pastors office, a small kitchen and other ancillary rooms. A handicapped accessible ramp between the three building components
accesses the church garden on higher ground.
The sculptural bell tower at the forecourt constitutes the fourth element of the building ensemble.
Like other projects of COOP HIMMELB(L)AU the roof elements of the
church building were assembled in a shipyard. The implementation
of the intricate geometries required specific technologies of metalprocessing and manufacturing only available in shipbuilding industry. The reference to shipbuilding is at the same time also reminiscent
of Le Corbusier who served as an important role model, not least
because of his La Tourette monastery.
MArkus Pillhofer
47
Pavilion 21
MINI Opera Space
munich, germany
20082010
project data
Site Area: 1.790 m
Net Area: 430 m
Gross Area: 560 m
Footprint: 560 m
concept text
The Pavilion 21 MINI Opera Space is a temporary mobile performance space for 300 visitors to be located on the Marstallplatz in the
City of Munich. It is intended to be used for a wide range of events at
the annual Opera Festival 2010 and then to travel to other locations.
Volume: 4.350 m
Height: 12.5 m
Length: 38.5 m
Width: 25.5 m
Acquisition/Study: 02/2008
Opening: 06/2010
Building Costs: Eur 2.1 Mio Net
(Excl. Vat)
Client: The Free State of Bavaria
represented by The Bavarian State
The design approach studies the impact of physical influences on

our hearing perception and how to apply soundscape effects to alter
our sensation through transforming and adopting building volumes
and their material specifications. Contrary to our built environment
sound or music has no present materiality so it is always perceived at
the moment of its generation. Because of this immediate perception
of sound our sensations could range from supreme beauty to painful
intolerability. In architecture and urban planning soundscaping design approaches of exterior spaces are barley recognized and hardly
ever applied therefore many public spaces are unattractive in our
psychological perception.
Opera Munich, Germany
The design goal for the pavilion is to impact a unique soundscape by

helping to reduce the apparent noise and to create a zone of silence
next to the pavilion. Creating an absolute zone of silence is technically not possible, but this term used here is intended to describe an
area where you can sense a change in the soundscape that gives the
impression of a quieter environment.
This strategy for achieving this concept uses three mechanisms,
firstly the shielding effect of the plaza to block sound from the road,
secondly the shaping of the pavilion surface to collect and deflect
sound and thirdly the material characteristic of the Pavilion surface
to absorb and reflect sound.
48
The Pavilions spatial structure acts here as a transformator that

changes our perception and sensation of the soundcape and music
on the plaza around the Pavilion and inside the performance space.
Parallel to acoustical approaches and simulations, the generation
of the form of the Pavilion was driven by the concept of materializing music into architecture. Selected sequences of songs become
dynamic forces that transform and create spatial form. Here we
transcribed a sequence of Jimi Hendrix Purple Haze Scuse me
while I kiss sky. Analyzing the frequencies of the sound file and
linking it to the computer generated 3D model, the scripting tool then
parametrically transforms the shell into pyramid shapes like spikes.
Music is frozen and creates architectural space.
To meet internal acoustics design objective, the proposal includes
provision for a combination of perforated sound absorbing panels
and pyramid-shaped, non-perforated sound diffusing panels on the
side walls and ceiling, with a sound reflective floor and stage. Soundreflective parallel surfaces between the side-walls and between the
floor and ceiling are avoided here and are therefore tilted and rotated
in relationship to the generated exterior shape.
The interior performance space has overall clear dimensions of 21 m
length and 17m width and a variable clear height from 6m to 8m. The
backstage service area is conceived as a flexible open space for artists changing room and storage.
Temporary Opera Space - Top View Duccio Malagamba
49
Central Los Angeles Area High School #9

for the Visual and Performing Arts
los angeles, usa
20022008
project data
Program: High School for the Visual and
Performing Arts
Completion: 10/2008
Site Area: 39,578 m
Budget: USD 171.9 Mio (include site
and landscaping)
Client: LAUSD, Los Angeles Unified
School District, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Executive Architect: HMC Architects,
Ontario, CA, USA
concept text
Program and Site
The Central Los Angeles Public High School for the Visual and Performing Arts of the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) is part
of phase II of LAUSDs rigorous state bond funded plan to have 155
new schools built in its district by 2012. It is located on a 9.8 acre
site on Grand Avenue in downtown Los Angeles. The school will be a
comprehensive High School and in addition will offer courses in the
Visual Arts, Performing Arts, Music and Dance. Due to its central location on Grand Avenue the High School will be a part of the cultural
facilities along the Grand Avenue cultural corridor, joining the Disney
Concert Hall, Music Center, Colburn School of Music, Museum of Contemporary Art and the Cathedral of our Lady of the Angels. To fulfill its
mandate to be a public facility in keeping with the spirit of the other
facilities on Grand Avenue the school campus will include a professional performing arts theater for just below 1,000 visitors, a venue,
which so far has been missing in the spectrum of performance facilities downtown Los Angeles. The theater will be used for educational
purposes, will be open to the public and for use by other institutions,
and is equipped with a full stage, orchestra pit, back stage and flyloft. The school will house approximately 1,800 students organized
in four academies, one for each discipline in the Arts. Accordingly,
the campus is comprised of seven buildings, the theater building,
four classroom buildings, the library and the cafeteria.
The unique central location of the site downtown, separated from
the Grand Avenue corridor by the 101 freeway and thus visually exposed along the edge of one of the most widely used thoroughfares
in downtown Los Angeles, was a determining factor in the decision to
use this site to create LAUSDs flagship high school for the Visual and
Performing Arts and together with the program served as the point of
departure for the architectural concept for the school.
Architectural Signs - Chess Concept
COOP HIMMELB(L)AUs design concept is to use architectural signs as
symbols to communicate the commitment of the Los Angeles community to Art. Like chess figures three sculptural buildings, which relate
to the context of downtown Los Angeles and the program, re-define
spatially and energetically the otherwise orthogonal arrangement
of the master plan. A Tower figure with spiraling ramp in the shape
of the number 9 located on top of the theaters fly-loft serves as a
widely visible sign for the Arts in the city and a point of identification
50
for the students. Inside the tower, an event, conference and exhibition space with a view across the city is planned to be located. The
theater complex is placed at the corner of Grand Avenue and the 101
Freeway. The tower connects the school visually and formally with
downtown Los Angeles, and together with the Cathedrals tower the
twin towers will become a new landmark for the city. In addition to
the tower a representational Lobby on Grand Avenue serves as the
public entrance and integrates the school with the Grand Avenue
corridor. Like a bridgehead the Lobby connects the site with the cultural facilities on the other side of the freeway. It is envisioned that
the theater with all its amenities can be made available for public and
commercial events to create additional revenue for the school.
As the symbol for learning and education the Library, or the Space of
Knowledge, is formally expressed through a slanted, truncated cone
and placed in the center of the school courtyard. Inside, the cone provides a large open space illuminated from above by a circular skylight
thus offering an open, dynamic, but introverted and concentrated
space for contemplation and focused learning. Through its diagonal
position in relationship to the other buildings and its slanted form,
the dynamic, circular building directs views and flows of people
through the school courtyards, changes the perception of the courtyard space and provides a point of orientation for the students within
the campus.
In addition to the public entrance on Grand Avenue the seven buildings frame a second representational entrance, the main school entrance, located at the intersection of Grand Avenue and Cesar Chavez
Street and facing the community. The main school entrance is formally expressed through an 80 wide grand open stair, which leads
directly into the main school courtyard with the conical library in its
center and theater and tower in the background. The main entrance
symbolically sets the stage for the students to experience this school
as a decisive stage in their life and education.
To provide opportunities for public spaces within a high school
through the architecture and supported by the performing arts program is one of the main contributions of this project to education and
the community, and unique in contemporary public school buildings
in Los Angeles.
Courtyard View with Auditorium and Library Roland Halbe
51
BMW Welt
munich, germany
20022007
project data
Program: Event Exhibition and
Automobile Delivery Center
Opening: 10/2007
Site Area: 25,000 m
Gross Floor Area: approx. 73,000 m;
Budget: above EUR 100 Mio
Client: BMW AG, Munich, Germany;
concept text
In 2000, the BMW Group decided to build a brand-experience and
car-delivery center in close vicinity to the corporate headquarters
and the BMW museum. 275 architects participated in an open international competition for the project. In a multi-stage selection
procedure, the design by COOP HIMMELB(L)AU came out winning in
July 2001.
One of the central design ideas is to expand the existing configuration
of the BMW Tower and the museum with an additional element so as
to create a spatial, ideal, and identity-forming architectural ensemble.
The design proposal by COOP HIMMELB(L)AU consists of a large transparent hall with a sculptural roof and a double cone informed by the
relation with the existing company headquarter building.
of the ventilation plan, since the Premiere is open to the Hall the
major space in this world of experience. Beyond merely fine-tuning
the volume of air intake and outflow currents, it was also important
to extract the exhaust fumes directly and pump in fresh air. Planning
here was based on an assumed turnover of 40 cars per hour, or 250
cars per day.
Conception
The realization of the technical building facilities within the scope of
the architecture led to a planning model with five thematic blocks:
Hall, Premiere, Forum, Gastronomy and Double Cone.
Tower
Island solutions place high demands on building systems to ensure
well-being
The technical equipment discreetly supports the gastronomic functions. In places where guests spend longer periods of time, air
sources are placed near the floor. In order to ensure pleasant air
quality even near the glass faades, the vertical faade support profiles are heated to prevent the cold downdrafts typical for this kind of
construction.
Forum
A room-in-a-room for maximum flexibility
The Forum is a separate event area for up to 1.200 persons, equipped
to meet all the specifications for a full-fledged theater or conference
room.
GmbH, Frankfurt/M., Germany
Hall
A low-tech concept optimized ecologically using high-tech methods
The technical solution here is based on previous experience with
large halls. All of the necessary features were realized successfully
according to a low-tech concept. The interrelations of daylight and
artificial light with ambient climate and acoustics influence peoples
feeling of well-being in the Hall. The concept for the technological
building systems takes up these relationships and integrates them
in an interdependent manner, adapting their range of influence by
modifying their dimensions or building in appropriate control mechanisms. A major goal in designing the systems was to save energy.
This aim is achieved by minimizing the mechanical apparatus for ventilation, heating and cooling. The gigantic Hall is thus conceived as a
solar-heated, naturally ventilated sub-climatic area, a multifunctional
space that does not follow the otherwise customary requirements for
heating and ventilation.
Premiere
Exhaust gas diffusion prevented through negative pressure
The key task of the new BMW Welt is to deliver cars in the Premiere
section with all concepts geared toward enhancing the experience
of delivery. Because of the exhaust gases that this task involves,
special considerations and calculations had to be made in terms
52
Double Cone
An event space offering all the options of a public assembly place
The Double Cone is used as an exhibition space and for special
events. Air is brought in by means of a low-induction system along
the base of the faade and streams into the roof through the opening
at the top of the cone. Floor air conditioning and air circulation coolers in the wall and floor areas ensure the necessary comfort level.
In the in-between seasons, natural ventilation via faade shutters is
used. The structural design of BMW Welt represents a special challenge when determining how to conduct supply lines. Because of the
vast support-free space, which is borne by only 11 columns plus the
elevator shafts, the supply cross-sections for the Lounge floors and
the Tower had to be integrated into the few supporting core crosssections. This situation necessitated close coordination at a very
early project phase between those responsible for structural engineering, the routing of facility services and building technology.
View from East towards Double Cone and Main Hall Marcus Buck
53
Akron
Art Museum
akron, ohio, usa
20012007
project data
Program: Museum of Contemporary Art
Design Development: 2002
Completion: 06/2007
Opening: 07/2007
Site Area: 8,370 m
Total usable Floor Area: 8,244 m
Existing building (renovated) usable
Floor Area: 2,367 m
Extension (new construction) usable
Floor Area: 5,877 m
Building Costs: USD 20 Mio
Client: Akron Art Museum, Ohio, USA
concept text
Museum as Urban Space
The concept of museums has changed radically since the miracle
chamber ("Wunderkammer") of Rudolf II and Ferdinand II in the 16th
century.
The museum of today is no longer conceived only as an institution
for the storage and display of knowledge, it is an urban concept. The
museum of the future is a three-dimensional sign in the city which
exhibits the content of our visual world. Museums are no longer only
exhibition spaces to display diverse forms of digital and analog visual information, but they also function as spaces that cater to urban
experiences.
This means that art should be able to flow out of the building and the
city should be able to flow inside. This zone becomes a hybrid space
where various types of people can meet and unexpected events can
occur. Rather than going to the museum simply to look at art, visitors
are encouraged to engage in artistic discourse, attend music and arts
festivals, or to simply pass the time until an appointment. Our design
is therefore an urban connector as well as a destination point.
Design
The building is broken up into 3 parts: the Crystal, the Gallery Box,
and the Roof Cloud. The Crystal serves as the main entry and operates as an orientation and connection space serving both the new
and old buildings. It is a grand, flexible space that can also be used
for banquets, arts festivals, and events hosted by outside organizations. The traditional idea of a banquet hall as an enclosed isolated
event space dissolves away into a visible, public experience.
The energy necessary for lighting, heating and cooling the Crystal is
minimized by strategic building massing and extensive daylighting.
The mass and location of the Gallery Box and High Roof protect the
southern oriented Crystal glazing from direct sunlight. At the same
time the reflectivity of the faade material raises natural light levels
54
in the Crystal and reduces the need to power artificial light sources.
The Crystal utilizes microclimate zones as a heating and cooling concept. These different zones are determined by analyzing the type and
anticipated length of occupancy in various areas of the crystal and
are conditioned through optimization of active and passive means.
By eliminating the need to condition the entire air volume in the Crystal, and by focusing the energy used to condition the space in the
areas where people are located, operating costs and energy use are
significantly reduced. The interior of the Gallery Box is an expansive
space which has very few columns and is therefore extremely flexible
for varying exhibition requirements. A large freight elevator brings
oversized works to and from the storage areas and serves as a link
between the loading dock and Gallery Box. Natural light is eliminated
in the galleries so that it can be strictly controlled and damage from
sunlight can be eliminated.
The floors of the Gallery Box and Crystal are composed of poured in
place concrete slabs with water filled tubes that supply heating and
cooling by changing temperature state of the massive floor slab. This
radiant floor system is more efficient than simple forced air systems
because it uses the mass of the concrete as a storage device which
delivers a stable continuous source of heating and cooling. Forced
air systems are much less efficient than radiant systems because of
the extra work required by the system when occupancy loads suddenly change and create a far higher burden of use of non-renewable
resources.
The Roof Cloud, which hovers above the building, creates a blurred
envelope for the museum because of its sheer mass and materiality.
It encloses interior space, provides shade for exterior spaces, and
operates as a horizontal landmark in the city.
View towards 1899 Building, Main Entrance and Gallery Box Roland Halbe
55
Academy
of Fine Arts
munich, germany
1992/20022005
project data
Program: Art Academy
Competition: 1992
concept text
The project was to expand the Academy of Fine Arts
in Munich, built in 1876.
Usable Floor Area: 5,666 m

Gross Volume: 44,761 m
Construction Documents: 20022003
Completion: 10/2005
Total Construction Costs (gross): 15.2
COOP HIMMELB(L)AUs design concept is based on the idea of transforming the three different urban spatial systems which come together on the site. Those three are the axial system of Leopoldstrae
/ Akademiestrae containing its stately buildings, the structure of
Schwabing, developed over time into small-scale, differentiated
buildings, and the garden areas of Leopoldpark and Akademiegarten
which hold historical trees under landmark conservation.
Mio Euro;
Client: Freistaat Bayern, Germany
Structural Engineering:
Planungsgruppe Brachmann, Munich,
Germany
56
The resulting open configuration of buildings locked together produces a sequence of transitory connecting spaces between the park
and urban spaces: the glass facade acting as a media membrane, the
gate to the Academy, the inner court, the studio terraces functioning
as both the connecting link to the park and the gate to the park. This
configuration then takes on differentiated relationships to the exterior spaces.
Diagonal ramps and gangways connect the functional areas of the
various parts of the building and thus the different departments. In
this way, an energized complex is created, which corresponds ideally
to the diversity of needs of creative activity. Connections arise between painting studios, the plastic workshop, sculpture studios, the
media workshop, photography studios and the print workshop.
The studio for sculptors lies on the ground floor in two sections of the
building and spans across terraces to the park; those of the painters
and the guests are in the upper studio floors and are connected to
the roof terraces.
Workshops are located in all parts of the building. The meeting room
and the rectors offices are connected to the administrative section
by means of an open gangway.
By covering the central inner court with a roof, an additional space is
created which integrates the conglomerate of different spaces into
a unified whole and at the same time allows the building complex to
be more economical in terms of energy efficiency. The minimal extra
costs brought about by the spacious hall are more than offset by optimization of energy consumption over the middle and long term. The
inner court opens up through a glass facade to the city in the south
and to the park in the north.
A public space, the caf is situated such that it can be connected to
the inner court by means of mobile wall elements, making it into exhibition space. It is oriented towards the city over the south terrace.
The two to four story buildings are planned as solid wall construction,
the cantilevered building parts as steel truss constructions.
View towards Main Entrance Duccio Malagamba
57
Apartment Building
Gasometer B
vienna, austria
19952001
project data
Program: Residential, Shopping,
Event Hall
Construction: 12/19982001
Completion: 09/2001
concept text
The four historical Gasometers originally housed the tanks for the
gas supply of Vienna. After the closure of these Gasometers the interior elements were dismantled, leaving the classical facades. The
specific location of these Gasometers within an industrial site as well
as the unusual character of the resulting spaces led to the Gasometers often being used for diverse cultural activities.

Volume: 132,000 m
Height: 60 m
Budget: EUR 47.24 Mio
Client: WBV Wohnbauvereinigung fr
Privatangestellte, Vienna, Austria
Structural Engineering: Fritsch-Chiari,
Vienna, Austria
The location of the project presents a special opportunity to develop

the urban fabric of Vienna by means of various alterations of the
transportation system, such as the extension of the U3 subway and
the construction of the North-East Highway.
In addition to COOP HIMMELB(L)AU, three other architectural teams
are working out new living opportunities to be realized in the remaining Gasometers. An Entertainment Center and Shopping Mall are
also integrated into the complex, making it into a new city center.
The concept of the COOP HIMMELB(L)AU Gasometer B adds three new
volumes to the existing facade: The cylinder inside the Gasometer,
the striking addition of the shield that is visible from outside, and
the multifunctional event hall situated in the base of the Gasometer.
Inside the cylinder and the shield are apartments and offices. The
lighting for these inside spaces is provided by the conical innercourt,
and that for the outside through the historical Gasometer wall. The
lighting for the shield is provided through a spacious north-oriented
glass facade with loggias.
58
The 360 apartments offer differentiated living forms, ranging from

3-room-maisonette-apartments and loft-apartments to smaller ones
like student apartments. By combining office and apartment uses,
new ways of working and living are expected.
The Gasometer - separated differently for inhabitants and for visitors can be accessed either from the outside via Guglgasse, or directly from
the subway station through the connecting shopping mall. The mall
connects all Gasometers on the ground level. Inside the Gasometer B
a spacial and functional buffer between the event hall and the apartment/office wing is created. Internal communication is thereby intensified. The "Sky-Lobby" on the 6th floor creates a social space for the
inhabitants. Other remaining spaces can be used as common areas.
The foyer of the event hall is connected with the subway both by
means of the "Night-Mall" of the Gasometer A, and directly through
an entrance at Guglgasse. The "Night-Mall" also hosts common
spaces, thus becoming a transit area for people arriving or leaving
the event hall.
Dialogue of Old and New Gerald Zugmann
59
SEG
Apartment Tower
vienna, austria
19941998
project data
Program: Residential;
Completion: 09/1998
Floor Area: 7,100 m
Volume: 32,000 m
Height: 60 m
Client: SEG Stadterneuerungs- und
Eigentumswohnungsgesellschaft m. b.
H., Vienna, Austria
concept text
Located between Wagramerstrae and Kratochwilestrae and adjacent to the "Alte Donau" metro station, the 60m high SEG - Tower
from COOP HIMMELB(L)AU forms in conjunction with two other projected high-rise buildings the new district "Donau - City". The tower
includes 70 apartments, 9 eating facilities, offices and practices on
25 floors.
The complete arrangement captivates by its immediate nearness to
the city core and the shopping center "Donauzentrum" as well as by
its location in one of the favourite leisure districts of Vienna. It is also
captivating due to its striking height and its quality of space, which is
determined by different typological concepts.
Construction Documents: ARGE Eiger

Nord, Vienna, Austria
Structural Engineering: Projektierungsbro fr Industrie-, Hoch- und
Tiefbauten AG, Vienna, Austria
Two major considerations were important for the design of the outer
form of the COOP HIMMELB(L)AU building:
On the one hand the concept of the tower is based on the idea to put
two houses, one on top of the other, in a way such that a common
space would occur at the intersection. This common space - called a
sky-lobby - is then used for the accommodation of a venue, a playground, a "teleworking caf" and a sundeck. On the other hand the
concept of the so-called climate facade was developed, which is the
linking and surrounding element between the two components.
This is an "intelligent" glass facade that regulates together with the
"air - box" on top of the roof and the circulation core (planned as
heat accumulator) the cooling of the apartments in summer and the
heating in winter. This well calculated system offers a higher level
of comfort during hot weather and a minimizing of costs during the
heating period. Besides its function as a sound protection, the climate facade provides space for glazed loggias placed in front of the
apartments and comprising two or three floors. These loggias allow
green spaces, not normally seen in high-rise buildings, and a view to
the city and to nature, also uncommon for urban living.
The concept of the glass skin surrounding the building enables an
orientation of all buildings towards south.
All apartments (ranging from 55m2 to 130m2) are based on a loft
concept with an open plan and without load-bearing walls. This
concept enables a flexible layout of all the apartments. A concierge
located in the two-floor entrance lobby will provide optimal service
for all the inhabitants.
60
Concept of the Climate facade

The glass facade, developed from the architectural concept, is intended to passively exploit solar energy. Thus less initial investment
for the energy system is needed and the amortisation period would
be considerably shortened.
It is also planned to power compressor engines by means of wind
energy, which would provide necessary air circulation in the building.
Passive Energy Concept
The glass facade is the medium through which thermal energy will be
stored as radiant energy potential during winter, spring and autumn.
The facade faces southeast and southwest. The thermal energy produced during daylight hours will be supplied to a thermal reservoir
unit located in the interior of the building. In this way, a milder, more
equitable room climate as compared to the exterior conditions will
be created in the areas of the building directly behind the climate
facade. The exploitation of solar energy will lead to a considerable
reduction in total energy consumption. This is effected on the one
hand by the stabilisation of the differences in temperature between
the interior living space and the loggia area, and on the other hand
by the direct supply of energy to the apartments from the thermal
reservoir inside the core area of the building.
Thermal Mass
The central thermal mass is to be a reinforced concrete shaft. To expedite the energy exchange process, this shaft will be equipped with
heat exchange surfaces, also made of reinforced concrete.
To guarantee heat exchange between the loggia area and the climate
facade, air circulation between the two system areas will be provided
mechanically. This air circulation will be effected by the ventilators in
the thermal mass shaft.
Sustainable Building technology: Energy Box on rooftop Duccio Malagamba
61
UFA
Cinema Center
dresden, germany
19931998
project data
Program: Cinema
Competition: 1993
Construction: 19971998
Completion: 03/1998
Floor Area: 6,174 m
Volume: 53,725 m
Client: Ufa Theater AG, Dsseldorf,
Germany
Construction Documents: ARGE Eiger
concept text
The Urban Design Concept
The urban design concept of the UFA Cinema Center confronts the issue
of public space, which is currently endangered in European cities. This
situation is caused by the financial insolvency of city governments,
which forces the sale of public space to developers, who then propose
monofunctional buildings in order to maximize capital return.
By disintegrating the monofunctionality of these structures and adding urban functions to them, a new urbanity can arise in the city. This
character of this urbanity would not only be determined by functional
differentiation and the creation of new spatial sequences thereby,
but also by the injection of media events.
Nord Wien, Vienna, Austria

GmbH, Frankfurt/M., Germany
The project for the UFA Cinema Center is a result of the urban design
concept developed for the planning competition Pragerstrae Nord.
Pragerstrae was defined as a dynamic spatial sequence, defined by
tangents and diagonals rather than by axis.
The interweaving of public squares, public interiors, and passageways was proposed as a way of energizing and densifying the new
center of Dresden. The junctures between these urban vectors are
defined as public spaces.
The UFA Cinema Center is located at one of these junctures; it is formulated as the urban connection between Pragerplatz and St. Petersburger Strae. Thereby The Cinema itself is thereby transformed into
a public space.
The Architectural Design Concept
The design is characterized by two intricately interconnected building
units: The Cinema Block, with eight cinemas and seating for 2600,
and the Crystal, a glass shell which serves simultaneously as foyer
and Public Square.
62
The Cinema Block

The Cinema Block opens up towards the street and is permeable for
pedestrian traffic between Pragerstrae and St. Petersburger Strae.
It is differentiated by the circulation system of the cinemas and by
views through to St. Petersburger Strae.
The Crystal
The Crystal is no longer merely a functional entry hall to the cinemas,
but an urban passageway.
The bridges, ramps and stairs to the cinemas are themselves urban
expressions. They allow views of the movement of people on a multitude of levels, unfolding the urban space into three dimensions. The
lively quality of this space can be described in relation to the dynamic
structure of film.
The Skybar, the "floating" double-cone inside the foyer, is accessible
and will host different functions (caf, bar etc.).
In this way, the content of the building becomes visible to the city as
much as the city is visible from the building. It is an inside-out building which sustains a dialogue with the city. The media event - projected from the interior towards the exterior - assists in the creation
of urban space.
View Towards Main Entrance Gerald Zugmann
63
Rooftop
Remodelling Falkestrasse
vienna, austria
1983/19871988
project data
Program: Office
concept text
If there was ever really a task in architecture, then this was it:
Design: 1983
Construction: 1988
Completion: 1988
Floor Area: 400 m
Volume: 2,400 m
Budget: EUR 1.5 Mio
The law firm Schuppich, Sporn, Winischhofer, Schuppich wished to

extend their office upwards. The office is situated on the first and
second floor of the building on the corner of Falkestrasse and Biberstrasse in the inner City of Vienna. The attention was to be focussed
on a large meeting room. Adjacent to it several smaller office units
were to be designed.
Client: Law firm Schuppich, Sporn,

Winischhofer, Vienna, Austria
Structural Engineering: Oskar Graf,
Vienna, Austria
Although the construction site was 21 meters above the ground and
one of the streets just happened to be Falkestrasse (Falcon Street), we
did not in this case think of a bird or wings, although it was hard not to.
The preliminary design of 1983 depicts the corner solution. (If there
really is such a thing as a solution in architecture.)
There are no alcoves or turrets on the roof, no context of proportions,
materials or colors but, instead, a visualized line of energy which,
coming from the street spans the project, thus breaking the existing
roof and thereby opening it.
64
While designing, we envisioned a lightning bolt reversed and a taut arc.

This space-creating taut arc - an element of our architecture that
since 1980 has progressively become more important - is both the
steel backbone of the project and its posture. The open, glazed surfaces and the closed, folded or linear surfaces of the outer shell control the light and allow or restrict the view.
Both directions of view, that from outside and that from within, which
are captured in one of the early drawings, define the complexity of
the construction's spacial relations. The differentiated and differentiating constructional system, which is a cross between a bridge and
an airplane, translates the spacial energy into constructional reality.
The project constitutes two storeys with a height of 7.80 m, with a
flat area of 400 m. The spacial layout consists of a 90 m meeting
room, three office units include an office space, a reception area
and adjacent rooms. It would also be possible to use the office as an
apartment.
The construction took one year and was completed on December 23rd, 1988.
Rooftop Office Gerald Zugmann
65
The Blazing Wing, Graz, Austria, 1980
Rooftop Remodeling Falkestrasse

Vienna, Austria, 1983/19871988
Office and Research Center Seibersdorf

Seibersdorf, Austria, 19911995
Funder Factory 3, St.Veit/Glan, Austria, 19871989
The Heart of a City - Melun Snart, Mlun Senart, France, 1986
Groninger Museum - The East Pavilion

Groningen, The Netherlands, 19931994
Academy of Fine Arts, Munich, Germany, 1992/20022005
Ufa Cinema Center, Dresden, Germany, 19931998
SEG Apartment Block Remise, Vienna, Austria, 19942000
SEG Apartment Tower, Vienna, Austria, 19941998
Apartment Building Gasometer B, Vienna, Austria, 19952001
JVC - New Urban Entertainment Center, Guadalajara, Mexico, 1998
Apartment Towers Wienerberg City, Vienna, Austria, 1999-2004
EXPO.02 - Forum Arteplage, Biel, Switzerland, 1999-2002
Apartment and Office Building Schlachthausgasse

Vienna, Austria, 2001/2003-2005
Town Town - Erdberg Office Tower, Vienna, Austria, 2000/20102012
Muse des Confluences, Lyon, France, 20012014
BMW Welt, Munich, Germany, 20012007
Akron Art Museum, Akron, Ohio, USA, 20012007
Villa S., Millstatt, Austria, 20012006
Hammerhead Communities - Outer Banks, North Carolina, USA, 2001
The Great Egyptian Museum, Cairo, Egypt, 2002
House of Music I, Aalborg, Denmark, 2002
Central Los Angeles Area High School #9

Los Angeles, California, USA, 20022008
The New Premises of the European Central Bank (ECB)

Frankfurt/M., Germany, 20032014
Guadalajara Country Club - Torres Plata, Guadalajara, Mexico, 2005
Sky-Arc / Sci-Arc - 24 hour Living, Culture and Arts District

Los Angeles, California, USA, 2005
Busan Cinema Center, Busan, Corea, 20052011
Space of Contemporary Artistic Creation, Cordoba, Spain, 2005
Rhein Main Arena, Frankfurt/M., Germany, 2006
Cloud Roof - Fair Extension, Riva del Garda, Italy, 20062012
House of Music II, Aalborg, Denmark, 2003/20082012
Zorlu Gateway Center, Istanbul, Turkey, 2007
Hotel at dm Clark Square, Budapest, Hungary, 2007
Communication Center Konstantinovsky, St.Petersburg, Russia, 2007
Museum of Contemporary Art & Planning Exhibition

Shenzhen, China, 20072013
Tower at Suk al Thalath al Gadeem, Tripoli, Libya, 2007
Dalian International Conference Center, Dalian, China, 20082011
Sustainable City - Nordwestbahnhof, Vienna, Austria, 2008
Opera Pavilion, Munich, Germany, 20082010
Soccer Stadium Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain, 2008
Mixed Use Center Baku, Baku, Azerbaijan, 2008
Dr. Martin Luther Church, Hainburg, Austria, 20082011
Art Museum Strongoli, Strongoli, Italy, 20082014
Archeological Museum Egypt, Tell el-Daba, Egypt, 2010
Biography
70
COOP HIMMELB(L)AU was founded by Wolf D. Prix,

Helmut Swiczinsky, and Michael Holzer in Vienna,
Austria, in 1968, and is active in architecture, urban
planning, design, and art. In 1988, a second studio
was opened in Los Angeles, USA. Further project offices are located in Frankfurt, Germany; Paris, France;
and Hongkong,China. COOP HIMMELB(L)AU employs
currently 150 team members from nineteen nations.
holz & Partner ZT GmbH and is managing director of

COOP HIMMELB(L)AU Europe GmbH, Frankfurt/ M.,
Germany, since 2006. Karolin Schmidbaur was made
Partner of the office in 1996 and is currently Design
and Managing Partner of COOP HIMMELB(L)AU Vienna
(since 2009) as well as the Director of the office in Los
Angeles, California (since 2003).
OFFICE PROFILE
The architectural studio COOP HIMMELB(L)AU is directed by Wolf D. Prix, Wolfdieter Dreibholz, Harald
Krieger, Karolin Schmidbaur and Project Partners.
Those are Andrea Graser, Hartmut Hank, Helmut Holleis, Markus Pillhofer, Markus Prossnigg, Wolfgang
Reicht, Frank Stepper, and Michael Volk.
After Michael Holzer left the team in 1971, and with
the retirement of Helmut Swiczinsky in 2001 from
COOP HIMMELB(L)AUs daily operations and in 2006
from the office, Wolf D. Prix is leading the studio as
Design Principal/ CEO. In 2000, Wolfdieter Dreibholz joined COOP HIMMELB(L)AU as CEO of COOP
HIMMELB(L)AU Mex S. A. de C. V. and became a partner of COOP HIMMELB(L)AU Wolf D. Prix / W. Dreibholz & Partner ZT GmbH, and CEO of the main studio
in 2004. In 2003 Harald Krieger was designated as
Partner of COOP HIMMELB(L)AU Wolf D. Prix / W. Dreib-
projects (SELection)
COOP HIMMELB(L)AUs most well-known projects include: the Rooftop Remodeling Falkestrae in Vienna
(1988) ; the master plan for the City of Melun-Snart in France; the Groninger Museum, East Pavilion in
Groningen (1994) in the Netherlands; the design for
the EXPO.02Forum Arteplage in Biel, Switzerland;
the multifunctional UFA Cinema Center in Dresden,
Germany (1998); the Academy of Fine Arts (2005) and
the BMW Welt (2007) in Munich, Germany; the Akron
Art Museum in Ohio, USA (2007); the Central Los Angeles Area High School #9 of Visual and Performing
Arts in Los Angeles, CA, USA (2008); and the Pavilion
21 MINI Opera Space in Munich, Germany (2010).
COOP HIMMELB(L)AU realized further key projects in
Vienna in the past years, including the SEG Apartment
Tower (1998), followed by the SEG Apartment Block
Remise (2000); the Apartment Building Gasometer
B (2001); and the Apartment and Office Building,

Schlachthausgasse (2005).
Among the recent projects that COOP HIMMELB(L)AU is pursuing throughout the world are the
Muse des Confluences in Lyon, France (2014); the
House of Music in Aalborg, Denmark (2012); the European Central Banks new headquarters in Frankfurt
am Main, Germany (2014); the Busan Cinema Center
in Busan, South Korea (2011); and the Dalian International Conference Center in China (2011). Additional
projects in planning are the Museum of Contemporary Art & Planning Exhibition in Shenzhen, China
(2012); the expansion of the Fair and Multifunctional
Hall in Riva del Garda, Italy (2014); the Cultural Center Zarautz, Spain (2012); the Central Bank of Azerbaijan, Baku, Azerbaijan (2014) as well as the Martin
Luther Church in Hainburg, Austria (2011).
Honors and awards (selection)
Over the course of the past three decades, COOP
HIMMELB(L)AU has received numerous international
awards. These include: the Frderungspreis fr Baukunst, Berlin (1982), the Award of the City of Vienna
for Architecture (1988), the Erich Schelling Architektur Preis (1992), the Progressive Architecture/ P.A.
Award (1989, 1990, and 1991), the Groer sterreichischer Staatspreis (1999) as well as the Euro-
pean Steel Design Award (2001). In December 2002,

COOP HIMMELB(L)AU was made Officier de lordre des
arts et des lettres and was awarded the Ehrenzeichen
fr Verdienste um das Land Wien. In 2005, for the
design of the Akron Art Museum, our office received
the American Architecture Award. Our office was
awarded the 2007 International Architecture Award
for four projects: for the Busan Cinema Complex, the
Akademie der Bildenden Knste, the Great Egyptian
Museum at the pyramids in Giza, and the Space of
Contemporary Artistic Creation in Cordoba. In 2008
COOP HIMMELB(L)AU has been announced for the
RIBA International Award for the Akron Art Museum
and the RIBA European Award for the BMW Welt. In
2010, COOP HIMMELB(L)AU won the MIPIM Architectural Review Future Projects Award in the category
sustainability for their project Town Town Erdberg.
Exhibitions (Selection)
Recognized as seminal for the architecture of the
future, the works of COOP HIMMELB(L)AU have continually been the subject of international exhibitions.
Among the largest and most widely known are the solo
retrospectives Construire le Ciel in 1992 at the Centre
Georges Pompidou in Paris, France, and the exhibition
entitled Deconstructivist Architecture held in 1988 at
the Museum of Modern Art, New York, under the cura-
torship of Philip Johnson and Mark Wigley.

Internationally renowned institutions such as the Getty Foundation in Los Angeles, the Austrian Museum of
Applied Arts/Contemporary Art (MAK) in Vienna and
the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris display the
works of COOP HIMMELB(L)AU as part of their permanent exhibitions.
In 1996, COOP HIMMELB(L)AU was invited to serve
as the Austrian representative to the 6th International
Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia, Italy. Since then, our studio has been a regular participant, presenting several projects such as the Muse
des Confluences and the Guangzhou Opera House.
The Muse des Confluences in Lyon was additionally
shown at the Latent Utopias exhibition in Graz, Austria, from October 2002 to March 2003.
COOP HIMMELB(L)AU has also been presented on
several occasions at the Aedes East Gallery in Berlin,
for example, at well-known shows such as Skyline
in 1985, The Vienna Trilogy + One Cinema in 1998,
and the exhibition on the competition for the BMW
Event and Delivery Center in 2002. In the same year,
COOP HIMMELB(L)AU was also present at the 8th International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di
Venezia, Italy, with the projects BMW Welt and a design for the new World Trade Center. In 2007/08, the
exhibition COOP HIMMELB(L)AU.Beyond the Blue was
shown at the MAK in Vienna and traveled in 2009 to

the Wexner Center for the Arts, Columbus, Ohio, USA.
At the 11th International Architecture Exhibition of
La Biennale di Venezia, Italy, COOP HIMMELB(L)AU
has been presented with two contributions: Astro
Balloon 1969 Revisited - Feedback Space at L Arsenale and Brain City Lab at Padiglione Italia. The two
installations were also shown in 2009, at the COOP
HIMMELB(L)AU: Future Revisited exhibition at NTT InterCommunication Center [ICC] in Tokyo, Japan.
COOP HIMMELB(L)AU has also designed several exhibitions. Among their best known works are Paradise
Cage: Kiki Smith and Coop Himmelb(l)au, shown in
1996 at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, and in 2000 Rudi Gernreich: Fashion will go out
of fashion, for the Steirischer Herbst festival in Graz,
Austria, which also traveled to Philadelphia, USA.
71
Wolf D. Prix / Co-Founder of Coop Himmelb(l)au 1968

Design Principal / CEO
72
Wolf D. Prix, born in Vienna in 1942, is a co-founder of

COOP HIMMELB(L)AU. He studied architecture at the Vienna University of Technology, the Architectural Association
of London, and the Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc) in Los Angeles.
In 1993, Wolf D. Prix was named Professor for Architecture
at the University of Applied Arts in Vienna, Austria. Since
2003, he has been head of the Institute for Architecture,
the head of Studio Prix, and serves as vice-rector of the
university.
He taught as a visiting professor at the Architectural Association in London in 1984, and at Harvard University in
Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1990. From 1985 to 1995,
Wolf D. Prix was active as Adjunct Professor at the SCI-Arc
in Los Angeles. Since 1998, he has been a faculty member
of Columbia University in New York. In 1999, Wolf D. Prix
was awarded the Harvey S. Perloff Professorship at the
University of California Los Angeles (UCLA). In 2001, he

was made an adjunct professor at UCLA. Since 2001 he
has been a Doctor Honoris Causa de la Universidad de
Palermo, Buenos Aires, Argentina. In 2004, Wolf D. Prix
received the Annie Spink Award for Excellence in Architectural Education for his commitment to teaching and
training. In 2008, Wolf D. Prix was awarded with the Jencks
Award: Visions Built prize for his major contribution to the
theory and practice of architecture. In May 2009, Federal
President Dr. Heinz Fischer bestowed the Austrian Decoration of Honor for Science and Art on Wolf D. Prix for his
outstanding creative achievements.
From 1995 to 1997, Wolf D. Prix was a member of the architectural committee in the Austrian Federal Ministry of
Science, Research, and the Arts.
He is a member of the Austrian Art Senate, of the European
Academy of Sciences and Arts, as well as of the Advisory
Committee for Building Culture. Furthermore, Wolf D.

Prix is a member of the Architectural Association Austria,
Union of German Architects (BDA) in Germany, the Architectural Union Santa Clara in Cuba, the Royal Institute of
British Architects (RIBA), the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and the Architectural Association Italy. In 2006,
he was the commissioner for the Austrian contribution for
the 10th International Exhibition of the Venice Biennale.
73
Karolin Schmidbaur
Design Partner
Karolin Schmidbaur, born 1967 in Wrzburg, Germany,

was raised and educated in Munich. She studied architecture at the Technical University of Munich and received
her diploma in 1992. Since 1992 she has been practicing
Architecture internationally with COOP HIMMELB(L)AU in
their offices in Vienna, Austria; Guadalajara, Mxico; and
Los Angeles, California. Since 1993 she has been based
in Los Angeles, California. She is a Licensed Architect in
Germany since 1995.
In 1996, she was made a Partner of COOP HIMMELB(L)AU.
Currently Karolin Schmidbaur is design and managing
partner of COOP HIMMELB(L)AU Vienna and also the director of COOP HIMMELB(L)AUs Los Angeles, California office.
Projects at COOP HIMMELB(L)AU include the Groningen
Museum East Pavilion, the Netherlands, completed in
1994; the JVC Urban Entertainment Center in Guadalajara,
Mxico; and most recently the Central Los Angeles Area
High School #9 for visual and performing arts in downtown
Los Angeles, California, completed in 2008. Among studies and competitions are mixed use projects all over the
74
world, a master plan for an Urban Development downtown

Los Angeles, California, and contributions to the formulation of new museum concepts such as the Broad Art Museum in Lansing, Michigan, and the Randers Art Museum
in Randers, Denmark.
Karolin Schmidbaur has taught design studio at the University of Southern California (1997-1998) and the Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc) from 1998
to 1999.
Wolfdieter Dreibholz
Ceo
Wolfdieter Dreibholz, born in Vienna in 1941, was trained

at the Technical University of Vienna, graduating in 1966
as a Dipl. Ing. with an engineering degree in architecture.
From 1968 to 1974 he worked as an assistant at the
Faculty of Architecture of the Graz University of Technology where he graduated in 1977 as Doctor of Technical
Sciences. Working with the planning department of the
federal state of Styria from 1978 to 1998, Wolfdieter
Dreibholz was appointed director in 1990. In this capacity
he was responsible for all public building projects, including universities, office buildings, municipal buildings, and
housing.
In 2000, Wolfdieter Dreibholz joined COOP HIMMELB(L)AU
as CEO of COOP HIMMELB(L)AU Mex S. A. de C. V. and was
nominated partner of COOP HIMMELB(L)AU Wolf D. Prix /
W. Dreibholz & Partner ZT GmbH, becoming their CEO in
2004.
Wolfdieter Dreibholz is a member of the chambers of
architects of Germany, France, Austria and Italy, and the
author of numerous articles and research papers in the
fields of architecture and urban planning.
Harald Krieger
Cfo
Harald Krieger, born 1956 in Graz, studied law and

business administration at the Karl-Franzens-Universitt
Graz from where he received his graduate degree in
Laws in 1987. From 1987 to 2000 he worked in the
Austrian Inland Revenue Office and as tax and company
auditor for major companies in Styria. In 2000 he moved
into the private sector as managing partner of a tax
consulting, auditing, and business consulting firm.
In 2003, Harald Krieger was designated as partner of
COOP HIMMELB(L)AU Wolf D. Prix / W. Dreibholz & Partner ZT GmbH. He is authorized signatory of the architectural office and managing director of COOP HIMMELB(L)AU Europe GmbH, Frankfurt am Main, Germany since
2006.
75
Awards and Honors

Wallpaper* Design Award 2011
(Category: Best Building Sites)
London, UK, 2011
Project: Dalian International Conference Center
MIPIM Architectural Review Future Projects Award
(Category: Sustainability)
Cannes, France 2010
Project: Town Town Erdberg, Vienna, Austria
Downtowners of Distinction Award
Los Angeles, California, USA 2010
Project: Central Los Angeles Area High School #9 for the visual
and performing arts
Metal Construction Association's Presidents
Award for Overall Excellence
Glenview, Illinois, USA 2010
and performing arts
Best of 2009 Award
Los Angeles, California, USA 2009
and performing arts
Austrian Decoration of Honor for Science and Art
for Wolf D. Prix/ COOP HIMMELB(L)AU
Vienna, Austria 2009
Detail Prize 2009 - Innovation Steel
Munich, Germany 2009
Project: BMW Welt

Wallpaper Design Award 2009: Best New Public Building
London, UK 2009
Project: BMW Welt
76
World Architecture Festival Award: Production

Barcelona, Spain 2008
Project: BMW Welt
American Architecture Award 2005

The Chicago Athenaeum, Illinois, USA 2005
Project: Akron Art Museum
World Architecture Festival Preis: Production

Barcelona, Spain 2008
Project: BMW Welt
Annie Spink Award for Excellence in

Architectural Education
RIBA, London, UK 2004
Jencks Award: Visions Built 2008

for Wolf D. Prix / COOP HIMMELB(L)AU
London, UK, 2008
Goldenes Ehrenzeichen fr Verdienste um das Land Wien

(Gold Medal for merits to the federal state of Vienna)
Preis des Deutschen Stahlbaues 2008

Mainz, Germany 2008
Project: BMW Welt
Officier de lordre des arts et des lettres

RIBA European Award 2008

London, UK 2008
Project: BMW Welt
RIBA International Award 2008
London, UK 2008
Project: Akron Art Museum
International Architecture Award 2007
The Chicago Athenaeum, Illinois, USA 2007
4 Projects: Busan Cinema Complex, Busan, South Korea;
Academy of Fine Arts, Munich, Germany; Space of Contemporary Artistic Creation, Cordoba, Spain; The Great Egyptian
Museum, Cairo, Egypt
Honorary Fellowship of the American
Institut of Architects
AIA, New York, USA, 2006
International Fellowship of the Royal Institute
of British Architects
RIBA, London, UK, 2006
Anerkennungspreis fr Architektur des

Landes Niedersterreich
(Recognition Prize for Architecture in lower Austria)
St. Plten, Austria 2002
Project: Water Tower, Donau-Auen National Park Hainburg
Architekturpreis der sterreichischen Zementindustrie
(Architectural Prize of the Austrian Cement Industry 2001)
Project: SEG Remise
Europischer Stahlbaupreis 2001
(European Steel Design Award 2001)
Venice, Italy 2001
Project: UFA Cinema Center Dresden
Groer sterreichischer Staatspreis
(Great Austrian State Award)
Bauherrenpreis der Zentralvereinigung
der Architekten sterreichs
(Prize of the Austrian Architectural Association)
Project: SEG Apartment Tower
Architekturpreis 1999 Beton

(Architectural Prize 1999 Concrete)
Baden-Baden, Germany 1999
Project: UFA Cinema Center, Dresden
Deutscher Architekturpreis 1999
(Award to the German Architecture Prize 1999)
Berlin, Germany 1999
Neuer Schsischer Kunstverein e.V., Architekturpreis 1996
(Architectural Prize of the Neuer Schsischer
Kunst-verein)
Germany 1996
(Prize of the Austrian Architectural Association)
Project: Office and Research Center Seibersdorf
Tau Sigma Delta Award
Tau Sigma Delta Honor Society in Architecture
and the Allied Arts
Washington D.C., USA 1993
Dutch National Steel Prize
The Netherlands, 1992
Project: Groninger Museum
Erich-Schelling-Architekturpreis
(Erich-Schelling-Architecture Prize)
Staatliche Hochschule fr Gestaltung, Karlsruhe,
Germany 1992
Constructa Preis. Europischer Preis

fr Industriearchitektur
(Constructa Prize. Award for European Industrial
Architecture)
Hannover, Germany 1992

(Award of the Austrian Architectural Association)
Project: Studio Baumann
P.A. Award (Progressive Architecture)

New York, USA 1991
Berliner Frderungspreis fr Baukunst

(Berlin Prize for Building Art)
Germany 1982

New York, USA 1990
Project: Open House
der Architekten sterreich
(Award of the Austrian Architectural Association)
Project: Funder Factory 3
New York, USA 1989
(COOP HIMMELB(L)AU MORPHOSIS)
Project: L.A. Art Park
Krntner Landespreis fr Gutes Bauen
(Award of the State of Carinthia for Superior Architecture)
Austria 1989
Project: Funder Factory 3
Ehrenmitglied beim Bund Deutscher Architekten
(Honorary Membership in the League of German Architects)
Bonn, Germany 1989
Preis der Stadt Wien fr Architektur
(Award of the City of Vienna for Architecture)
Austria 1988
Project: Rooftop Remodelling Falkestrae
77
Monographs
Peter Gssel (Ed.)
Coop Himmelb(l)au
Complete Works 19682010
Taschen GmbH, Kln 2010.
Thomas Kramer (Ed.):
Himmelblau no es ningn color
wolf d. prix, coop himmelb(l)au.
Editorial Gustavo Gili, Barcelona 2010.
COOP HIMMELB(L)AU (Ed.) :
Pavillon 21 MINI Opera Space.
HIMMELPRINT, Vienna 2010.
Johnson, Philip; Wigley, Mark (Ed.):

Deconstructivist Architecture.
The Museum of Modern Art, New York 1988.
Feireiss, Kristin; Commerell, Jrgen (Ed.):

COOP HIMMELB(L)AU. The Vienna Trilogy + One Cinema.
Three Residential Buildings in Vienna and a Cinema in
Dresden. Berlin 1998.
Architekturgalerie Mnchen (Ed.):

COOP HIMMELBLAU. Offene Architektur. Wohnanlage Wien 2.
Munich 1986.
De Sessa, Cesare (Ed.):

Spazi atonali e ibridazionelinguistica.
Testo & Immagine, Torino 1998.
COOP HIMMELB(L)AU (Ed.) :

HS#9, Central Los Angeles Area High School #9
for the Visual and Performing Arts.
Prestel Publishing, Munich 2010.
Hausegger, Gudrun; Kandeler-Fritsch, Martina (Ed.):

Wolf D. Prix Helmut Swiczinsky. COOP HIMMELB(L)AU
Austria. Biennale die Venezia 1996, Sixth International
Exhibition of Architecture.
Verlag Ritter, Klagenfurt 1996.
Menges, Axel (Ed.):

Coop Himmelb(l)au, BMW Welt, Mnchen.
Edition Axel Menges, Stuttgart, London 2009.
Museum of Contemporary Art (Ed.):

Paradise Cage Kiki Smith and
COOP HIMMELB(L)AU. Los Angeles 1996.
Noever, Peter (Ed.):

COOP HIMMELB(L)AU. Beyond the Blue.
Prestel Verlag, Munich, Berlin, London, New York 2007.
Centre Georges Pompidou (Ed.):

COOP HIMMELBLAU. Construire le ciel. Paris 1992.
Feireiss, Kristin (Ed.):

Dynamic Forces.
COOP HIMMELB(L)AU. BMW Welt Munich.
Prestel Verlag, Munich, Berlin, London,
New York 2007.
Kandeler-Fritsch, Martina; Kramer, Thomas (Ed.):
Get Off of My Cloud. Wolf D. Prix.
COOP HIMMELB(L)AU. Texts 1968-2005.
Hatje Cantz Verlag, Ostfildern-Ruit 2005.
Dar, Mattia; Zamponi, Beatrice (Ed.):
COOP HIMMELB(L)AU. Edil Stampa, Roma 2004.
Noever, Peter (Ed.):
Gerald Zugmann - Blue Universe. Transforming Models into
Pictures. Architectural Projects by COOP HIMMELB(L)AU.
Hatje Cantz Verlag, Ostfildern-Ruit 2002.
78
Werner, Frank (Ed.):

Covering + Exposing. The Architecture of
COOP HIMMELB(L)AU. Birkhuser, Berlin 2000.
Gruenberg, Oliver; Hahn, Robert; Knecht, Doris (Ed.):

COOP HIMMELBLAU. The Power of the City. 2.
Edition, Jrgen Husser, Darmstadt 1992.
Aedes Galerie and Architekturforum (Ed.):
Hans Hollein - COOP HIMMELBLAU. Profile Expo '95 Vienna.
Berlin 1990.
COOP HIMMELBLAU. 6 Projects for 4 Cities.
Verlag Jrgen Husser, Darmstadt 1990.
Architectural Association London (Ed.):
COOP HIMMELBLAU. Blaubox.
Folio XXIII, London 1988.
Gruenberg, Oliver; Hahn, Robert; Knecht, Doris (Ed.):
COOP HIMMELBLAU. The Power of the City.
Georg Bchner, Darmstadt 1988.
Gallery Aedes (Ed.):

COOP HIMMELBLAU. Skyline. Projekt fr das Hamburger
Bauforum 1985. Berlin 1985.
Gallery Aedes (Ed.):
COOP HIMMELB(L)AU. Offene Architektur
Ent-Wrfe 1980-1984. Berlin 1984.
COOP HIMMELBLAU. Architecture is now.
Hatje Cantz, Stuttgart; Rizzoli, New York; Thames & Hudson,
London 1993.
Technische Universitt Graz; Gallery H (Ed.):
COOP HIMMELBLAU. Architektur muss brennen.
Graz 1980.
Weiermair, Peter; Galerie im Taxispalais (Ed.):
COOP HIMMELBLAU. Sie leben in Wien.
Vienna 1975.
Coop Himmelb(l)au
Pavillon 21 Mini Opera Space
Munich, Germany
20082010
Coop Himmelb(l)au
HS#9 Central Los Angeles Area High School #9
Coop Himmelb(l)au
Complete Works 1968-2010
by taschen
Key Data
English/Deutsch
2010. 36 pp.,
26,6 x 19,6 cm
softcover
pub. date: July 2010
10,00
ISBN 978-3200019010
Publisher: HIMMELPRINT (2010)
http://www.amazon.de
Key Data
Editor: Sylvia Lavin
Publisher: Prestel (2010)
Languages: English
192 pages, softcover, Size: 234 x 206 mm.
ISBN 978-3791344331
(English Version)
Key Data
EURO 39.95, US $ 49.95, GB 25.00
Author: Michael Mnninger
http://www.prestel.com
Hardcover, 30.8 x 39 cm
Editor: Peter Gssel

500 pages
99.99
ISBN: 978-3-8365-1788-1
Multilingual Edition: English, French, German
http://www.taschen.com
79
Contact
COOP HIMMELB(L)AU
Wolf D. Prix / W. Dreibholz & Partner ZT GmbH
Spengergasse 37
A 1050 Vienna
Austria
T: +43 - 1- 546 60
F: +43 - 1- 546 60- 600
COOP HIMMELB(L)AU L.A.

Cloud Inc. L.A.
2404 Wilshire Blvd.,
Suite No. 4K, 4th floor
USA, CA-90057 Los Angeles
T: +1- 213- 251 95 40
F: +1- 213- 251 95 94
office@himmelblau_la.com
COOP HIMMELB(L)AU FRANCE, S.A. de R.L.

COOP HIMMELB(L)AU EUROPE GmbH
COOP HIMMELB(L)AU HONG KONG LTD.
82
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Press Sheet: Wolf D. Prix / W. Dreibholz & Partner ZT GMBH

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Wolf D. Prix / W.

Dreibholz & Partner ZT GmbH

Wolf D. Prix / W. Dreibholz & Partner ZT GmbH

is not a color but an idea

Wolf D. Prix / Design Principal / CEO / Co-Founder of COOP HIMMELB(L)AU 1968

The Cloud - COOP HIMMELB(L)AU, 1968

transferring levels divide the atrium horizontally into three sections

View from West, Gossmarkthalle and Tower / Isochrom.com

Client: North Jutland House of Music

tions housed within, and providing areas of exchange of information,

Main Entrance & Restaurant / COOP HIMMELB(L)AU

main auditorium is additionally equipped with backstage areas like

Main Entrance View / Coop Himmelb(l)au

Client: P(B)usan International Film

programmed LED outdoor ceiling surfaces. The larger of the roofs

View From East, Urban Plaza / Isochrom.com

Rendering, View from North West / Isochrom.com

Between these two building structures variable, flowing public

Model Photo, View from South East / Markus Pillhofer

The Open Parliament

The Open Parliament

Program: Office, Parliament

Architectural and urban design strategies

translated into the design concept: Different building elements are

Ingenieure, Bollinger und Grohmann

Generation of Energy - Photovoltaic

View from South East / Coop Himmelb(l)au

View from North East towards Motta Grande / Isochrom.com

Museum of Contemporary Art

Main Entrance View/ Coop Himmelb(l)au

Program: Archeological Museum

This project for a new Archaeological Museum in Egypt is situated

Starting on the ground floor, the exhibition continues on a large

The sun is cooling

Their size is intended to be large enough to guarantee an adequate

Mixed USe Building with two iconic Towers SILKROAD CG

Investment Inc., Istanbul, Turkey

In response to the brief for a new, 550.000 sq. landmark, mixed-use

Central Los Angeles Area

Akron Art Museum

Academy of Fine Arts

SEG Apartment Tower

UFA Cinema Center

illuminated by daylight, which accomodates also the baptistery. The

The design approach studies the impact of physical influences on

Opera Munich, Germany

The design goal for the pavilion is to impact a unique soundscape by

The Pavilions spatial structure acts here as a transformator that

Temporary Opera Space - Top View Duccio Malagamba

Central Los Angeles Area High School #9

Courtyard View with Auditorium and Library Roland Halbe

GmbH, Frankfurt/M., Germany

Usable Floor Area: 5,666 m

View towards Main Entrance Duccio Malagamba

Floor Area: 35,000 m

The location of the project presents a special opportunity to develop

The 360 apartments offer differentiated living forms, ranging from

Dialogue of Old and New Gerald Zugmann

Construction Documents: ARGE Eiger

Concept of the Climate facade

Sustainable Building technology: Energy Box on rooftop Duccio Malagamba

Nord Wien, Vienna, Austria

The Cinema Block