Constance University library

The renovation and redesign of the Constance university library won a number of awards, including the BDA prize and the Hugo Häring award.

From the minutes of the Hugo Häring prize committee: "The entrance lobby of the ground floor of the structuralist university building from the 1960s to 70s, which was originally dark and badly built, has been modernised: with new lightness, fresh colours and with a layering of different possible uses. The new lightness from a set of different lights and illuminated walls with subtle use of colours means one can quickly forget

that one is on a floor without any natural daylight. The layering of different uses with the whole pot-pourri of provisions for the students gives rise to a playful, relaxed study atmosphere with space for interaction and unexpected encounters."

All-glass walls of System 3400 in red, green, blue and orange divide up the rooms and take very different shapes. This has created rooms for a variety of different uses that are both communicative and discreet. There is "visual communication" between the areas, with fascinating visual reference, and the atmosphere is pleasant.

Builder	Vermögen und Bau Baden-Württemberg
Architect	Arbeitsgemeinschaft ERNST² Architekten AG / mbfrank architektur, Stuttgart
Photograph	Inka Reiter, Michael B. Frank
Partition systems	3400
Door systems	fully glazed door