Umbau
In collaboration with:
With the support of:
André Kiskan
In connection with the architecture trip to Vienna, we invite Hermann Czech to Ghent, a thought-provoking architect and the living memory of the Viennese architectural tradition, influenced by Adolf Loos, Josef Frank and Konrad Wachsmann, among others. His work is strongly defined by a palpable awareness of time and builds upon the underlying order of the context. Hermann Czech is a Viennese architect who – throughout his long career – has made adaptation and conversion of existing buildings his trademark. Through the concept of UMBAU, he argues that the most interesting and richest architecture is that of adaptation to the existing.
Hermann Czech
Hermann Czech
Hermann Czech
Job Floris of the Rotterdam office Monadnock agrees, although Monadnock has, to date, mainly created new-build projects. In these projects we do find a strong sensetivity to time and the transmission of ideas within the architectural discourse, the details and configurations carry many layered references and thus place the buildings in a long tradition. Besides being architect that builds, Job Floris is also one that writes, reflecting on the practices of others through essays.
Stijn Bollaert
Stijn Bollaert
Stijn Bollaert
Both in attitude and philosophy, these architects are kindred spirits. We invite them for a conversation on time, on the transmission of knowledge, ideas and references between generations, through their own work and that of others. They will discuss the role of irony in architecture, the link between postmodernism and mannerism, tailor-made architecture and the challenges of scale, umbau – of course – and the (lost?) ability to repair things, and everything in between.
