StudioGA

studio gollwitzer architekten GmbH is an architectural design office with its headquarters in Munich. The firm operates across the globe and is built upon international networks of research institutions in New York, Beijing, Vienna and London. Within the context of today’s ever-changing socio-economic demands, the firm develops unique yet flexible design solutions involving the latest technologies and through examining formal-programmatic typological building organization in order to create high-quality environment / spaces with a high level of economic and ecological awareness throughout the process. Formal organization seen in nature and static organic systems are often investigated and utilized to inform the firm’s design process as well as its potential. In addition, traditional building typologies are constantly examined, rethought, or sometimes, augmented depending upon the individual project’s needs – the principle of ‘What’s needed the most.’ The use of digital tools and structural principles seen in biological models is evident throughout the firm’s design process from the initial design stage through the production of building components. As a result, the best design solution is developed specifically for each project while the firm consistently strives to optimize the use of materials, energy, time, and thereby optimizing the costs – the principle of ‘Where is the investment needed the most.’ With the engagement of a three-dimensional planning method, the building envelope and its structure are regarded as one entity. Here, urban massing and the massing of interior spaces are derived simultaneously from the functional, programmatic, and/or social requirements for each project – the process of ‘sculpting.’ This allows for high-quality designs with awe-inspiring spaces with a rather simple means of construction. In effect, building skin is considered a responsive system that reacts to the environment while at the same time influencing what surrounds it.