JKU Campus extension west, Linz (AT)
New building,
Further construction
Client: BIG Bundesimmobiliengesellschaft m.b.H. Linz
Architecture: Dietrich Untertrifaller with Luger Maul
Competition: 2020, recognition
Area: 3,569 m²
Programme: 3 extension modules with lecture halls and seminar rooms, multi-storey car park
Visualisation: Dietrich Untertrifaller
Team
Christina Kimmerle, Denis Omanovic, Michael Sohm
Text: Gerlinde Jüttner
Partners
Landscape: Kieran Fraser, Vienna
A modular, expandable education building
The JKU Linz campus is characterised by a conglomerate of very different buildings: the rational, cubic blocks from the 1960s and 1970s were followed by buildings with a postmodern approach in the 1980s and, in recent years, by the high-quality solitary buildings of the Science Park.
We are countering this mix of styles with functional, sustainable architecture characterised by horizontal structures and simple pavilions made of wood and glass. The heart of the new complex is the open, green centre, a biotope with a large pond, to which all the buildings are oriented. Architecture and nature merge into a single unit, forming a harmonious ensemble, a public place of learning and encounter.
House of Schools
The elongated 5-storey multi-storey car park with the superimposed first module of the House of Schools borders the campus to the south. Only half of the 2-storey institute building rests on the staircase cores of the multi-storey car park. The other half cantilevers out by 40 metres, creating a covered forecourt in front of the LIT Centre.
The second module with lecture theatre and seminar rooms is located in line with the multi-storey car park. The upper floors are lit and ventilated by an atrium. The seminar rooms look out onto the newly created, large pond, which forms the transition to the natural space.
The third module consists of three pavilions, which were erected on visible piles to enable nature-friendly construction. The existing natural environment remains largely untouched. The staggered cubes close off the campus to the west and at the same time allow a connection to the biology centre.
The entire project is designed as a timber construction. In the multi-storey car park, a timber-concrete composite structure serves as the ceiling, supported by glued laminated beech. The main girder structure of the first module allows a column-free cantilever over the square. This structural engineering challenge is highly representative of material and construction science, in line with the criteria of a modern university.
