VinziRast-mittendrin

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267852

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Submitted

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NEW EUROPEAN BAUHAUS AWARDS : existing completed examples

Project title

VinziRast-mittendrin

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Description

VinziRast-mittendrin is a social pilot project, with Students and formerly homeless people living together in residential communities in a centrally located Biedermeier house. There are common rooms, the restaurant mittendrin without compulsion to consume as well as two event venues and several workshops, which give residents the opportunity to work together. We like to see it an ambassador against monoculture, that encourages diversity in the city and offers a different perspective to society.

Where was your project implemented in the EU?

When was your project implemented?

Has your project benefited from EU programmes or funds?

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Please provide a summary of your project

The architects by the name of gaupenraub+/- consisting of Alexander Hagner and Ulrike Schartner have developed and completed the project VinziRast-mittendrin in the 9th district of Vienna in cooperation with students from the University of Vienna and the association Vinzenzgemeinschaft St. Stephan. VinziRast-mittendrin is a result of the Vienna Audimax Occupation by students in 2009. The rebuilt and extended Biedermeier building is a pilot project in the area of community living. It is located centrally, which is ideal in terms of the association’s aim to achieve integration in urban space. New multilevel decks in the courtyard provide horizontal access to the different units in the existing bulding. This preserves a maximum amount of usable floor area in the interior, while also shifting personal encounters from the corridor to the outside of the building. The original roof was taken down and its materials used in fitting-out the interior. Since the opening in spring of 2013, students live together with formerly homeless persons in 10 living communities of 3 people under one roof. Besides common rooms, the restaurant “mittendrin“ as well as two event venues the room outlay also includes several workshops, which give residents the opportunity to work together, thereby creating an extra source of income. We like to see it an ambassador against monoculture, that encourages diversity in the city and offers a different perspective to society.

Please give information about the key objectives of your project in terms of sustainability and how these have been met

It was important to use the available means responsibly, both in the context of the existing structure and with the new building components: In order to interfere as little as possible with the existing structure, we built the new barrier-free access in form of arcades, an exterior elevator and an exterior escape staircase. the energy supply is provided by district heating, the roof garden is supplied with rainwater. all usable building parts and materials were preserved or reused in other places (the old attic tiles form today the floors of the workshops, the old roof rafters are converted to a bar counter and 4 workbenches) the local was lined with about 10.000 boards of old fruit and vegetable crates. the roof construction of the former warehouse building in the courtyard, which we demolished in favor of a guest garden, was kept after some persuasion work and used today as a trellis for 2 shady vines. Solid building materials were preferred for all new materials - solid larch wood for the roof terrace of the roof garden, oak parquet for the living rooms where the floors could not be preserved or for the new attic - beyond that, we had to act according to the many donations of materials. Everything we could choose or wish for was subordinated to a strong and clear concept: the colors gray and beige, the materials zinc, wood and concrete, the surfaces rough and/or maximally smooth, nothing old restored but only repaired - this had to be kept up to the maximum because it was clear that the many material donations (e.g. all furniture) would have the potential power to steer the overall effect in the direction of "caritas-camp"...but especially architecture should invite all people to participate gladly in this project - on an average day about 300 people. VinziRast-mittendrin thus not only gives 30 people a home for as long as they want to live there, but also sees itself above all as an ambassador against monocultures and for diversity within the city and society.

Please give information about the key objectives of your project in terms of aesthetics and quality of experience beyond functionality and how these have been met

gaupenraub+/– carefully examined how and where people find shelter to escape the open sky, and planned communal apartments for groups of three residents. This consist of sanitary facilities and mini-kitchens, adding large communal kitchens, living rooms and terraces on each floor. In addition the building contains with offices, consultation and work rooms, as well as a library. In the basement a large event space was constructed, while the ground floor contains a restaurant and several workshops. They widened the decks in front of the lift and communal kitchens to create sizable outdoor seating areas: avoiding or meeting, walking past or communicating are all treated as equally important. A third living floor and a roof studio with a large roof garden replaces the old top. Meanwhile this extraordinary house has existed for 8 years and still residents, visitors, operators and even the neighbors are happy about this impulsive place; the owner's representative Doris Kerbler writes: "...What exactly constitutes the special "feel-good factor" that you feel when you move around the house is hard to say. The answer is complex: the many opportunities for communication play a major role, as do the generous amount of space and the manifold ways in which the rooms can be used. Unspectacular, but quite important, is that many elements of the building, which was built around 1800, have been preserved. The old wooden box windows, part of the creaking parquet floors, wrought iron fireplace doors, wooden doors with fillings of etched glass... All of this has been fixed up just enough to make it work, but has not been "dead-renovated." And the choice of new materials is unpretentious and solid and fits very well. The result never seems forced, it's not stylish at all. But it radiates warmth and liveliness. This leads to great satisfaction for everyone who lives and works here, even if they come from very different walks of life..."

Please give information about the key objectives of your project in terms of inclusion and how these have been met

In 2009 the vienna audimax was occupied by students. Homeless people were also let in. There were more and more conflicts. Then people started to cook together, to discuss, to copy flyers for the next demo etc. As a result the conflicts became less. At the end of the protest movement it became clear to some students: doing things together is beneficial for everyone. Based on this experience they initiated, developed and realized the present project together with the association Vinzenzgemeinschaft st.stephan and gaupenraub+/-: a house for learning, working and living together, in the middle of the city and open for everyone. While prague was on the verge of implementing a homeless ghetto next to a waste incineration plant on the outskirts of the city in 2010, in order to get the tourist centers "homeless-free", we conceived a project that meets homelessness where it arises - namely in the middle of society, in the middle of the city. Thanks to maximum offensive communication with the neighborhood, local district politics and potential supporters, VinziRast-mittendrin became reality without any resistance in only 3 years. The converted biedermeier house is located close to the city center and protrudes far into the street space. as a projecting corner house on one of vienna's main access roads, its urban presence is ideal for the intended socio-political message: homelessness is not a problem that needs to be hidden! All the construction was carried out with donated money and materials, voluntary work, freely contributed time and expertise. So students of the University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences for example got involved in the design of the open space, homeless people, as future users, helped to manage all the work that could be done by lay people before the start of the construction site and more external supporters made a contribution. The concept defines this communal housing project as a joint act.

Please give information on the results/impacts achieved by your project in relation to the category you apply for

The fact that community has more chances when the individual can participate in it in a secure way puts the first emphasis on the respective rooms: here the individual should be able to be completely for himself. The rooms are small but all the more suitable as a place of retreat. This "snail shell" idea manifests itself in one corner of the room, the two adjacent walls of which have been covered with earth-colored heraklith panels. They serve to improve the acoustics, but above all as a protective back from which one can act forward with strength. Small groups can meet in the tea kitchen. The apartments are connected to the large communal kitchens and the adjoining communal living room via arcades. And if it ever gets too crowded here, several doors lead out again; one of them even leads to a covered forecourt in the open. There is also a roof garden, a roof studio, a study room, workshops, etc. Everything that encourages people to do things together has been given priority in the space program and, as the number of people increases, more and more space has been allocated. In order not to introduce this "doing things together" as an implant upon completion, it was already part of the project during the construction phase. Homeless people, students and volunteers actively helped to make VinziRast-mittendrin reality. For example, the walls and ceilings of the locale were covered with wooden boards from fruit and vegetable crates. As a surface, they are emblematic of the project: a disposable box or even a single board is waste and will be thrown away. It is only in the community that the individual takes on meaning again. There are long, short, thick and thin, multicolored and plain, torn and intact ones... but all together they now form an idendity-filled space. Many have contributed to it. Unique situations and conversations between people have arisen - VinziRast-mittendrin has already begun before it was officially opened.

Please explain the way citizens benefiting from or affected by the project and civil society have been involved in the project and what has been the impact of this involvement on the project

VinziRast-mittendrin is a result of the Vienna Audimax Occupation by students in 2009. Since the opening in spring of 2013, students live together with formerly homeless persons in 10 living communities of 3 people under one roof. Besides common rooms, the restaurant “mittendrin“ as well as two event venues the room outlay also includes several workshops, which give residents the opportunity to work together, thereby creating an extra source of income. Everyday life at VinziRast mittendrin is characterized by exchange and mutual appreciation. Here, people with completely different backgrounds share living, working and craft rooms. There are many opportunities for encounters, discussions, dialogue and togetherness. People from different areas of society meet in the middle of Vienna to learn with and from each other. Much of this project is open, and it is this openness that we want to embrace as a value. Even people who do not rank social commitment at the top of their list of priorities are attracted by the content, organization and design of VinziRast-mittendrin. they come to the restaurant, external parties celebrate their birthdays in the rooftop studio or hold seminars there, take advantage of the now flourishing catering services or even guide homeless people in their work in the workshops. A social project where fear of contact is a foreign word.

Please highlight the innovative character of the project

"good architecture is the most sustainable thing you can build anyway." [birgit dejaco] with the present pilot project and its architectural formulation, we are trying to counteract the advance of gated communities in urban contexts, which is also taking hold in europe. we are convinced that in the medium to long term this will guarantee a livable future in the city rather than increasing segregation of individual population groups and strata. for the kind of sustainability we hope to achieve with VinziRast-mittendrin, the top priority in planning was that both residents and people from outside should be happy to participate in the project (even those who do not specifically want to get actively involved in social issues). We like to see it an ambassador against monoculture, that encourages diversity in the city and offers a different perspective to society.  

Please explain how the project led to results or learnings which could be transferred to other interested parties

Lack can not be remedied with lack - on the contrary - the design can contribute something to the concept, can provide more value. A thought that can be spun in many directions and in relation to many things. This is the statement that does not come abruptly in this project, but embraces you in a positive way in all rooms. It is to invest in the right places. The fact that it is a social project SHOULD not be an argument for cutting back. On the contrary. And so the surfaces in the places you touch with your hands are deliberately high-quality and pleasant. On the body of the counter made of the rough rafters of the old roof of the house, which has since been removed, a panel of fine-pored maple was mounted. On the top floor, one looks through a window into the belly of the city. A luxury for the residents of the building, which was debated during the construction phase. Debates that come up again and again: What is good enough? Isn't anything better than nothing? Does it need so much? And it is precisely the answer to this question that seems to define the project in its essence. The implemented quality is not only decisive for the visual result, but above all for the statement one wants to make. The decision is left to all of us. To those who help and directly support the project, to the planners who directly position and commit themselves, but ultimately also to an entire city and its society. And so it becomes a question of loyalty and living together. In a city, in a district, in a house. The airy roof terrace of the VinziRast is open to all its users. Here, the decision has been made: no compromises, equal quality and appreciation for all residents, as different as their lives + backgrounds may be. This is not just an architectural concept, but social practice that has proven itself through the lively coming and going since the opening. ("AWG - Das Rezept" 2015) The experience gained here helped in the realization of other projects, such as VinziDorf Wien.

Is an evaluation report or any relevant independent evaluation source available?

By ticking this box, you declare that all the information provided in this form is factually correct, that the proposed project has not been proposed for the Awards more than once under the same category and that it has not been subject to any type of investigation, which could lead to a financial correction because of irregularities or fraud.