Cultural Centre and Fire Station
The Vorarlberg community of Hittisau’s newest civic building is located on a former gravel pit between a forest and a steep ravine overlooking the Subersach River. The unconventional combination of functions in one building, an easily justifiable practice in smaller settlements, is the central theme explored in the design.
While the fire station is embedded in the sloping terrain and aligned along the road, the wooden cuboid of the cultural centre levitates above it; its glass facade opening towards the village centre. The separation of functions by differing orientation is strengthened by a radical material concept. The fire station’s material palette is concrete, galvanised steel and glass.
For the cultural centre, untreated domestic silver fir is used exclusively for the walls, ceilings and floors in keeping with the regional building tradition.
Team: Andreas Cukrowicz, Anton Nachbaur-Sturm, Matthias Hein [Competition], Markus Cukrowicz
Client: Gemeinde Hittisau
Competition 1998 1st Prize, Completion 2000
Photos by Hanspeter Schiess
