aac Workshop, Hamburg
13th March to 5th April 2019

This workshop was under the guidance of
Prof. Dr. h.c. mult. Dipl.-Ing. Meinhard von Gerkan, President of the aac and
Dipl.-Ing. Architect Stephan Schütz

Documentation of results (web-optimised)

The Japanisches Palais is the last large museum in Dresden that has not yet been renovated. Previously a rather introverted palace building, its opening to a future-relevant exhibition building is imminent. With its central location on the northern bank of the Elbe, in direct view of the Zwinger and the Semperoper, it is a significant building block in the important museum landscape of Dresden.

The Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden (SKD) are the oldest and currently second largest museum association in Germany with over 450 years of history. In their museums, the SKD show masterpieces of world renown, especially Raphael's "Sistine Madonna" in the Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, as well as exhibits from the Historisches Grünes Gewölbe and the Neues Grünes Gewölbe. Elector Augustus the First founded the Art Cabinet in Dresden in 1560, which is to be seen as the foundation of the SKD's important collection. With the founding of this museum, he combined handicrafts and fine arts as well as scientific and mathematical instruments and objects. This collection was not only conceived as an exhibition, but also as a "working collection". August the First had his own working area on site and created objects there, but also provided the regional craftsmen with tools, books and materials for experimentation and design in order to develop the collection further and keep it alive.

This aspect of the "working collection" is of great importance for the new museum concept in the Japanisches Palais, since the intention is to actively involve the public in the museum events beyond the purely aesthetic examination of the exhibited objects, e.g. through accessible show workshops and interactive museum installations.

The involvement and integration of the public was thus also be decisive for the architectural concept of the new museum model, whereby the structural implementation of accessibility and transparency was one of the challenges of the workshop. Orientation and high quality of stay should also be improved.

The task of the aac workshop was to develop a design solution for a future project with high public interest and cultural value in an important historical building. The programme to be realised was again based on real conditions and requirements and has been created in cooperation with the SKD for the actual location.

Participants: An Thi Thanh Nhan, Marc Julien Avice, Victoria Dall, Clara Droop, Anna Jankowska, Verena Felicitas Jehle, Lars Kossowski, Spyridon Nektarios Koulouris, Ilaria Lu, Martin Muc, Nguyen Phu Quy, María Andrea Sastre Velásquez, Wu Nan, Wu Qiaoxi, Zhao Pengyu
Tutors: Fabian Faerber, Walter Gebhardt, Prof. Philipp Kamps, Sona Kazemi, Anja Meding
Visiting Professors – Guest Critics: Prof. Dr.-Ing. h.c. HG Merz, Antonio Cruz,
Prof. José Gutierrez Marquez
Experts – Guest Critics: Noura Dirani, Michael John, Nicolas Pomränke