FH trier + one fine day: treehugger

'treehugger' by holger hoffmann + one fine day + university of applied sciences, trier, germany
images courtesy of roland borgmann, münster


holger hoffmann has sent us images of 'treehugger', a pavilion that is currently on display at the
national garden show in koblenz, germany. created in collaboration with one fine day and the
university of applied sciences in trier, the design looks to give both the students and craftsmen a
broader understanding of computational design and computer aided manufacturing technologies.



exterior


polygonal and manifold in its appearance, the building aims to formulate a subtle link to the nearby
built environment. positioned next to the basillica st. castor on a site that was previously used as a
parking lot, the pavilion loosely integrates the structure with both the gardening show and the
surrounding urban fabric.



deck and outdoor play area surrounding the structure


a facade of printed glass encloses the structure, blurring the interior volume with the exterior environment
and superimposing the reflection of the encircling trees onto the unit. sustainably constructed using timber plywood,
the pavilion will be dismantled and relocated once the show is over in october 2011.



(left) overall structure
(right) detail of facade


organized into a single one-directional space, the design features an angular environment that is dictated
by a series of simple geometrical operations. merging three individual programs into one, the layout looks
to maximize the spatial distribution, allowing for multiple activities to take place at once. areas dedicated
to exhibitions are shielded by tree-like columns that create small cubicles for educational work-stations,
while lectures take place in the center of the space.



looking indoors from the garden


appearing as a merely haptic space of structural ornaments during the day, the complex modular structure
changes completely at night. reacting to the movement of its users, the environment literally virtualizes the
structure and its insides through a series of changing colors and luminosity.



interior



overall interior



interior in the evening



lit up at night



exterior at night



overall structure in the evening

facade in the evening



night view of overall site



site plan / floor plan



section



detail




diagram of joints



diagram of floor plan typologies



diagram of geometry



diagram of point of intersection with tree columns



rendering of interior



rendering of exterior



rendering of design in its early stages



night rendering of design in its early stages

project info:

client: chamber of skilled crafts, koblenz - christoph krause, director of the center for design, manufacturing and communication
design: team of the department digital design at university of applied sciences, trier, professor holger hoffmann
design phase: jan busemeyer, frank stolz, gabriel wüstner, peter zock
execution phase: jan weber, eva ziegler, peter zock
structural engineering: office for structural design, frankfurt am main: professor harald kloft,
jürgen scholte-wasssink, florian mähl, peter gerlach
execution: ochs GmbH, kirchberg: christian schiel (construction supervisor), frank schneider and sven schneider (CAD)
team of the faculty intermedia design, university of applied sciences, trier:
 professor daniel gilgen
conceptual design: thorsten gätz, jana schell, rebekka thies
programming: professor georg j. schneider, faculty of computer sciences, 
with niko schmidt, julian-marc steffen, christian ternes

light-design advisor: daniel zerlang-rösch

the fabrication of 'treehugger' has generously been supported by rhineland-palatinate’s ministry of environment, forestry and consumer
protection as well as signal iduna and alwitra roofing systems.