Looren school building, Zürich

A new understanding of a location can develop based on knowledge of its history. Looking back at the past forms the basis for the future design of an open space.

Examining the history of a location makes us as landscape architects people “who understand time” and holds diverse potentials for the present and future. Besides a scholarly reappraisal of the history of a location’s evolution, taking stock of and analyzing what already exists involves in particular assessing it from the perspective of historic garden restoration. With our designs, we do not want to merely preserve or reconstruct the existing inventory, but also to develop something new from the old that corresponds to people’s current requirements. Transforming the historical dimension of a location creates sustainable open spaces with an identity-forming effect.

Projects: Monuments

Sociology & Society

Kirschgelände residential quarter competition in Munich-Allach, München

The former commercial area to the west of the Munich - Ingolstadt railway line, close to the Allach and Untermenzing S-Bahn stations, is being restructured into a mixed-use residential quarter.

Park Taubenloch, Bad Tölz

The design for the Taubenloch park in Bad Tölz envisaged visually opening up the existing park and creating a direct link to the Isar flowing past by removing hedges and fences running parallel to the riverbank. In addition, the embankment was made accessible to visitors and equipped with seating in the form of boulders and seating walls.

Forum University Regensburg, Regensburg

Refurbishment and redesign of the central campus surfaces and underground car park

Sports fields TU-Campus Garching near Munich, Garching bei München

Reorganisation of the sports areas at the TU Campus Garching with new basketball court, beach volleyball courts, bouldering facility and table tennis

Outdoor facilities BayWa high-rise, München

Redesign of outdoor facilities in the course of renovation and new construction of the BayWa headquarters in Munich Bogenhausen.

Raitenhaslach Monastery, Burghausen

Redesign of the outdoor facilities in the course of the revitalisation of the listed monastery area

Olympic Women Village, München

The bungalows were built for the female athletes to use during the 1972 Olympic Games. Since then, they have served as student accommodation. For the necessary redevelopment of the neighborhood, we worked with bogevischs buero to redevelop the architectural and open space typologies based on the existing buildings.

Heilstätten, Beelitz

The new garden city in Beelitz Heilstätten will combine single-family and multi-family homes with imposing listed buildings, compact woodland with rest and play facilities and a newly planned low-traffic infrastructure in an extraordinary combination. A multifunctional market place and the new lake with promenade will additionally promote the local identity.

Campus Dernburgstrasse, Berlin

High-quality open spaces are being created around the impressive listed building, which, in addition to their high degree of required and variable functionality, in particular realise a design language that connects the entire quarter with park-like outdoor facilities in keeping with the listed building.

City and State Library, Augsburg

The new building of the State and Municipal Library forms a new, cohesive urban-planning figure along with the existing building. A homogeneous carpet of surfacing material consisting of paving with good traction frames the combined building structures and incorporates the entrance area of the neighboring Maria Theresia Gymnasium in a coherent way.

Bodmergut gardens, Zürich

A journey through time and the senses: Barrier-free learning, discovering and lingering in a restored yield garden and a historic house from 1768.

Treptower Park Flower Garden, Berlin

With the summer flower and perennial garden, we have developed a special garden in Treptower Park further based on the existing park maintenance plan in a contemporary way—with special consideration given to a sustainable choice of plants and the renovation of the original structural elements based on guidelines for historical monument protection.

Generationenhaus Burgerspital, Bern

The Burgerspital with its inner courtyards is considered to be one of the most beautiful Baroque buildings in Bern. The large inner courtyard was created in the first half of the eighteenth century. It was remodeled several times in the nineteenth and twentieth century. There are only a few informative archival documents, which are now being interpreted atmospherically. The stringent basic architectonic form of the Baroque courtyard is being continued with clipped, high-trunk lindens alternating with potted plants and sunken squares of lawn.

Citycenter, Gersthofen

Screening as a multiple assignment

Museum Johann Jacobs Gardens, Zürich

We elaborated the different atmospheres of the two villa gardens. The sunny, extroverted garden captivates with its elevated terrace with a view of the lake. In the shady garden, intimate seating areas are embedded in sumptuous plantings of perennials.

Living and Working at Tucherpark, München

New residentials and business building

Archäopark Vogelherd, Niederstotzingen

New archaeological museum and park

Bavarian State Parliament - House of Representatives, München

Redesign of the inner courtyard in the course of the overall renovation

Lindenplatz, Zürich

The characteristic natural stone carpet and the old lime tree with the fountain basin have been retained. Unnecessary items have been removed. A group of young lime trees and a water fountain set into the ground create a new place to meet. The multi-functionality of the square is reinforced.

BiZe Education Center, Zürich

The redesign takes into account the legacy of Ernst Cramer: the formative concrete planter boxes, wall beds, and lawn theater have been retained. Spacious, park-like surroundings extend around the old trees so as to provide space.

Friedental Cemetery, Luzern

Within the substance of the cemetery that is worth protecting, basic elements like the striking avenue have been reinforced anew; the fields of flat graves, in contrast, have been rearranged. Seating areas with cedars invite contemplation. The eastern part has been supplemented with new forms of burial.

Elfenau Landscape Park, Bern

The valuable “Elfenau” garden monument has been upgraded by means of careful renovation and modified maintenance. By opening up overgrown visual connections, planting the meadows in a theatrical manner, and renovating the fountain, we have made it possible to experience the ideas behind the landscape garden once again.

Memorial Former SS Shooting Range Hebertshausen, Hebertshausen bei Dachau

The SS shooting range in Hebertshausen is a place of victims and perpetrators. Located not far from the Dachau concentration camp, the SS shooting range became the place of death for over 4,000 Russian prisoners of war from 1941 onwards. The identification of the victims has still not taken place completely, and the former shooting range is often the only place for the bereaved to commemorate their dead.

Conservation management plan Peninsula Buonas, Risch

The former aristocratic estate with agricultural meadows, pastures, vines and forest was transformed into a landscape garden in 1871 and has been maintained in an exemplary manner ever since. Since 2005, we have been accompanying the owners on the basis of our park maintenance work.

Redesign of Donaukai, Neuburg an der Donau

More space for pedestrians, cyclists and platanes as promenade trees. The cantilevered structure of the Danube promenade enables a new approach to the river.

Sociology & Society

Altes Gebäu Baroque Garden and Fontanapark, Chur

Our design restores the garden monument, which had already been redesigned several times, to its original proportions. While the old trees have been retained, the beds of alternating flowers have been interpreted anew. In place of the orangery, an arbor of yew trees separates the parterre from the “Graben-Gärten.”

Beatrice von Wattenwyl-Haus Baroque Garden, Bern

The magnificent, terraced Baroque garden has been thoroughly rehabilitated after years of neglect. The walls, paths, and all the plants have been renewed. Vegetables and flowers are planted and cultivated each year by neighbors, a school class, and the Bundesgärtnerei.

Flower and Fig Garden in the Grosser Garten, Hannover

The flower garden has been used for summertime gastronomy since the 1960s. It was restored to its original purpose in connection with the EXPO 2000. Our design respects the original structuring into three areas and interprets it in a novel way.

Townhouse Complex Bürkliplatz, Zürich

The town house complex, Bürkli-platz and the Bürkli terrace lie axially in front of the national bank. They form a hinge between the lake and the Limmat River.

Lower Lake Area, Zürich

The parks along the Quai at the lower lake basin are an important site in Zurich and were already inaugurated at the location where the part of the lake was backfilled in 1887. We finely tailored a substantial part of the impressive chain of pearls consisting of various public squares and park areas to their intensive utilizations.

Palais Rechberg Baroque Garden, Zürich

The garden, from 1760, at the Palais Rechberg is considered to be one of the most magnificent Baroque gardens in Zurich. Important elements have been preserved in the original and renovated. Individual contemporary flowerbeds show that our garden culture continues to be vibrant.

Arboretum, Zürich

The classic landscape park has lost none of its appeal for over 130 years. We have renovated several areas over the last 30 years so that it will remain a vibrant part of Zurich for decades to come.

Botanical Garden Berlin-Dahlem , Berlin

The abundant potentials of the Botanical Garden are being tapped to a greater extent. A new visitor center, the redesigned Italian Garden, an overhauled systems of paths, and new gardens with useful and ornamental plants now make the Botanical Garden that much more attractive.

Looren school building, Zürich

The pavilion-like school facility is situated in a landmarked garden where there is no space for either promoting biodiversity or space to play. It was possible to come up with a solution compatible with the location by means of a targeted upgrading of the roof surfaces, where it has been possible to achieve a clear improvement for biodiversity with minimum effort.

Abbey, Engelberg

With the simple church forecourt and the serenely designed inner courtyard, the Benedictine Engelberg Abbey receives a welcome complement to the picturesque, sublime alpine landscape.