Matthias Kohler, Living Lab HIL
In the second semester of the Master’s thesis on Context(s), the theoretical reflections and architectural interpretations on context depart from the HIL building on Campus Hönggerberg and address a specific program – the future of architectural and engineering education offered by D-ARCH and D-BAUG at ETH Zurich. The HIL building, which was designed by architect Max Ziegler and civil engineering firm Schalcher & Partner, is requiring its first major renovation after 50 years of operation. In order to accommodate the growing number of students and enable all members of the Department of Architecture to be based in a single location, the floor area of the building will need to be increased by approximately 20%. At the same time, the building’s energy consumption must be reduced, its technical installations and façade characteristics must be rethought, and questions of comfort and current standards must be addressed. Furthermore, as the Hönggerberg campus becomes increasingly densely populated, the HIL building is developing into a central urban node, connecting to public spaces and neighbouring buildings on all sides. The design brief starts with the HIL building, but also takes into account the surrounding public spaces and buildings. The transformation of the HIL building provides a unique opportunity to reconsider the situation from an urban planning perspective and to create spaces for contemporary forms of research and teaching for future generations of architects and engineers. The brief invites to reinterpret the design of the HIL building and its surroundings, rediscovering and unveiling its many qualities in the process. It also encourages to work with the building’s material resources and understand its program and the diverse communities it serves. The master thesis topic is proposed within the broader context of the LIVING LAB HIL. This is being achieved through the work of an internal design team that collaborates actively with professorships to leverage the expertise of their researchers and students. The LIVING LAB HIL aims to become an ETH flagship project demonstrating innovative approaches to the sustainable transformation of the building stock from our recent past. Each chair is asked to develop a design brief that brings in their own perspective on this context. By working collectively on this task, we hope to gain insight into the different perspectives and positions, framed by the chairs, as seen through the eyes of the students, which will hopefully enrich the planning of the future HIL.
The topic builds upon the HS25 Master Thesis Context(s) by Voluptas.
