Zoologen

PHILOSOPHY

Zoologen is a former lab building on Medicinareberget, Göteborg, built in 1967 which now faces an uncertain future. Akademiska Hus, the owner, asked us to reimagine it as a ‘students house’. This project proposes such a transformation, by using the already existing materials and architectural resources to the furthest extent possible. The upper fl oors of the building have been redesigned as student housing, while the lower two fl oors have been designed as a multi-use hub for student activities such as studies, sports and crafts. Our fundamental approach, instead of rejecting the aged aesthetics and architectural principles of the building, is ‘learning to like’ it. Changing the way we see things can be a more sustainable, less expensive and more delightful alternative to our instinct to clean-up and tear out. To transfer this ‘learning to like’ philosophy into a design proposal, we wrote a “Manual”, available on the table below, in which we have defi ned three design methods:

DESIGN METHODS

M1 _ Reinterpret to reinforce

As Zoologen is to be used in a new way, hidden capabilities and potential may become visible. Beautiful spaces and materials are already contained within the building. To make them accessible, they must be uncovered and reused.

M2 _ Plan to pass on

We are not the fi rst and will not be the last architects to propose interventions in Zoologen. The building will have to keep changing after we are gone. Therefore we attempt to make only changes which will improve the building and make it easier for the next team to adapt.

M3 _ Make it useful by making it spatial

For a building to have a long and healthy life, it is vital that it remains useful. Economics and technology are important, but so are spatial qualities. A light, well shaped, and carefully designed room can be endlessly reused. Whereas program, furnishings and the institutional makeup of tenants tend to change, these qualities remain.