Publication on the competition entry Deutsche Bundesbank in Frankfurt by Behnisch & Partner, Stuttgart.
Deutsche Bundesbank @ A+U Architecture Magazine, Japan, 1 May 1990
German
National
Bank
The Bundesbank is located on the edge of the downtown area of Frankfurt, beside extensive green areas, and not-as one might expect-in the heart of the city amidst all the other banks. This special position in the town is perfectly appropriate to the special role of the Bundesbank, which is no ordinary bank, but it involves special problems, which have to be taken into consideration in designing large extensions to the present building.
Thus, for instance, the park should be seen to enclose the entire site of the Bundesbank, not simply stretching out behind it as it does now. This requires changing the emphasis so that the “back” of the high, approx. 225 m long present building should be redesigned to become the “front” of the building. New structures should relate to the existing long building and the TV tower to create an impressive ensemble. And all of this should be visible from the streets, from the existing buildings, from the TV tower, and from the park itself.
To achieve these goals, all one-story or flat buildings should be open to the park; parking facilities, delivery entrances, and approaches to them will be placed underground behind the gate. The green environment of the park should permeate and enfold the entire site, and to this end the office block is designed in a ring-form, three-story building that “hovers” over the park.
Deutsche Bundesbank
Architects:
Elisabeth Sikiaridi, Matthias Tusker,
Peter Schmal, Fall Petry, Susanne Dexling, Dietmar Lachenmann
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