With the bank building designed by Ernst Gisel, the commercial and residential building forms a bracket that unites the first block of Kasernenstrasse with memorable buildings that create an identity.

The new building makes direct reference to Gisel’s rhythmic lead facade, which juts out over the sidewalk. In response, it completes the street section with a tectonic facade of anodized aluminum.

The building is moved out of alignment with the neighboring houses, creating a precisely framed forecourt in the transition to the older Gutenberg Center. Through the arcade formed on the first floor, the viewer is guided to the shop windows and into the entrance area.

The rhythmic building, conceived as a shell and core, reacts sculpturally to the eaves heights of the neighboring buildings by skipping one grid unit at a time; and the facade alignment on the attic floor is set back by 12 centimeters to give the building a finish at the top.

Reinhard Waldburger

Gutenberg Zentrum, Herisau

Location: Kasernenstrasse 6, 9100 Herisau
Residential units: 3 units
Property type: Residential and commercial building
Apartment sizes: 3.5–4.5 rooms / 90–125 m²
Status: Realized
Occupancy date: 2012
Client: Private
Architecture: HDPF

No units available.

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