Project: City Pixel Plus (Winter Semester 2014–15)

The courtyard house is arguably the oldest and most universal classic in the history of residential construction. It has proven itself in nearly every culture and region of the world due to its superior performance in terms of urban density, economy, functionality, climatic performance, design, and quality of life. It enables high urban density in the sense of “LOW RISE – HIGH DENSITY” and, thanks to its distinct spatial individuality, offers a high degree of privacy compared to other building types such as multi-story apartment buildings or townhouses. However, when measured against the standard of the detached single-family home, it presents spatial challenges—such as lighting, visibility into the home, and views—that are not easily reconciled with contemporary Western notions of living. With the project CITY PIXEL PLUS – HOUSE AND COURTYARD, we aim to examine the potential of this typology within the context of the current search for space-saving housing forms with a high quality of life, and to identify and further develop sustainable trends.

The task is complex: combining high density with a high quality of life, external and internal access, the design and usability of open spaces and their connection to interior spaces, the integration of communal spaces, the urban arrangement of a multitude of units and the arrangement of individual floor plans, optimal lighting and ventilation, and design down to the finest building details. The goal is to systematically develop urban building blocks that, when combined, shape the neighborhood and contribute to the city’s evolution.

The project opportunity is aimed at bachelor’s students and, to a limited extent, master’s students, and is suitable for bachelor’s theses.

Faculty: Maya Reiner (Prof., Dipl.-Ing., M.Arch.)
Marc Matzken (M.A.)
Christopher Unger (Dipl.-Ing.)