050 SUVA House – Herzog & de Meuron

Project: 1988-1990
Realization: 1991-1993

There were two options for enlarging the SUVA Basel branch: demolition of the existing 1950’s building to give way for an entirely new building or an addition making use of the corner site. The retention of the old building gave rise to the solution of a glass enclosure covering both new (offices and apartments) and old building.

The enclosure system consists of horizontal glass strips of different optical and physical qualities. The transparent panels in the viewing section of the offices can be individually operated, and add to the acoustic insulation of the existing windows. The panels within the parapet section bear silk-screened images while the prismatic panels in the upper window area improve the building’s insulation and protect it from the sun. The silk-screened panels are operated by a computer.

The glass enclosure unites old and new into an acute corner building giving it a coherent urban presence. At the same time, the transparency and operation of the glass panels reveal the configuration as a conglomerate of two volumes. This permutation of appearances is an important characteristic of a number of Herzog & de Meuron’s projects and buildings.
Herzog & de Meuron, 1995

Drawings

Team

Partners: Jacques Herzog; Pierre de Meuron
Project Team: Kurt Lazzarini (Project Architect); Ansgar Adamzyk; Michèlle Erbsland; Pascale Guignard; Dieter Gysin; Samuel Häusermann; Robert Hösl; Ursula Beate Kasper; Peter Kaufmann; Stefan Marbach; Astrid Peissard; Rina Plangger; Christoph Schlemmer; Christoph Steiger

Facts

Client: Schweizerische Unfallversicherungsgesellschaft Luzern, Kreisagentur Basel, Switzerland
Planning: Construction Management: Paul Ernst AG, Basel, Switzerland; Structural Engineering (New Building): Ingenieurgemeinschaft A. Zachmann, Basel, Switzerland; Structural Planning (Old Building): Helmut Pauli, Ingenieurbüro Schaub, Basel, Switzerland; Construction Physics: Gysin & Ehrsam AG, Pratteln, Switzerland; Electrical Planning: Selmoni AG, Basel, Switzerland; Sanitary Planning: Bogenschütz AG, Basel, Switzerland; Landscape Architecture: Stöckli, Kienast & Koeppel, Zurich, Switzerland; HVAC (Climate Control Design): Waldhauser AG, Münchenstein, Switzerland
Specialist / Consulting: Facade Planning: Schmidlin AG, Aesh, Switzerland
Links: www.suva.ch

Bibliography

erhard Mack, Herzog & de Meuron: “Herzog & de Meuron 1989-1991. The Complete Works. Volume 2.” Edited by: Gerhard Mack. Chinese ed. Beijing, China Architecture & Building Press, 2010. Vol. No. 2.

Luis Fernández-Galiano (Ed.): “Arquitectura Viva. Herzog & de Meuron 1978-2007.” 2nd rev. ed. Madrid, Arquitectura Viva, 2007.

Gerhard Mack, Herzog & de Meuron: “Herzog & de Meuron 1989-1991. Das Gesamtwerk. Band 2. The Complete Works. Volume 2.”
Edited by: Gerhard Mack. 2nd adv. and rev. ed. Basel / Boston / Berlin, Birkhäuser, 2005. Vol. No. 2.

Fernando Márquez Cecilia, Richard Levene (Eds.): “El Croquis. Herzog & de Meuron 1981-2000. Between the Face and the Landscape. The Cunning of Cosmetics. Entre el Rostro y el Paisaje. La Astucia de la Cosmética.”
2nd adv. and rev. ed. Vol. No. 60+84, Madrid, El Croquis, 2005

“Herzog & de Meuron. Natural History.” Edited by: Philip Ursprung. Exh. Cat. “Herzog & de Meuron. Archaeology of the Mind.” Canadian Centre for Architecture, Montreal. 23 October 2002 – 6 April 2003. 2nd ed. Baden, Lars Müller, 2005.

Wilfried Wang: “Herzog & de Meuron.” 3rd adv. and rev. ed. Basel / Boston / Berlin, Birkhäuser, 1998. (= Studiopaperback).

Jacques Herzog: “Recent Work of Herzog & de Meuron.” In: Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation (Ed.). “Columbia Documents of Architecture and Theory.” Vol. No. 4, New York, Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation, 1995. pp. 5-25.

Arthur Rüegg: “Herzog & de Meuron. Das neue SUVA-Haus in Basel 1988-1993. Erweiterung und Umbau eines steinernen Geschäftshauses von 1950.” Exh. Cat. “Das neue SUVA-Haus in Basel 1988-1993.” Architekturgalerie Luzern. 25 September – 30 October 1994. Luzern, Edition Architekturgalerie Luzern, 1994. (= Edition Architekturgalerie Luzern).

Thomas Weckerle, Jacques Herzog, Pierre de Meuron: “Herzog & de Meuron. Razón, Realidad y Cambio. Reason, Reality and Change. Entrevista por Thomas Weckerle y Jaime Salazar. Reflexiones sobre Proyectos recientes de Renovación. Interview by Thomas Weckerle and Jaime Salazar. Thoughts about recent Renovation Projects.”
In: Manuel Gausa (Ed.). “Quaderns d’Arquitectura i Urbanisme. Renovating.” Vol. No. 201, Barcelona, Col.legi d’Arquitectes de Catalunya, 1993. pp. 47-74.