Growing old with Patina

Growing old with Patina

Bad Liebenzell shopping center

Like a lying letter “L” the supermarket with its unusual high-quality exterior design is located at the town entrance of Bad Liebenzell in the Black Forest.

A contemplative spa in the Nagoldtal (Nagold Valley) between  Pforzheim and Calw, local recreation area for all seasons, idyllic with plenty of forested hills, but only very few architectural highlights. Even more pleasing, though, that the local authorities didn’t engage in the usual, standardized architecture of the area the operator had in mind. Investors were allowed to apply with so-called test designs for planning and cultivating a given area. The town council decided in favor of SB-Markt Bad Liebenzell GdbR.

Against the Laws of the free Market

Based on his belief that the suburbs of a town must not be left to the laws of the free market, Pforzheim architect Peter W. Schmidt started with his work. Located at the town entrance, touching a school sports area, the building displays a three-story, clear spatial edge. The rectangular structure defines the town entrance on the one hand, but it also is the attractive rear of the school sports area with its structure projecting beyond the supporting wall and a low-lying window ribbon on the other hand. From the opposite shore of the Nagold river flowing not far from the supermarket, the structure appears like a stone base of Bad Liebenzell castle built between 1100 and 1200 towering above all. The openings in the façade are flush with the outer walls, except for the entrance situation, attracting the customers’ attention with its bright porch roof and pulling them into the store.

Solid Materials

Since the materials used are crucial for the artistic expression and for the level of acceptance a building receives, the supermarket’s ferro-concrete construction has been provided with a shell of faced brickwork. The bright joints of the clinker bricks and the light-gray concrete base provide a frame for the warm shade of red, completed by windows with in-depth frosted glass. The solidity of the bricks and their property of growing old, getting patinated and thus becoming “more mature” and stronger in their expressiveness as they grow older, was definitely wanted.

Not continued consequently

The fact that the town didn’t make use of the chance to also re-design the adjacent school sports hall along with the supermarket is something architect Peter W. Schmidt feels sorry for. From his point of view, this would have been a clear message against the indifferent Bad Liebenzell town entrance with its sequence of discount house, open air pool, camping area and school: “The power coming from a design with identical standards and standardized materials is something which is well understood not only in Upper Italy.” However, a good start has been made.     

Project details

Architect:

Peter W. Schmidt, Architekt BDA, Pforzheim, Germany

Status:

Completion 2003

Size:

GFA 1,640 m²

Constructor:

SB-Markt Bad Liebenzell GdbR

Comments

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admin's picture
admin 5. July 2011 - 22:15

f.....g bricks... why?

admin's picture
admin 5. July 2011 - 23:19

what´s the hell? sorry i don´t like...

admin's picture
admin 6. July 2011 - 0:16

è orribile

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admin 6. July 2011 - 2:21

Old is gold. .:D

admin's picture
admin 6. July 2011 - 2:40

INTERESSANTE, SO ACHO Q UM TELHADINHO MODIFICARIA A PAISAGEM... ADORO UM TELHADO BONITO! DESCOBRI ISSO NA ALEMANHA. AS CUPULAS ME ATRAIAM MUITO E COMECEI A OLHAR PARA O CEU DESVENDANDO OS MISTERIOS DE CADA PREDIO.

admin's picture
admin 6. July 2011 - 3:05

me gusta esto....

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admin 6. July 2011 - 4:30

VERY SIMPLE, BUT AN EARTHY TOUCH. APPEALING NO DOUBT.

admin's picture
admin 6. July 2011 - 6:20

its oid but neetness ,and nice looking

admin's picture
admin 6. July 2011 - 8:04

smart architecture

admin's picture
admin 6. July 2011 - 15:32

nice :)

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admin 6. July 2011 - 15:58

It lock like old from out side but it is good

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