HENN’s competition entry for the new Management Center Innsbruck (MCI) building envisions the future of education—for the post-pandemic era and beyond. The proposed site is located near a listed garden complex in Innsbruck’s vibrant Old Town.
HENN’s design maintains the boundaries of the block, following the existing street lines, to create a compact building volume whose square footprint fits confidently, yet harmoniously, into its historic surroundings. The hybrid timber design offers a mix of highly-flexible, indoor and outdoor learning spaces, built using a highly-efficient, modular system.
The underlying structural grid remains legible in the building massing and facade, yet the overall effect is playful and inviting: the square modules are grouped, subdivided, punctuated by atriums, recessed and extruded to different heights.
The resulting roofscape acts as an extension of the interior learning spaces. The outdoor learning landscape offers students and teachers spaces to study and meet, shady pergolas and recreation facilities. The cascade of green terraces allow for simultaneous use and recall the scale and intimacy of courtyard gardens.
A double-height setback on the ground floor marks the main entrance, welcoming visitors, students and staff directly into the heart of the building. MCI’s central atrium is imagined as a spacious ‘town hall’ for lectures and informal gatherings.
It draws daylight deep into the building’s interior and creates physical and visual connection between the different levels. Four additional atriums ensure plentiful daylight throughout the spac, further blurring the boundaries between interior and exterior. Source by HENN.
- Location: Innsbruck, Austria
- Architect: HENN
- Partner in Charge: Patrick Bröll
- Design Director: Nelli Maier
- Project Team: Shankar Ramakrishnan, Marta Gałdyś, Lukas Alber, Armin Nemati, Peter Weber, Omar Mowafy, Andre Serpa, Wolfgang Mühlhölzl-Hirschmann, Fredrik Werner
- Area GFA: 28,470 m2
- Years: 2021
- Images: Courtesy of HENN
