2018

auf Anfrage zugänglich

Haus für Kinder Holtzendorffstraße 37, 81549 München

Treppenhaus über 3 Geschosse, Acrylglas-Profile an der Lamellen-Verkleidung

Architecture: Stieglmeier Architekten, München

Photos: Peter Schinzler

Text: Roberta De Righi

From the Munich district of Fasangarten, the jungle is closer than one might think: in the new Haus für Kinder (Children’s House) on Holztendorffstrasse, more than one hundred “lianas” grow. At least, that is what Claudia Barcheri calls her public work of art, which looks as if lianas are actually twining through all three floors of the stairwell.

The installation by the young Munich-based artist is based on a modular system and consists of 102 u-profiles made of acrylic glass and sprayed with colorful paint, which are attached to the wooden slats covering the stairwell. Using stencils, Barcheri traced the outlines of pinnate leaves up to four times on top of each other, creating a dense, green weave. These organic-plant textures are virtually the natural complement to the light-colored wood that characterizes both the interior and exterior of the building.

Barcheri’s use of four different shades of green, ranging from light green to fir green,  reinforces the sculptural effect of the leaves. Here, the artist also picks up on the green of the window reveals on the exterior, so that the architecture and the art look as if they have been cast from the same mold.

Since antiquity, flora such as the acanthus leaf and other types of leafy tendrils have served as ornamental elements in architecture. Claudia Barcheri consciously echoes this tradition in her use of them, but has also invented a form and structure more in keeping with the times. The “lianas” are not a purely decorative element, however; they have a definite impact upon the space. Visually, they create a shimmering, almost tropical ambience, transforming the building into a kind of greenhouse whose paradisiacal atmosphere offers children an oasis for the imagination as well as a safe haven.