Experimental house on a vineyard by students of TU Kaiserslautern

On Friday, September 23, 2011, an experimental structure in the vineyard in the town of Wörrstadt in the hilly landscape southwest of Mainz was ceremoniously opened in the morning hours. The design was created by student Christopher Perk, and the realization was also carried out by students from the Technical University of Kaiserslautern, led by Bernd Meyerspeer and Dirk Bayer from the Institute of Architecture and Jürgen Schnell and Christian Kohlmeyer from the Institute of Civil Engineering.
The task was to test construction methods for high-strength concrete. In terms of typology and form, the structure draws from similar buildings in the surrounding vineyards in southwestern Germany. Although it is a unique construction, the structure in the vineyard formally refers to its origins. History shows that the original shape is derived from a vaulted oval house, which was originally made of a framed shell and later a stone arch over a rectangular floor plan. Topographically, these structures were typically located outside the closed village settlement, yet in many ways referred back to archetypal buildings.
During a seminar at the Technical University of Kaiserslautern, the question was raised about how this typology can be reflected in contemporary constructions and forms without resorting to clichés. The main goal was to create a convincing result from prefabricated concrete parts. Thus, the students' work did not end at drawings or paper models, but the authors had to keep in mind the connection of the individual parts of the structure made of high-strength concrete, whose thickness does not exceed 3 centimeters.

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