Visitor Center at Lake Constance by Hein Architekten

The Bodensee (Lake Constance) lies at the border of three German-speaking countries. With an area of over 536 km², it is the second largest alpine lake, and Czech history primarily associates it with the infamous Council of Constance. The lake is home to several larger islands, and it is in the northwestern part of Lake Constance near Constance that the island of Mainau is located, which is owned by the Swedish royal family of Bernadotte. The “Flower Island” Mainau is dominated from a distance by a baroque palace, a palace church, and a medieval tower. Until recently, the scene was disrupted by a hospitality building from the 1970s. It was demolished and replaced by a collection of low wooden structures by the Austrian firm Hein Architekten, which won the competition in 2011 with their project. The first phase was completed in the spring of this year: an elongated cash register building with an extended roof. The architects seized the opportunity “to re-conceptualize the entire harbor area, which is extremely busy, especially during the summer season.” On the site of the original cash register, information center, and outdoor toilets, a new café with a bakery, a restaurant, and a covered outdoor space for hosting banquets has emerged under one long roof. The newly designed structure follows the contour lines and is a natural continuation of the slope. The more than one hundred meter long reinforced concrete structure is wrapped in wood. A wooden construction extends from the building, rising up to a height of 4.5 meters. The interior is clad in fir boards and features large-scale glazing. Additionally, inserted atriums recede into the slope, offering unexpected views of the castle and the defensive tower. The newly designed sections “do not seek to compete with historical buildings, but rather to celebrate them and offer entirely new and exciting perspectives.”