Marques Architekten AG

Within the walls of the Capuchin monastery in Wesemlin, living close to the monastery is to be created for people looking for the deeper meaning of life and with an affinity for spiritual questions. Continuing to build with living close to the monastery for laypeople means respecting the structure of the monastery and understanding the different parts in their typological hierarchy. The project envisages the expansion of the monastery complex with living close to the monastery in the area of ​​the secular complex and positions a wooden residential building in the forest in interaction with the group of utility buildings. This creates a kind of living space that can be read as an intersection between the monastic area and the residential area. It is important to credibly preserve and strengthen the atmosphere of the monastery with its buildings, outdoor spaces, gardens and trees, as well as to create living space within another part of the area that meets the needs of the lay people. The building is typologically compact and organized around a core, which is designed as an atrium with a continuous gallery, a staircase and an elevator. The living and working studios are located on the ground floor, facing the garden. The assisted living is on the 1st floor, the living close to the monastery is on the 2nd to 5th floors. The covered connection along the monastery wall, a kind of foyer, enables connection to the community practice and the catering offer in the south wing of the monastery. The access situation through the existing monastery wall was designed to be extremely modest and with only one opening in order to maintain the strength of the closed complex and to sacrifice as little historical building structure as possible. The compact design leaves enough space for the aura of the monastery buildings.