j. mayer h. expands FOM campus with amorphous pavilion

first look at the FOM university pavilion by j. mayer h.

FOM University adds a new social space to its 8,000 square meters Düsseldorf Campus in Germany — an amorphous concrete pavilion that seemingly blends with the surrounding landscaped site. Berlin-based architecture studio J. Mayer H. was invited to lead the building design amid the FOM Hochschulzentrum campus located in Quartier Central, a vital urban neighborhood. Five years after the new university building was completed, this concrete pavilion unfolds as the final component of the ensemble. Using a similar formal language, the approximately 100 square meter volume snuggles into the outer branches of the Stadtpark and closes off the landscaped area crossed by the renatured Duessel River.

all images © David Franck, courtesy J. Mayer H.

amorphous concrete volume weaving into its landscaped site

J. Mayer H. (see more here) joined forces with the teams at Starmans Architeturbüro and GAARKO Gablik Architektur, freelance architect Sebastian Finckh, Thomas & Boekamp Ingenieurgesellschaft mbH and Brockof Ingenieure to complete the FOM University pavilion at the Duesseldorf Campus. Together, the architectural and engineering groups shaped a sculptural concrete volume defined by fluid forms that seemingly twist around a central glazed rectangle where the pavilion’s main spaces are housed and its daily programs take place.

FOM University Pavilion at Düsseldorf campus

Complementing the project’s team is the landscape architecture studio Lützow 7, invited to create an amorphous set of green plots that interweave the various levels of access to the university building and a soft soil sculpture covering the underground garage (access to the FOM University pavilion is only possible from there or by foot from the park mall). Ultimately, the outdoor landscape’s free-form aesthetic resounds across the concrete volume’s organic lines and strokes. As an expansion of the university building, the pavilion provides seminar and lecture spaces, lounges, and spaces for breaks.

an amorphous shape responding to its context