State hospital Knittelfeld

The project for the new addition flanks the north side of the existing building to enable a complex functional interweaving of both structures. This chosen "northern position" shapes the inner concept and external form of the new building. The two-story care wing is designed with a cross-section that opens up in the middle, allowing direct sunlight to enter the interior of the building and reach the north-facing patient rooms and stations through reflection on the inclined walls.

The sloping cross-section of the new building funnels light and services into the courtyard between the old and new structures, with tree-planted incisions reminiscent of the displaced park creating an "inner exterior space" that structures the functional zone of the new building. The reorganized entrance hall of the existing building extends into the new addition as an access, orientation, and connecting zone, contrasting the dominance of the old building. In its surroundings, the new building shapes its own grounds, creating a lowered, protected green space in front of the patient wing. The existing annex building was expanded with an additional floor and extensively renovated and expanded internally during the extension and conversion of LKH Knittelfeld. The existing and new parts were visually connected through a new facade.