Faculty 6: University Award for the Best Master Thesis 2021

The concept for the Caspar David Friedrich Museum in Greifswald is based on ideas from Romanticism that are particularly associated with the painter's work - constructed landscape, contemplative spatial sequences, immersion.

C. D. Friedrich composed his paintings in the studio from collected elements. He constructed a landscape that could be felt instead of just looked at. For centuries, the theme of the constructed landscape went far beyond a framed canvas. The viewer becomes part of the composition with his or her own thoughts, knowledge, and experiences. In the design for the Caspar David Friedrich Museum in Greifswald, these romantic ideas were translated into the language of architecture in the form of the "house within a house" principle. The existing building was reduced to its basic structure and supplemented by a new building in the corner of the site. The resulting space was divided internally by inserted volumes that connect different levels and create a new spatial hierarchy. The space within and around the volumes differs in shape, spatial proportions and light. The enclosed spaces are lit only from above, while the space around them is lit only by the windows on the facade. Light plays a special role in Caspar David Friedrich's work. Many of his landscapes feature atmospheric, often dramatic light situations. This motif is also related to the history of his family, who were candlemakers or so-called "light makers" by profession. In this context, light also plays a crucial role in the CDF museum. It leads through the exhibition spaces and defines a boundary between the world of art and the real world. The CDF Museum is an introverted building with a sophisticated connection to its surroundings. It is a new Greifswald cultural meeting point and a unique built landscape for the world of art.