Award for outstanding infill development

The architects who planned the renovation and upward extension of a listed Kontor building in Leipzig took a careful yet assertive approach and their design has received multiple awards. Brick is the element linking the stylistically very separate extension and the charismatic original building.

An upward extension on the Kontor building

The plan was to renovate the former celluloid factory, an industrial monument constructed in 1896 and now used as office space, and extend it by adding two apartments on the roof. To do so, the wooden staircase in the existing building was replaced with a steel structure and a lift was installed. The original premises are now used as a co-working space.

When designing the upward extension, architects from the Koche Architekten agency opted to create a stylistically and structurally compact structure on the solid base building. The new attic floor, and particularly the brickwork itself, references essential characteristics of brick architecture: the load-bearing, highly insulating masonry, constructed from Porotherm bricks, was modelled on the structure of the existing building, creating a visual link between the two elements. It meant there was no need to employ a composite thermal insulation system, and the construction technology maintained the durability and sustainability of the building. Brick ceiling panels transfer the load to load-bearing internal and external walls.

The horizontal stratification of the original, two-tone façade is mirrored, but given a more modern interpretation, by the rough, horizontal relief effect of the grey render on the extension.

Award-winning design:

This excellent architectural design has already won a number of awards, including the 2017 Architecture Prize of the City of Leipzig. Furthermore, in 2019, Knoche Architekten won recognition from the Association of German Architects (BDA) in Saxony for “the successful renovation and infill development of an industrial monument and extraordinary architectural artistry”.

Visual boundary

The extension stands out distinctly from the original building, mainly due to the colour difference, but also due to the irregular sizing and positioning of the windows. They are only aligned with a few outer edges of the main building’s windows, emphasising the independent nature of the new attic floor. No balconies were incorporated into the extension to maintain the minimalist appearance of the façade. Instead, the smaller of the two apartments has a recessed loggia, while the larger one is organised around an open atrium.

Encompassing just two apartments, this project may only make a minor contribution to infill development in the growing city of Leipzig, but it is responding to the increasingly important demand for mixed-use buildings, combining living and working space.