Renovation and reconstruction of a historic market house - Kremstal

HISTORY

The first record of the core building goes back to the 15th century. Around 200 years ago, the building was extended on two storeys, including the construction of a hall (tavern hall) of approx. 100 square meters. Since the 1960s, several modifications were made that matched the fashion of the time and alienated the building from its original character. For a few years now, the building has been gently and gradually restored in its original historical character.

CONCEPT

The concept is an adventure journey through the individual rooms of the building, led by the wish to rediscover historical elements. These elements are hence to be exposed, returned or restored. Each room tells its own story and has its own character. Useful infrastructure and fixtures react to the specifics of the respective rooms and respond to them in a sculptural way. Partitions are done without the use of walls but rather by the positioning of objects within the room.

IMPLEMENTATION

The realization of this concept requires a dynamic planning process: The design reacts to what has been discovered and keeps developing parallel to the construction process. In 2018, half of the building was completely refurbished. The hall and its surrounding rooms were adapted for private residential purposes. On the upper floor, floor plans were restored according to the original layout. Vaults, arches, floors and

old wall openings were restored as well. An examination of plaster layers revealed wall and ceiling paintings from the neo-baroque period. These paintings were partly uncovered, partly restored by a professional.

Doors and thresholds are confidently staged and therefore emphasize the different characters of each room. Distance mounting of the rounded door frames draw an analogy to the window arches and highlight the impressive liveliness of the existing walls. Circular panes of kitchen or bathroom cabinets respond to the curves of the vaults and circles in the ceiling paintings. Curved walls from nut wood in shellac technology pick up on the wood-cork cast floor from the 1920s.