MARJAN SARAB ARCHITECTURE

The Rise of Public Man

Cologne, Germany

2012

 

In the center of Cologne, lies Heumarkt, a square with a rich history. Between Heumarkt and Rhine, Maritim Hotel is located. In the current situation there is a tension between traffic, Heumarkt, hotel and promenade. Heumarkt is no longer a complete square, function of promenade is lost, traffic does not create an appealing urban environment, Maritim Hotel represents a huge scale in its context which currently is not fitting.

 

The proposal is to convert the “no man’s land” that currently is an island to a new way of active and public life. This happens not through outlining each of them, in reverse to expand the public activities to the city, creating a blurred transformation from urbanity to architecture and landscape.

 

The hotel, roads, metro and river will allow the site for a multi programming, hybrid activities and most importantly increased interaction between people and programs. A multi functional building which combines public and private, visitor and residents, commercial and culture function is a single location in heart of cologne.

 

Shops, restaurant, cultural events on the first levels of hotel bonded with to Rhine River from of one side and the other side a public plaza and connection between metro station, hotel and parking. Hotel rooms will be on the higher levels and everything is expending out to the roof garden and outdoor traces for everybody. Like a contemporary interpretation of the archway or passage, the hotel forms a generous cover for the public life beneath and creates a diverse experience when moving in or around the building.

 

The building is an urban space, rather than a building, and will be bold and well-adjusted, unique and local at the same time. But most importantly building generates life around and within it, as life in city evolves so will the Maritim hotel. Maritim Hotel will be a gate and a point of reference for the city. What is a gate, but a significant point you pass?

As a part of graduation project there has been a website made with 7 video's each 30 seconds which show the motivation, research, location, analysis, story, design, views and details.  You can see the blog here. 

 

You can see the graduation speech from the main supervisior of this project here.

 

After the studio of graduation was over, there was a trip to cologne in the Maritim Hotel was organized to present all the project from municipality of Cologne and hotel management. For the presentation a movie was made with combination of all the project.