Zeller department store – a nostalgic neon sign draws attention to the new local supplier in the municipality of Kleinzell in the Mühlviertel. It is not only this friendly, calm neon sign that distinguishes the department store planned by the Linz architects Gerald Anton Steiner from the retail chains that otherwise dominate in rural areas.
The architecture in timber construction is also a special feature in terms of its design quality and the scale that takes the location into account. This is despite the fact that the building breaks with the building conventions in Kleinzell due to its materiality and the curved, organic-looking shape.
Dynamic wooden facade
The lively, moving outer facade made of vertical, building-high wooden slats resulted from the pragmatic desire to optimally utilize the available building space. This made it possible to accommodate all desired uses at ground level, roof structures were not necessary. This increases the harmonious overall effect of the building: the flowing silhouette of the building is not interrupted at any point and can unfold effectively.
Even if there are currently more and more buildings in rural areas whose facades are designed with wooden slats, the department store in Kleinzell is going its own way. The organic-looking building curve dynamizes the vertical line play of the wooden facade. Another unusual feature is the dark gray color of the exterior, which avoids the usual wood look in favor of a self-confident modernity.
The constructive potential of such a façade design becomes clear in two places. In the entrance area and at the bus stop on the north side, the slats of the outer shell detach from the core of the building. Covered “intermediate spaces” are created for the shopping trolleys or the waiting passengers, without impairing the flow of the façade.
A social place
The light, natural use of wood on the inside contrasts with the dark exterior. It is amazing how compact and at the same time atmospherically convincing the different uses (market, bakery with gastronomy, post office, etc.) could be integrated on one level. The high design quality should contribute to the new local supplier functioning as a meeting place and place of communication. This is exactly what the people of Kleinzell wanted in surveys that preceded the planning process. The social orientation of the overall project plays a special role. For example, five of the newly created jobs are geared towards the needs of people with disabilities.
All in all, the new department store together with the neighboring old office building, despite all their differences, form a harmonious urban planning unit. The space between the two buildings can be used for outdoor catering, among other things.
Bucking the trend
With its almost old-fashioned name, the curved shape of the building and the neon signs, the Zell department store is a friendly reminder of the rural department store culture of the 1950s and 1960s. This was economically and socially closely intertwined with the places, but was largely pushed out by greenfield centers and internet trade. The Zell department store is consciously opposed to this trend. Without sophisticated architecture that, in addition to its functionality, realizes an urban planning and atmospheric quality that is accommodating to people, such an undertaking can hardly succeed. In Kleinzell, Gerald Anton Steiner set remarkable standards in this regard.
data sheet
- architecture: Gerald Anton Steiner, Linz
- builder: Municipality of Kleinzell in the Mühlkreis
- contest: March 2020
- planning: November 2019 to May 2021
- completion: May 2021
- construction: Timber construction on concrete foundation
- ecology: Socially, ecologically and economically sustainable overall project in timber construction, commissioning of regional construction companies
Source: Nachrichten
