„TOWNS CAN BE AGGRESSIVE“

They received the BDA Hamburg Architecture Award in 2016 for their Cinnamon Tower. She explains the unique attitude towards life that the ensemble represents in conversation with Villeroy & Boch.

The Cinnamon Tower, together with the old Harbour Master’s Building and the piazza, is a prominent sub-centre in the HafenCity quarter. How do you see HafenCity becoming a functioning quarter? 

I think that HafenCity is steering in the right direction, but it is still too early for a final evaluation. Other quarters have grown over generations, the structure here is still quite young. It will establish itself over time and eventually play a significant role in Hamburg, that I’m sure of. In any case, a very exciting project and we are delighted to have contributed to it.

The ensemble with the campanile is in a very prominent location in the heart of Hafencity. Don’t the residents of Cinnamon Tower somehow feel as though they are living “in a goldlfish bowl”? Where, for example, can they retreat to and enjoy their privacy? 

Our firm always strives to deliver high architectural quality, resulting in individual solutions that take account of the cultural context. This allows the user to create their own environment according to their likes and needs. The residential units, which I was able to visit, also harmonise with our design, and are decorated with a very good feeling for the genius loci. They interact with the architecture with a high level of confidence. I couldn’t detect any isolation or uncertainty. Instead, a great deal of curiosity for the outside world and pleasure in the magnificent views.

Your answer almost sounds as though these solutions are also in line with your understanding of home and lifestyle. How would you describe your personal environment? 

Who wouldn’t want to live by the water with such fantastic views? This extraordinary place naturally allows for these quality features, but it also has to be economically feasible. Speaking from personal experience, the financial aspect is secondary provided the basic requirements – such as when the architecture makes you feel good – are met. We have lived under different conditions. For us, the satisfaction and feeling of being at home has always been influenced by the architectural composition. We didn’t overload our first small flat and now that we have more space, we still don’t want to go overboard. I like to call it “living in line with architecture”.

You once said, “town life can be aggressive”. How is this reflected and how do you react to it with architecture? 

Buildings can radiate tremendous hardness and coldness, which can negatively influence people’s attitude towards life. We don’t want buildings with interchangeable locations. It’s really important for us to develop and implement our best solution for the construction project just for that site. The appropriate composition combined with a high level of utility creates buildings that serve people while ensuring their well-being and can maybe even increase it slightly.

Personal details:
The architect professor Julia B. Bolles-Wilson founded the internationally renowned Bolles+Wilson architecture firm in London with her husband in 1980. In addition to various lectureships, she was also the dean of Münster University of Applied Sciences until 2014. In 2010, she was awarded the “Künstlerpreis” (“Artist’s Award”) from the state of North-Rhine Westphalia for her commitment at the Deutsche Akademie für Städtebau (German Academy for Urban Planning). She has been an International Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects since 2014. The firm, now located in Munster, received the BDA Hamburg Architecture Award in 2016 for the Cinnamon Tower in Hamburg’s HafenCity.