Ausstellung Ressource, Research, Reset - Architektonische Transformation sakraler Räume

In the organizer's words:

Resource, Research, Reset
Architectural transformation of sacred spaces
Exhibition with the Chair of Design and Creation at TUM

Opening Thursday, April 10, 2025, 6 to 9 pm
Exhibition until Thursday, June 5, 2025

Throughout its history, the Deutsche Gesellschaft für christliche Kunst e. V. (DG) has repeatedly dealt with questions of church building and the design of ecclesiastical spaces. In 2018, on the occasion of the 125th anniversary of our association, we developed the traveling exhibition 'Zusammenspiel - Kunst im sakralen Raum', as well as the traveling exhibition 'Kirche Raum Gegenwart' in 2023, which encourages us to think about church spaces in a new way, as they create identity and often shape the image of a place.

Even in modern societies, churches are often places of social gathering. Many church congregations are socially engaged, for example in helping the homeless or refugees. Church buildings are therefore also a symbol of social responsibility and a place for community involvement. At a time of falling membership numbers in parishes and the associated decline in the need for church premises, it is of central importance to develop new concepts for the preservation or transformation of these important buildings.

Resource, Research, Reset - Architectural Transformation of Sacred Spaces' focuses on the quality of church spaces and presents new, innovative uses in order to preserve them as spaces for society and its needs. The project is the result of a collaboration with Prof. Uta Graff's Chair of Design at the Technical University of Munich (TUM). The Master's project of the same name began in the summer semester of 2024 with an initial assignment. The students dealt with the architectural transformation of St. John's Church in Ingolstadt, designed by architect Theo Steinhauser in 1964, with the aim of studying both the existing structure and the urban context. The design was to take into account new uses as well as architectural and structural changes and convey these in the form of models, interior photographs and drawings.

The students of the winter semester 2024/25 dealt with the architectural transformation and structural extension of the St. Mauritius church center in Munich Moosach, designed by architect Herbert Groethuysen in 1967. The use of the building, which has been a listed building since August 2024, was predetermined this time: a residential use was to be developed. The aim was to consider both the existing building and the urban context, and to think about possible forms of living in a community and its spatial requirements.

The three terms 'resource', 'research' and 'reset' form the basis of the project: 'resource' is the architectural potential and cultural substance of the church spaces; 'research' is the need to explore historical and structural aspects of the buildings and 'reset' refers to the opportunity for a new beginning and a constructive view of these important spaces.

The results of the projects are presented in the DG Kunstraum and provide an insight into innovative proposals for a relevant and complex issue. The exhibition ties in with the Re* lecture series on sustainability in the construction sector and is supported by the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bavaria.

The program
Opening day
Thursday, April 10, 2025, 6 to 9 p.m.
7 p.m.
Welcome and introduction
Benita Meißner, Curator
Prof. Uta Graff, TUM

Talks
(1) Reset
Thursday, May 15, 2025, 7 p.m.
Prof. Per Pedersen, architect, Chair of Design and Building in Existing Contexts at BTU Cottbus

(2) Resource
Tuesday, May 20, 2025, 7 p.m.
Dr. Karin Berkemann, art historian, theologian and initiator of the Church Manifesto

(3) Research
Tuesday, May 27, 2025, 7 p.m.
Prof. Dr. Albert Kirchengast, architect, professor of architectural theory with a focus on building in existing buildings at BTU Cottbus

Finissage with performance
Thursday, June 5, 2025, 7 p.m.
The performance by Jin Lee (dance) and Alexander Gerner (saxophone) plays with movement and sound in space and interprets the exhibition title 'Ressource, Research, Reset'.


Accompanying program
♲ Re* 6
Lecture series on the topic of sustainability in the construction sector
Wednesday, April 30, 2025, 7 pm
with Gerhard Matzig, journalist and author
and Prof. Amandus Samsøe Sattler, architect

Lecture as part of the BDA Talk series
Architecture as a tool of remembrance
The ecclesiastical building heritage of the 20th century: monument status or scrap value?
Thursday, May 22, 2025, 7 p.m.
Manuela Klauser, art historian & research associate DFG-FOR Sacral Space Transformation
BDA, Landesverband Bayern e.V., Türkenstraße 34, 80333 Munich