Barbara Holzer and Tristan Kobler established their firm in Zurich in 2004, and have successfully realized a number of varied projects, including exhibitions (such as “focusTerra”, Zurich 2009; scenography for the Messel PiT Visitor Center, 2010) and buildings (Cattaneo residential and commercial building, Zurich 2008; Arche Nebra Visitor Center, Wangen 2007, among others).
While working on design, exhibition and architecture, Holzer Kobler Architekturen does not pursue any singular architectural attitude or design approach. Instead, the focus is on finding a unique solution for each project and location, taking into account and reinterpreting its past, present, and future. In terms of construction and program, Holzer Kobler Architekturen focuses on staging space, spatial sequence and manifold atmospheres.
This approach is based on the fact that each individual has his own view of space as a component of a unique perspective. Just as in film, theater and literature, this variation in perspective has become the primary element in architecture.
Holzer Kobler Architekturen’s work method has led to a variety of projects. Their transdiciplinary team of architects, designers, scientists, graphic artists, scenographers and interior designers profits from the interdisciplinary mingling of genres, supporting the further transfer of knowledge and resulting in a parallel progression of fields that are usually isolated from one another.
In this sense, Holzer Kobler use the term “Architekturen” (“architectures”), as they see the term as an extension of their field of thought, activity and research towards a multiplicitous understanding of architecture. Their exhibition concept “Mise en scène <ex 545>” results from this point of view: A three-dimensional installation overlaps spatial and atmospheric qualities from the studio in Zurich and transplants them into the gallery, creating an entirely new spatial structure. A collage of visual and acoustic design elements (sound by SOAP) allows for a rapprochement of design components and imparts individualistic perception through an autonomous setting.