Elisengarten, Aachen

AppreciationGerman Landscape Architecture Award 2013

Jury verdict: A city square that was used rather casually for years is transformed into a modern, elegant and urban-looking space. Aachen's rich tradition as a place of springs, baths and well-being is impressively rediscovered at this location. The old drinking hall is integrated in a completely new way: It is now no longer oriented exclusively towards the street space, but becomes the reference point of a newly designed park, a "green living room" in the middle of the city.

A water basin positioned directly at the building reinforces this approach and becomes the design bracket between architecture and open space. At the same time, a valuable, atmospherically dense zone of transition is created, of the coexistence of different spatial qualities.

The newly structured park picks up on historical references on the one hand, but also sets modern accents on the other. Paths and contours quote well-known basic motifs of garden culture, but do not deny their period of origin. A skilful use of existing vegetation as well as newly positioned plantings give rise to a contemporary urban garden that invites visitors to spend time in everyday life. Wide lawns and flat seating steps accentuate the space, which has developed into a popular place in the centre of Aachen in a short time.