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A bar for staff to socialize forms the heart of this new company headquarters in Brixen, which also includes an exhibition space
Location: Brixen, Italy
Architects: Julian Tratter, Markus Hinteregger
Client: barth
Photography by Gustav Willeit / Jürgen Eheim, courtesy of barth
Art, architecture, and design come together in Julian Tratter and Markus Hinteregger’s design of barth Interiors’ new headquarters in Brixen, Italy. barth, a historic family-run company specializing in customized interiors, needed to renovate and expand its premises. Dubbed Hall 3, the building has spaces for the company’s 90-plus employees, reinforcing the added value that barth passes on to its customers and designers.
Centered on essentiality, the design concept was all about preserving the existing building as much as possible. Carefully targeted demolitions stripped the building back to its structural frame, which was then integrated with non-invasive additions. The company’s holistic approach, which combines artisan traditions with high-tech, is mirrored in the project.
With Hall 3, entrepreneurs Ivo and Max Barth – the fourth and fifth generations, respectively, at the helm of the company – realized their vision of creating a place where they could offer staff culture-building opportunities. So, the conversion of the former warehouse includes breakout areas for socializing, staff changing rooms, and a private contemporary art gallery.
The gallery, which can also be opened to the public, has turned one of art collector Ivo Barth’s dreams into a reality. Through July 27, the gallery is hosting an exhibition of works by Sven Sachsalber, an artist and performer from Venosta, who passed away in 2020 aged just 33. Curated by Lisa Mazza and Walter Angonese, the exhibition, Ich brauche noch Zeit (I still need time), offers an overview of the work of the artist, of whom Ivo Barth was both a friend and collector.
The heart of Hall 3 is its bar, designed as a place for employees after work and to host exhibitions. Its name, and the gallery’s, are based on a play on words, with barth containing both the word bar and the word art. So, reflecting the architecture in words, the barth complex houses both the bar[th] meeting place and the [b]art[h] art space.
The interiors feature the same pure shapes and colors that distinguish the façade, with large greyscale surfaces, such as the continuous flooring and the ceiling, dialoguing with other sections with wood finishes, such as the parquet floors and the wall paneling in some rooms. The wood finishes are then echoed by the handrail on the internal staircase.
Several artworks are incorporated into the design. The entrance to the building is marked by the monolithic work Out of Earth, in a Silver Cocoon by Mischa Sanders and Philipp Putzer, while an iron sculpture of a human figure by Antony Gormley stands on the edge of the roof.
The twin silos that tower over the building are also home to artworks. Lasso, by Eva Schlegel, is an installation comprising five rings around the cylindrical structure located near the front of the building. The twin silo features a 2006 bichromatic work by Esther Stocker.
>>> Discover also Lasserhaus, a 4-star art hotel in Brixen, designed by Vudafieri-Saverino Partners
