Since 2017, FOM University's striking new building has greeted students in Derendorf with a bold sculptural presence. Its dynamic form—accessed via ramped pathways and pedestrian connections—responds directly to the site's distinctive urban context: the proximity of railway tracks and the road bridge overhead. Last year, the campus was enhanced with a complementary addition: a single-storey break pavilion designed by Berlin-based J. Mayer H. architects, who led the original project. Executed at ground level, this new structure extends the university building's distinctive formal vocabulary across the generous, landscaped campus grounds.

This single-storey pavilion encompasses 120 m² and shares the main building's concrete material language—though without its metal-coated Duraflon facade. Instead, it showcases raw, architecturally expressive exposed concrete, demanding meticulous formwork execution. The solid roof slab traces a rectangle with softly rounded corners and subtle organic curves, supported by just three columns that organically merge with the structure. These elegantly diagonal supports create a spatial interplay of forces that amplifies the building's floating quality, particularly where the roof cantilevers several meters beyond the glass pavilion on the south side, entirely free from supports. This dramatic overhang frames a covered outdoor space and marks the entrance. Inside, the completely transparent glass cube houses a lounge and seminar room with direct access to the underground parking level. Shading proves unnecessary—the pavilion's glazing features advanced thermochromic glass with an integrated vanadium oxide layer that intelligently responds to temperature: it transmits the sun's warming infrared rays in cooler conditions while reflecting them when temperatures rise.

www.jmayerh.de

Photography Credits:

David Franck
www.davidfranck.de

(Published in CUBE Düsseldorf 03|23)