Architecture as Inclusion
The new SOS Children's Village in Garath stands out for its thoughtfully designed communal spaces
Since 2008, SOS Children's Village has served the southernmost district of Düsseldorf. What began modestly—a neighbourhood hub offering childcare and event space—gradually expanded across multiple locations. A 2016 design competition sought to consolidate these scattered operations at a unified site near Garath's centre, strategically positioned on Frankfurter Strasse. The winning design by Kresings Architects achieves precisely what was envisioned: a children's village that opens generously to the surrounding community and fosters genuine participation.
Five two-storey buildings form the ensemble, distributed across two plots on either side of Matthias-Erzberger-Strasse. This arrangement creates dual orientations: northward toward the city, and southward toward Garath Castle's park and the tree-lined Schlossallee. Three new structures—the educational centre, daycare facility, and multi-generational house—face south, arranged around a central plaza anchored by a mature oak tree. The effect is strikingly village-like in character. Connected by upper-level bridges, with the daycare accessed via a planted stairway, these buildings showcase remarkable transparency. Both the two-storey daycare group rooms and the centre's project spaces, along with the neighbourhood café, all orient toward Schlossallee, where a generous public play area extends the invitation to gather.
Vertical wooden cladding wraps each building, its natural timber slats functioning as a unifying skin. Rounded corners guide visitors intuitively toward the plaza and into the buildings themselves. The public spaces command attention through extensive glazing and floor-to-ceiling windows, fostering a seamless interior-exterior dialogue—particularly at street level—that embodies the desired openness. Across the street to the northwest, two additional buildings house the more intimate residential and family spaces, thoughtfully arranged around a shared, landscaped courtyard.
Photography Credits:
Nils Koenning
www.nilskoenning.com
(Published in CUBE Düsseldorf 03|22)
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