The State Media Authority of North Rhine-Westphalia holds a distinct social responsibility: as an independent regulatory body, it safeguards freedom of expression, human dignity, youth protection, and user interests within a diverse and democratic media landscape. To truly honor this mandate, the workplace itself needed to become a space that nurtures communication, builds shared identity, and embodies sustainability. Bünemann Architecture from Düsseldorf—winners of a public competition—collaborated with Dahm Architekten to deliberately reject wholesale demolition and renewal. Instead, they pursued creative transformation and respectful evolution.

The Grand Bateau, a 2000-era building in Düsseldorf's Media Harbour, originally featured the conventional layout of enclosed offices and scattered kitchenettes—practical, yet misaligned with today's collaborative workplaces that demand flexibility, agility, and transparency. The renovation fundamentally reimagined the space: partition walls came down entirely, yielding a generous, open floor plan for approximately 130 staff members. Workstations operate on complete flexibility—employees independently select their workspace based on team composition and current tasks. Personal items find secure homes in individually lockable storage units. Enclosed, acoustically refined focus rooms support deep work when needed. Technical systems remain thoughtfully visible through suspended ceiling panels, allowing easy maintenance and honest expression of the building's infrastructure. The building's communal soul is its central ground-floor marketplace—simultaneously a communication hub, gathering space, and multipurpose venue capable of hosting formal events and guest presentations. What was once a purely utilitarian staircase in the atrium has become a vibrant three-dimensional sculpture, embodying the vertical flow between levels and serving as a daily symbol of institutional identity for all who work here. The intentional color palette—pink and petrol blue—draws from the organization's corporate identity while supporting wayfinding and belonging. Sustainability here is no marketing phrase but an operating principle: rather than costly gutting and rebuilding, the team maximized existing elements and made strategic, surgical upgrades. Restroom areas received fresh colored flooring. Support columns transformed into coat racks with simple tension straps. Well-maintained existing furniture found new life within the redesigned interior. The result merges economic prudence with ecological stewardship, transforming the State Media Authority into a space that is transparent, democratic, and genuinely future-ready.

www.bünemann.space

Photography:
Beatriz Alonso

(Published in CUBE Düsseldorf 03|25)