Even from a distance, the simple and elegant cubic building catches the eye. With a façade of perforated, delicate trapezoidal sheet metal and continuous bands of windows, the new sports hall designed by Thoma Lay Buchler Architektenpartnerschaft marks the entrance to the sports complex. The hall connects directly to the outdoor playing fields and the new ‘Sports Boulevard’ running alongside the pitch. It links the hall to, amongst other things, the side stands and the adjacent school courtyard. From the car park, with its old and new trees, the path leads to the main entrance of the double-height hall via the ‘Sports Forum’, a forecourt designed as a meeting place. Wide concrete seating steps invite visitors to linger, and the tree integrated into the timber-clad seating island provides shade on sunny days. Upon entering the sports hall via the covered entrance area, one arrives in the foyer, which is open up to the upper floor. This features exposed concrete walls, lending the high-ceilinged space a robust and lively character. On one side, a glass door offers a view into the sports hall; on the other, one enters the glazed corridor area. The large, flush-mounted windows offer expansive views of the outdoor sports fields. Benches inside and outside provide seating for spectators or those waiting. As throughout the interior of the hall, a few carefully selected materials create a contrast here: light spruce wood, anthracite-coloured mastic asphalt, and the concrete of the walls and stairs. An exposed, clearly structured supporting framework of glulam trusses, together with the suspended ceiling, the integrated light strips and the wall cladding of narrow spruce slats, creates a calm atmosphere and acoustics within the hall, which can be divided into three sections. Strips of windows along the upper edge of the hall and east-facing skylights connect the interior with the green surroundings. The treetops, which sway in the wind, create a beautiful interplay of light and shadow inside the building, which is also visible through the temperature- and wind-controlled awnings. A narrow corridor runs above the hall floor, which can be used as a small viewing gallery and provides access to flexibly divisible changing rooms and special-purpose rooms. In addition to various thermal insulation measures, a central ventilation system with highly efficient heat recovery has been installed. This is concealed in a recessed section of the roof and has been covered flush with the upper edge by photovoltaic modules. Neither is visible from the outside, ensuring that the sports hall retains its simple, cubic appearance.

www.thoma-lay-buchler.de

Photography Credits:

Simon Sommer
www.simon-sommer.de

(Published in CUBE Stuttgart 03|23)