Colourfully welcoming visitors to the arts district in Munich is the Museum Brandhorst – its façade varied and enticing, like a box of crayons. Designed by architecture firm Sauerbruch Hutton, the exterior was created as an indication of what lays behind it. Using around 36,000 TERRART®-Baguette ceramic rods in 23 custom colours the building itself becomes an abstract display.

When seen from a distance the design intricacies merge into an understanding of three distinct sections. The coloured rods, despite their variety, become a block of colour thanks also to the striped aluminium sheets that wrap the building. When seen up close the individual colours can be distinguished, but maintain an essence of homogeneity, creating a magnificent gem-like diversity.

The façades ceramic elements were created by Hunter Douglas company NBK Keramik GmbH and are designed to allow air flow. The NBK system utilises ventilated rain screen principles to enable rainwater to be drained and prevented from entering wall cavities. However their ability to manufacture this type of product in the specified colours was extremely important for the architects who visited NBK several times during the process.

The final façade is lively and exciting and from some angles it almost glitters. Its entire appearance is dependent on where the observer stands and where the sun hits, eliciting varying responses, just as any work of art should.

Hunter Douglas Architectural
NBK Terracotta
Sauerbruch Hutton

A new post by Hanna Simpson, Diary of a Tile Addict, August 2019.