Freiraum und Bebauung

Focus SoSe26: Cortili rossi 

Open spaces constitute the least researched and least discussed aspect of the famous housing courtyards of “Red Vienna” (1919–1934) — even though (or perhaps precisely because) this is where the most substantial changes have occurred in terms of zoning, programming, materials, furniture, vegetation, and ground-floor functions. Moreover, many communal facilities such as children’s outdoor baths, fountains, and laundries have disappeared or been decommissioned over recent decades. Exciting spaces await reactivation.

Criteria of engagement:

• historical, social, and design foundations of the housing estates
• typologies, zonings, and transformation processes of open spaces and ground-floor zones
• communal facilities (laundries, bathhouses, children’s outdoor baths, libraries, etc.)
• comparison of historical and current conditions based on archival material
• case studies of selected housing courtyards (e.g. Fuchsenfeldhof, Winarskyhof, Reumannhof, Sandleitenhof, Karl-Marx-Hof, Hugo-Breitner-Hof)
• design visions and reactivation strategies