PORSCHE CASINO

WEISSACH, GERMANY | 2008

The Casino (management restaurant) building erected at the site of the research and development centre in Weissach in the 80s is a solitary building characteristic for that era/time. Its polygonal plan opens up to the surrounding nature, as well as to the business/factory premises.

A main feature of the Casino is its multi-directionally folded, wooden roof construction and the themed installations by artist Angelo Marraccini symbolising the four elements fire, water, air and earth with figures of Greek mythology. The diversity of spatial situations and different orientations is tuned to the functional areas of food counter, restaurant and café offering a high level of clarity of allocation. The biggest challenge with this project was the integration of new elements, which originate from today’s culture, but that were meant to add to the existing ensemble in a natural way. Part of the design strategy was the incorporation of the directions, resulting from the existing 30° grid in to the newly added fittings and furnishings creating geometrical relationships between old and new. This is how a new layer was added to the existing variety of elements, which otherwise react harmonically with the other existing structures.