Alte Universität Graz

The Old University building, from the 17th century, changed throughout the times its function. After being used as an auditorium, a library and finally a storage room of the Styrian Archives, the Old University was to be redesigned to serve as a meeting center of the region of Styria, to be used mainly for representation purposes.
The transfer of both function and the meaning of the building occurs by a transformation of the interior space. One of the main themes of the project to use architecture and artistic process in order to improve the quality of the spaces, adjusted to its new purposes and to its historical significance.
The main challenge of this project was to identify and enhance the historical features of the building while adjusting it to the contemporary requirements of its new purpose. The integration of the new function in an historical structure is the central theme in this project and it is an outstanding example of how it is possible to adapt an existing building to present-day functions while preserving and bringing out its historic meaning and grandiosity.