4a Architekten - Setting Locations, Forming Spaces, Giving Light, Showing True Colors

Description

Stuttgart-based 4a Architekten have gained much recognition especially for their public swimming pools and spas. Yet the firm, established in 1990 by Matthias Burkart, Eberhard Pritzer, Alexander von Salmuth, and Ernst Ulrich Tillmanns, has also created a formidable work of cultural and educational buildings, hotels, and housing. Having built mainly in Germany and Austria in their earlier years, they also opened an office in Moscow in 2008 when they obtained their first commission from Russia. This new monograph features seventeen realised projects that are exemplary for 4a Architekten's approach and vision. The selection also reflects the range of building tasks they cover. Richly illustrated with images and plans, the book also demonstrates the development of the firm's architectural language. Two essays take a look at their working process and history, alongside three shorter and more literary texts. The book is completed with a catalogue of all their built and unrealised projects.

Wolfgang Bachmann is a freelance architectural publicist and critic. He has been chief editor, and between 2011-13 also publisher, of German architectural magazine Baumeister.