WERCK WORKSHOP

O A S E - Refurbishment of an Berlin Apartment | 2026 Reducing the apartment back to its spatial shell and rebuilding it from there using only the absolute essentials. - The fragmented three-room layout with its internal corridor, windowless kitchen, and enclosed bathroom was removed. In its place, we introduced one autonomous central core, a tiled bench that mirrors the beam, and lowered all windows to create floor-to-ceiling openings framing Berlins cityscape. The tone of the wood set the direction for the material palette, with all timber elements in American cherry finished with oil. Phase 5-8 In collaboration with @hauptstadtstudio_berlin All new built-in furnishings, kitchen and sliding doors by @eder_berlin Fotos: @till.schuster Before and drawings and Detail shots slide 5-7 : WERCK

O A S E - Refurbishment of an Berlin Apartment | 2026 Reducing the apartment back to its spatial shell and rebuilding it from there using only the absolute essentials. - The fragmented three-room layout with its internal corridor, windowless kitchen, and enclosed bathroom was removed. In its place, we introduced one autonomous central core, a tiled bench that mirrors the beam, and lowered all windows to create floor-to-ceiling openings framing Berlins cityscape. We embraced and preserved as found built-in cabinetry, integrating it into the new layout. Turned 90 degrees and placed parallel to the inner wall a curtain now allows the contents to be revealed or concealed as needed. The tone of the wood set the direction for the material palette, with all timber elements in American cherry finished with oil. Phase 5-8 In collaboration with @hauptstadtstudio_berlin All new built-in furnishings, kitchen and sliding doors by @eder_berlin Fotos: @till.schuster Videos and before: WERCK

O A S E - Refurbishment of an Berlin Apartment | 2026 A stabilizing core, a spatial skeleton, and a panoramic view over Berlin, an immense urban backdrop. - We understand the redesign of this 1970s apartment in the spirit of Paulo Mendes da Rocha’s interventions in his apartments at the Edifício Jaraguá in São Paulo: as an oasis above the city. A place shaped by ceiling fans and the evaporative cooling of surrounding plants—a form of cohabitation on the 15th floor. An inserted core interlocks with the four rooms, much like the modular façade elements of Friedrich Kracht. As in Mendes da Rocha’s work, this creates a continuous loop through the apartment, which can be zoned as needed through three sliding doors. We admire the tiles of Higienópolis and reinterpret them here in a range of colors, giving each room its own distinct character. We are very grateful to have collaborated with @hauptstadtstudio_berlin a strong and talented partner who carried the project through phases 5–8! The custom-built fittings and sliding doors by highly skilled @eder_berlin . Above all, we would like to thank our client for the trust placed in our workshop! - Archival construction-period Image: Spezialarchiv Bauen in der DDR, Bundesinstitut für Bau-, Stadt- und Raumforschung Fotos: @till.schuster Foto: Formsteine F. Kracht by WERCK

OPEN POSITION - For our young and dedicated workshop based in Dresden, we are looking for a working student or intern to join our team for immediate start. In addition to ongoing design development and detailed execution planning, an exciting new competition and a feasibility study have just landed on our desk. If you are passionate about architecture and eager to contribute creatively, we would love to hear from you. Please send your portfolio (10mb max): [email protected] ____ Image 1-7: OASE - Direct commission - 2025 - almost there, phase 5-8 in collaboration with Lukas Beer @hauptstadtstudio_berlin Image 2-3: FROEBELHOEFE - phase 2 team: Thea Harrer, Marie Schliesch 4: PLAZA - Development of a legally binding development plan, Dresden - ongoing , Team Lene Langenstraß 5-6: GARTENRONDELL - Dresden, postcard by @ruben.beilby , www_business cards CI: @oleemueller Image: 8: ROTUNDA x BETULA - project in collaboration with @studiofrege

HAPPY NEW YEAR from the workshop - Nora & Samuel - Nora Noack studied architecture at the University of the Arts in Berlin and at Musashino Art University Tokyo, Japan and received her diploma with honors - Max Taut Prize. She worked for robertneun, Ortner & Ortner Baukunst (Berlin) and Kengo Kuma (Tokyo). Her many years of long-term stays in Japan had a decisive influence on her understanding of space and architecture. Samuel Barckhausen studied architecture at the University of the Arts in Berlin and completed his diploma at the chair of Prof. Rolf Mühlethaler (ETH). He worked for Helga Blocksdorf, Bruno Fioretti Marquez, Staab (Berlin) and studiopez (Basel/Tel Aviv). He taught at TU Dresden (Prof. Christina Köchling, FOK) and at IKON TU Braunschweig, where his current research focuses on biogenic building materials within the context of opencultures. Foto: Felix Dick 📸

BETULA STOOL, 2025 I Birch Bark Ply, Birch wood, linseed oil varnish With our birch bark stool, we are saying goodbye to 2025. We carry it across the threshold and will open the next chapter in the new year. We are excited to see how the project develops. Stool: studiofrege and WERCK in collaboration with Tim Mergelsberg and Sagaan. Screwless Constructions – Ongoing Collaboration with Arne Maxim Koll ;) Bild 2-5 Samuel Barckhausen Bild 6 Felix Dick

FROEBELHOEFE « Reach out your Hand! » 🤝🏻 1. Prize. 2025 - Like folding a Fröbel star, the vertical facades connect with the horizontal bands to form an interwoven fabric. Central entrance pillars remain a stable motif throughout the seasons. We need to go back to Plecniks Prague again soon. Commission: CTR Real Estate s.r.o. Prague

FROEBELHOEFE - Context and Elevation The vertical façade shields refer to the industrial character of the area – the tiles are a nod to the peculiar attics of the neighbourhood’s social palaces, which we love. The houses hold hands, forming a communal garden in the courtyard. We see the bridges as an urban stage above the Weißeritzgrünzug and the street. Bird nesting boxes become architectural decorations and co-inhabitated corner accents. We look forward to the work ahead of us. ARGE: werck + npp Commission: CTR Real Estate s.r.o. Prague

FROEBELHOEFE First Prize! Competition Wohnungsbau, Dresden. Yeah! Arge: werck + npp Commission: CTR Real Estate s.r.o. Prague Team: Marie Schliesch

PROTOTYPES - bb-shingle 01-04 - 2025 Testing different European shingle shapes with prototypes makes sense if you want to make specific patterns visible and beyond that switch the material to locally harvested bark. Part of the process: The birch bark is softened with water, pressed between plates and dried. The undisturbed, homogeneous sloping roof surface that we see in traditional Japanese birch bark dwellings is the blueprint and part of the next phase of our ongoing design process. Images 1-3,8: Prototypes Image 4: Simplified elevation of a Japanese birch bark dwelling - as part of the research at @_ikon_institute Braunschweig Images 5-6: Manufacturing process Image 7: Raw material, from a different project illustrating the flexibilisation Image 9: Material test Prototypes @werck.work

EPISTEMIC ARTIFACTS - Sloping birch bark roof [exposed to the elements] The first model initially reproduces and emphasizes - the second transforms sloping and weathered birch bark roofs, as found in northern Japan, on the main island of Hokkaido. Nailed to the substructure and staggered, they form the water-bearing layer. In the next step, we will derive a building construction project for researching weathered systems from the artifact. Many thanks to Prof. Dr. Johanna Klügl, Bern University of Applied Sciences, for bringing this topic to our attention. Image 1: Epistemic artifact 02 based on research by Asakawa and Otabi, 2010 Image 2: Excerpt from research on birch bark dwellings, https://www.kankyo-u.ac.jp, Tottori, 2010 Image 3: Simplified section based on the above research Image 1: Epistemic artifact 03 transforming the shingle roof using contemporary means Image 4: Reconstruction of a birch bark dwelling, photo by: shisekinavi.com 🤍 Spaces of elasticity that were naturally built collectively: @opencultures Research @_ikon_institute , @__hb_a__ Models @werck.work

EPISTEMIC ARTIFACTS - 01 birch bark base At the intersection of practical scientific research and investigative practice, a series of building artifacts productively translate existing historical knowledge about birch bark into constructive models and form the basis for our upcoming projects. The first artifact examines the base point with barrier layers made of birch bark, which seperates the wooden structure from the stone foundation as seen around Tallinn. Thanks to Mania Lohrengel for the advice. Be it in the transdiciplinary context of @opencultures , the academic sphere working at the @_ikon_institute with Prof. Helga Blocksdorf @__hb_a__ , or in the practical field of building culture in our workshop @werck.work Genuine experimentation in the sense of constructive disobedience necessarily explores the interface between disciplines and beyond. #constructivedisobedience