OFIS with Sadar Vuga, Bevk Perovic, Dekleva Gregoric Space Habitable Wheel (KSEVT), 2012

#CULTURALCENTER #MULTIFUNCTIONAL #DYNAMISM

OFIS – www.ofis.si

The Cultural Center of European Space Technologies – Space Habitable Wheel (KSEVT) will supplement the cultural and social activities of the Arts Center in Vitanje, the Slovenian hometown of Herman Potocnik Noordung, the first theoretician of space. The concept design for the building of the KSEVT derives from the habitation wheel of the first geostationary space station described in Noordung’s 1929 book.

The building is a monolithic concrete structure, located between a main road and the green hinterland.The exterior and interior of the building are made of two low cylinders and the bottom one is supported by the transparent surface of the entrance glazing. The relation between the two cylinders creates a dynamic effect: the building appears to float and rotate on its southern and western sides towards the road.

The main entrance covers the overhanging part of the bottom cylinder: a circular vestibule bring into the interior of a circular hall for 300 people. The hall is surrounded by a semicircular ramp that defines the beginning of the exhibition area, continuing from here to the overhanging part of the larger cylinder.
Ascending this ramp, the exhibition space continues through the landing between the elevator and the staircase to the smaller cylinder, the multi-purpose hall, and a raised auditorium above the hall. The smaller cylinder is concluded at the highest with a club area devoted to researchers of the history of space technology.

The project development involved OFIS and other three architecture offices. The idea of collaboration raised during the first meeting with the investors, when they invited the four firms to collaborate on internal competition and the office principals decided to actually rather do the project together.

CREDITS

architects: OFIS, Sadar Vuga Arhitekti, Bevk Perovic Arhitekti, Dekleva Gregoric Arhitekti

location: Cesta na vasi, Vitanje, Slovenia

surface: 2.450 mA?

year/status: 2012/built

structure: Sector inzeniring d.o.o.

materials: concrete, glass, aluminium

project team: Rok Oman, Spela Videcnik, Andrej Gregoric Janez Martincic, Christian Gheorghe, Rastislav Udzan, Kiki Marien, Janja Del Linz (OFIS)| Jurij Sadar, Bostjan Vuga, Vanja Gortnar, Sven Kalim, Siim Johan Alexander (Sadar Vuga Arhitekti)|Matija Bevk, Vasa Perovic, Gerrit Neumann, Andreja Pikelj, Gonzalo Piqueras, Josef Kalcik (Bevk Perovic Arhitekti)| Aljosa Dekleva, Tina Gregoric, Daniel Schwartz (Dekleva Gregoric Arhitekti)

client: KSEVT, Vitanje Community and Ministry of Culture, Slovenia

consultant: Josip Konstantinovic (Overall Building Geometry Realization & Project Execution), Rok Gerbec (Fa ade details Execution), I.S.P. Kamnik d.o.o. (Mechanical engineering),Jelen &Zavasnik Bambi d.n.o.(Electrical engineering), Tega d.o.o. (Traffic engineering), Sasa Galonja (Acoustic engineering), Dragan Zivadinov, Miha Tursic (Noordung Space Technologies Center Concept & Producer), Atelje Balant (Graphic Design)

photography: OFIS, Tomaz Gregoric