Interview with the architect Detlef Junkers , Berlin.

Last January, the jury of the Archi-Europe Competition awarded the first prize in the “Office or administrative buildings” category to the architect team Bumiller and Junkers for their plans for a school in Bad Homburg in Germany . Three new constructions, designed to look like village houses and set around an existing building, combined colourfully painted massive stonework with larch slats. A contrast that works and a good example of successful urban integration.

We recently met up with one of the project's authors Detlef Junkers in his Berlin agency, now known as Junkers & Partner.

Archi-News : What do you consider as the milestones in your career and as your most important projects, whether completed or underway.

Detlef Junkers : One of the important milestones in my career was, without a doubt, my ten day stay in the exceptional site of the Villa Malaparte in Capri , where all the scenes for the film Ť Le Mépris ť were filmed with Brigitte Bardot. This villa, perching on the side of a cliff, is a fine example of the play between architecture and light. As for the projects, I have just completed the Law Courts in Frankfurt/Oder, on the border between Germany and Poland . This Ť solitary ť building on a heterogeneous site conveys a huge amount of power. The monolithic building in concrete covers a surface of 60 m by 60 m and the unusual depth of the walls ( 65 cm ) provides a point of reference that modifies the urban environment.

Editor's note. Designed by the architect Adalberto Libera, the house of the Italian writer Curzio Malaparte, which is perched on the rock face in the wildest part of the island of Capri , is considered as one of the most beautiful houses of the 20th century. The French director, Jean-Luc Godard used it in 1963 as the backdrop for his film Le Mépris as it offered the perfect filming location.

A-N : Have you been influenced by anyone in particular in your work as an architect?

D.J. : Three names have always influenced me as an architect. For me, Le Corbusier is a constant and unending source of inspiration. I also appreciate the work of the architect Axel Schultes, the designer of the Chancellery (Bundeskanzleramt) in Berlin and that of the architect Alvaro Siza. I admire his intuition and the fact that he carries out work on all scales, from the largest to the smallest of projects.  

A-N : Can you pinpoint a specific style in your projects ?

D.J. : Yes, even though I myself am its harshest critic. I always try to create very specific spaces that are not only two dimensional but also three dimensional, high, long rooms with different luminosities. I also try to create a maximum of volumes in three dimensions with the resources available to me. I can define my style in a few adjectives : recognisable, specific, appropriate. In other terms, my aim is to put all of my efforts into creating specific spaces using the appropriate materials and respecting the conformity of the available resources.

D.J. : Today, we are facing a huge dilemma, we can take two different paths. On the one hand, we see that architects are enjoying more visibility – a positive image – and on the other hand, we have less and less need of architects. Many communes and regions take their decision on the basis of economic rather than architectural criteria. That is certainly the case in Berlin or Italy . The question that could currently be asked in Germany is the following : how can we Ť rehabilitate ť the role of the architect – with all that he has to offer – for simple, everyday projects ? At the moment, the work of the architect is more of an elitist than everyday task.

A-N : How do you reconcile the act of construction and its acceptance by society?

D.J. : The act of building is not only a social phenomenon but also an individual act that reflects the attitude of the architect. The work stands on its own, it is open to discussion and does not always go down well. A criticism therefore only concerns the work and not the architect. We do not take it personally. The architect thinks in the long term and on a timeless basis.

A-N : What is your view of the path currently being taken by European architecture?

D.J. : I believe that architecture is evolving in two directions that deserve to be pinpointed. The first direction is being determined by globalisation. Europe is today a melting pot of ideas and offers the possibility of working in different countries. The second direction focuses on the regional level. Therefore we observe, on the one hand, a unification that can even go as far as standardisation and, on the other hand, regionalism, or even traditionalism. In this context, it is interesting to note that Swiss architecture, which is very dynamic, is a good example of this duality. It is respected and recognised at international level and at the same time, it is very regional.