Multipurpose Hall at the Schulschwestern, Graz-Eggenberg, 1974–1979

GÜNTHER DOMENIG/ EILFRIED HUTH

© Photo: Gerhard Maurer, 2022

The unusual and unique multipurpose hall of the Schulschwestern in Graz is in many respects central to Günther Domenig’s view of architecture and also to his self-definition as an artist and architect. Initially, the project was still based on a design developed with Eilfried Huth, but it is also the last that the two of them worked on together and Domenig’s

signature is clearly more dominant here. The building occupies the inner courtyard of the convent and school complex, appearing to crouch low at the edges and growing towards the centre. For the first time in Austria, the injection moulding process was used for the caterpillar-like shaped shell, a bold experiment in building physics that explored the limits of concrete as a material. (Ten years later, the hall’s leaking skin was covered with zinc sheeting due to water damage). At the same time, it is the only building in Austria to formally span the

gap between total expression and Pop. A little later, or in parallel, Domenig tested the knowledge he had gained in Eggenberg within an urban context in the construction of the Z‑Sparkasse, another striking project and, along with the Steinhaus, one of the architect’s most important works.