Archello Awards 2026 · Enter your projects before 30 September 2026
Archello Awards 2026 · Enter your projects before 30 September 2026

Alpenstadtmuseum Sonthofen

Alpenstadtmuseum Sonthofen

URBAN DEVELOPMENT AND EXTERIOR DESIGN 
The new museum ensemble with its building structure fits into the small-scale structure of Sonthofen's inner city and thus continues to write the history of the place: 
The typical local design of gabled houses built directly next to each other is reinterpreted, creating a varied roofscape that structures the building and adapts it to its surroundings in terms of scale. 

photo_credit Sebastian Schels
Sebastian Schels

New open spaces with different qualities have been created around the museum: 
At the Kirchplatz, a historic urban situation is restored. The Rapphaus has received a structural extension through the new building, which closes the square façade and divides the building into a main and a service section as in the past. Today, the main entrance to the museum is located there. 

photo_credit Sebastian Schels
Sebastian Schels

To the east, the new museum courtyard is an inviting place to spend time. It is a meeting place and event area. In the south, the old farm garden will be preserved and will once again be an important part of the museum tour. 

photo_credit Sebastian Schels
Sebastian Schels

BUILDING 
Within the ensemble, the two historic buildings, the old farmhouse and the Rapphaus, stand in the foreground. The new building, which connects the different buildings and creates a cohesive exhibition space, forms a quiet, unobtrusive back to them. 
The facades of the new building and the 70s extension were uniformly clad with rough-sawn larch wood, a typical and historical building material of the region. Sustainability, regionality and craftsmanship are also important design criteria in the interior. 

photo_credit Sebastian Schels
Sebastian Schels

The roof of the exhibition rooms, for example, was clad in wood; the white fir trees required for this were cut in the city's own forest. 
In this way, the facade and roof landscape not only represent a valuable contribution to modern building in a historic environment, but also the exemplary use of renewable and regional raw materials. 

photo_credit Sebastian Schels
Sebastian Schels

BUILDING FUNCTION AND INTERIOR DESIGN

The design combines different uses under one roof. 
In addition to the exhibition and storage areas, there is a multi-purpose hall for cultural events, a workshop for museum education courses and a café open to the public. 
These uses have created a new meeting place in the urban fabric, not only for exhibition visitors but also for the citizens of Sonthof. 

photo_credit Sebastian Schels
Sebastian Schels

COOPERATION AND SUPPORT 
The reconstruction and expansion of the old town museum was carried out in close cooperation with the town of Sonthofen and the State Office for Non-State Museums and was supported by the following funding programs: 
Städtebauförderung, EFRE program in the objective "Investment in Growth and Employment" Bavaria 2014-2020, Kulturfonds Bayern, Bezirk Schwaben and the Bayerische Landesstiftung. 

photo_credit Sebastian Schels
Sebastian Schels

Team:

Andreas Ferstl Architekten: Architects

H33 Architekten: collaborating Architect

OK Landschaft: landscape architect

Konstruktionsgruppe Bauen AG: Structural Engineering

Güttinger Ingenieure GbR: House automation

Körbl + Feneberg GmbH: Electrical Engineering

Res d: exhibition design

Sebastian Schels: Photographer

photo_credit Sebastian Schels
Sebastian Schels

Materials Used:

Facade cladding: Wood, plaster

Tiles: Via cement tiles, via

Flooring: Screed with floor finish

Windows: Carpenter-wood-windows, larch

Roofing: Roof skin, copper roof membrane, Intello Plus pro clima underlay, alfa rufol thermo nd sk

Interior furniture: Armatures, vola armature, Durait

Ceiling : Heradesign, Knauf Insulation

photo_credit Sebastian Schels
Sebastian Schels
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