Resilience through Monumentality. Renovation and Extension of the Rathauswache 1985-1990

In the 1980s, Swiss architect Tilla Theus designed the conversion and extension of the town hall guardhouse. The central location in the heart of Zurich and the more than 160-year history of the existing building made the project a complex construction task. Theus' design, which placed the preservation of the existing building and the appropriate architectural response to it at the center of the design, provoked and triggered many discussions.

This in-depth study is dedicated to the search for the reasons behind the architectural design decision and the question of whether these can be traced back to time-related phenomena. In addition to numerous newspaper articles, minutes and photographs from archives, two extensive interviews conducted as part of the work, one with the architect and the other with the Swiss architect and journalist Benedikt Loderer, form the basis for the work.

The architect's great sensitivity to the preservation of historical monuments had a fundamental influence on the design. The architectural design was therefore created in response to the existing building. However, this approach was limited by numerous external constraints: The constraints and challenges arose from political and urban planning conditions, as well as from the historical transformation of the site. However, Theus built up a steadfastness against these external constraints and countered them with a monumental formal language.