Sauerbruch Hutton facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Founded at	London, 1989
Legal status	GmbH
Headquarters	Berlin
Fields	Architecture, Urban Planning, Interior, Product Design
Staff	100

Sauerbruch Hutton is a company that designs buildings, cities, and even furniture! They started in London in 1989 and are now based in Berlin, Germany. The main people in charge are Matthias Sauerbruch, Louisa Hutton, and Juan Lucas Young.

Cool Buildings They Designed

Two New Ludgate, an office building in London

Sauerbruch Hutton has designed many famous buildings. Some of their best-known works include the GSW Headquarters in Berlin, the Federal Environment Agency in Dessau, and the Brandhorst Museum in Munich. More recently, they opened the Experimenta Science Centre in Heilbronn and the M9 Museum District in Venice Mestre.

They have worked on projects in many countries, including the UK, Finland, France, Italy, Switzerland, and Luxembourg.

How It All Started

The company's first offices were in London. Both founders, Matthias Sauerbruch and Louisa Hutton, also taught at universities there. Many of their first projects were in small city spaces. For example, they designed L House in London, which was a typical Victorian house. They used bright colors to make the small rooms feel bigger and more open.

They also entered early design competitions for big projects like Paternoster Square in London and the Tokyo International Forum. In these designs, they showed new ways to build that were good for people and the environment.

The GSW Headquarters Story

The GSW Headquarters building is in Berlin, not far from a famous historical spot called Checkpoint Charlie. It was the first tall building built in Berlin after the Berlin Wall came down. Sauerbruch Hutton won a competition to design it. Their design was a fresh idea for how new buildings should look in Berlin.

Amazing Designs and Materials

Sauerbruch Hutton continued to create buildings that were good for the environment. They also kept exploring how to use color as a building material across Europe. The Federal Environmental Agency in Dessau, finished in 2005, was a great example of a green office building. It has a wavy shape that makes walking through it a unique experience.

They also experimented with printed glass for buildings like the Pharmacological Research Laboratories (2002) and Jessop West (2008). In 2008, with the Brandhorst Museum, they started using glazed ceramic for building fronts. They continued this idea with the M9 Museum in Venice Mestre.

Awards and Recognition

Sauerbruch Hutton has won many awards for their work. Their GSW Headquarters building won the Berliner Architekturpreis and Deutscher Architekturpreis. It also received several awards from the RIBA and AIA, and was nominated for the Stirling Prize in 2000.

Many of their projects have been nominated for the Mies Van Der Rohe Award. The Sitra Headquarters project won a 2011 Holcim Awards for Sustainable Construction for being a "medium rise timber office building in low-to-no carbon emissions." The KfW Westarkade building was named the Best Tall Building Worldwide in 2011.

They also received special honors like the Erich Schelling Prize for Architecture in 1998, the Fritz Schumacher Prize for Architecture in 2003, and the Gottfried Semper Architekturpreis in 2013.

Meet the Founders

Matthias Sauerbruch

Matthias Sauerbruch, born in 1955, studied architecture in Berlin and London. He worked for a famous architect named Rem Koolhaas before starting his own company. He has also taught architecture at many universities, including Harvard. He is a member of the Academy of Arts, Berlin. In 2013, he helped organize an exhibition called "Culture:City" that looked at how culture, buildings, and cities are connected. Matthias is the grandson of the famous surgeon Ferdinand Sauerbruch.

Louisa Hutton

Louisa Hutton, born in 1957, studied at Bristol University and the Architectural Association. She worked for other architects and taught at universities like Harvard. She helps guide important architectural groups. In 2014, Louisa Hutton became a Royal Academician of the Royal Academy of Arts.

Juan Lucas Young

Juan Lucas Young, born in 1963 in Buenos Aires, studied at the Universidad de Buenos Aires. He became a partner at Sauerbruch Hutton in 1999.

How the Office Works

Since 2023, the company is run by 16 partners and 10 associates. Matthias Sauerbruch, Juan Lucas Young, Vera Hartmann, and David Wegener are the main directors. About 100 people work at their office in Berlin. This includes architects, designers, technicians, model makers, and administrative staff.

Projects They Have Built

Exhibitions of Their Work

• WYSIWYG, traveling exhibition, 1999
• Eyescape Soundscape, Venice Biennale of Architecture, 2004
• 1234 – The Architecture of Sauerbruch Hutton, Pinakothek der Moderne, Munich, 2006
• How Soon Is Now, Galerie Judin, Berlin, 2014
• Oxymoron, Venice Biennale of Architecture, 2018
• draw love build – the architecture of sauerbruch hutton, Venice-Mestre, 2021

Images for kids

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  Museum Brandhorst Munich, 2008

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  Cologne Oval Offices on Gustav-Heinemann-Ufer, Cologne, 2010

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  ADAC Headquarters Munich, 2012

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  Haus 6, Berlin, 2017

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  M9 Museum Quarter, Venice Mestre, 2018

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  Experimenta, Science Center, Heilbronn, 2019

See also

In Spanish: Sauerbruch Hutton Architects para niños