Westfriedhof Station, Munich Germany

It’s a construct of light, an entrance into a synthetic world of human technology and economy. The U-bahn (U1) Station Westfriedhof (West Cemetery) in München isn’t otherwise much to speak of. The building’s exterior is a historic 1898 church of yellow masonry and copper roofs. The chipper decoration is stripped in this 1999 project, however, as one descends concrete stairs lined by reflective steel and glazing. The platform is a brutal cave-like enclosure. But the careful coloring, placement, and intensity of lighting readily picks up this space.

An unnatural, almost discotheque atmosphere perhaps speaks of the name: cemetery. The German culture still values cemeteries as a religious experience. One can see widows visiting a grave day after day out of religious devotion. This contemporary statement by Architect Auer – Weber applies these values to common transportation.

More Images , Historic Info


(Photocapy
– flickr/creative commons license)
 

(featured image by Toby Strödel on wikipedia/public domain)