Atelier 5 Architekten und Planer AG (Bern)

Atelier 5 was founded in May 1955 by five young architects in Bern. In the early years, they explored the relationship between form and function, closely following Le Corbusier's theories and his formal language. This led to prototypical building untouched by fashion trends, to buildings that have written a piece of architectural history. Over the decades, the occupation originally committed to residential construction expanded to include a broad spectrum of tasks.

The office, which today is managed by four partners in the fourth and fifth generation, feels closely connected to these roots. The way of working, the development of all work in dialogue and in close cooperation with the client and the specialist planners has always been developed further. We are convinced that one's own thinking and inventing can be complemented, exaggerated and changed by the other, that in dialogue something new or a new quality can emerge.

Our projects are always the result of a differentiated examination of the existing situation and the main functions of a facility. In doing so, the human being and his individual needs are in the foreground. For this reason, we precisely sound out the relationship between private interior and communal exterior space. At the same time, large dimensions are understood as a composition of scaled parts. Of course, this is not without its own interpretation and special weighting, which, as always, remains the origin of any creative activity. The goal is to create durable buildings that can be used for many years with pleasure and whose qualities can be rediscovered again and again. We are looking for houses that trigger social impulses and can offer a small contribution to further development.

Atelier 5 acts collectively, the individual persons step into the background. In this way, a continuity of our work and our office becomes possible in the first place.