Richard Künz :
Local Council Offices Mödling

The task here was to design the whole forecourt of the local council buildings, including a fountain, and to create an interplay between the external and internal spaces (forecourt/entrance hall). Two tangents to the circular forecourt intersect each other in the hall, producing a new focal point for circular banding in the floor. This new centre represents a shift from the architectural centre and stands in a tense relationship with the octagonal floor plan. The fountain is comprised of two parts. In a green island under a treetop one discovers the bronze cast of a rather alienated old hand-worked well. It stands as a symbol for the conscious and economical approach to the life-giving element of water and has the character of a memorial. A tube sculpture may be understood as a sculptural collage made of piping and plumbing elements. Water shoots out uncontrollably into the air from a central tube, with the leaky flange connection of the fountain unable to contain the amounts of water – a system does not meet the needs of the requisite function. This second part is intended to illustrate the wasteful use of one of the most important resources on the planet. Council buildings are places of public administration, yet also places with political flair. It did not seem appropriate to create an idyllic little square with delightfully trickling water in such a place. Something else had to be attempted precisely here.
(Richard Künz)