Buero Wagner Turns a Garage into a New Workspace in Germany

A garage in Breitbrunn am Ammersee, Germany, has been converted into a workspace to efficiently work and live in the same place. The project was designed by Buero Wagner by maximizing a 40-square-meter area into a workspace that has a productive climate.

"Because we felt that building a structure for cars was not contemporary anymore, the parking lot in front of the garage was placed in the driveway. In this way, new living and working spaces are created in existing structures without sealing and building on new land," Buero Wagner said.

Interior design of a converted garage into a workspace

Layout of 40 sqm of workspace

When entering the room, several renovations were made by Buero Wagner, such as replacing the garage door with a polycarbonate façade that can transmit sunlight and protect it from the outside environment. The front area of this workspace can be used freely due to the presence of long benches. On the other side of the insulated back area are entrances, toilets, and telephone booths.

Converted garage door to polycarbonate facade

Access into the workspace

To anticipate boredom in this room, wall openings were made to bring a quiet yard view into the workspace. Then there is a circular skylight on the ceiling as access to sunlight that will create shadows on the floor. Although natural lighting has been obtained optimally through these openings, some spotlights are installed as additional light at night.

An opening that connects the space with the yard outside the garage

A circular skylight gives access to sunlight into the room

The interior design of this workspace uses a conventional drywall system to save construction costs. The applied metal skin consists of galvanized metal panels commonly used for drywall firewalls. These panels are then mounted with drywall profiles. As well as additional lighting is installed on the cable tray and hung from the ceiling. 

Tables and cube-shaped stools from galvanized press grates are deliberately placed in the center of the room as a relaxing area. When viewed at close range, the surface of the table and stool have a grid motif from the galvanized arrangement. The entire room is painted white with gray furniture that does not interfere with concentration while working.

Work table and stools from galvanized press grates

"The chosen industrial materials are available in conventional building material stores. The material canon consists of inexpensive banal sturdy, long-lasting materials that take on a new value through their treatment, application, and composition with each other, posing the question of sufficiency and the acceptance of a new aesthetic in our interactions with existing structures," explained Buero Wagner.