“After two pairs of shoes, I wasn’t exactly dressed appropriately in my last destination, Milan,” jokes Tom Holthusen. He reports on his trip to Italy, which he was able to do with the prize money from the Possehl scholarship for architecture in 2022. Holthusen, as well as Dustin Buddenberg and Alexander Pfleiderer, reported impressively and humorously on their travels as winners of the travel grant. Dustin Buddenberg was drawn to three countries at once: Austria, Switzerland and Italy. “We looked at a total of 86 buildings – after the trip I had to promise my girlfriend that I would organize my next vacation differently.” Alexander Pfleiderer’s trip was supposed to be an internship in London at a large architect’s office – however, Brexit had other plans for Pfleiderer. End of the story: the manager of the Prague branch office called him on a Thursday that he could start his internship there next Monday: “I sat on the train and googled for hostels and then stayed with a colleague for the first week”. All three report emotionally about their experiences, which no one can take away from them.
Educational trips expand horizons and knowledge
This year’s winners can now have the same experience: a total of ten architecture and urban planning students from the Technical University (TH) Lübeck were able to present themselves at the award ceremony Possehl-Scholarship on May 31, 2023 looking forward to prizes. The prospective urban planner Vanessa Grube and the architects Nick Luca Alexander Hettwer and Yannik Schümann will receive the travel grant, which is worth 3,000 euros. Mika Bättjer, Lukas Chmielnik, Mark Vincent Fritzemeier, Laura Heßler, Karina Kreker, Johanne Lüdemann and Melanie Mohammadi each receive a travel allowance of 500 euros for their work. The chairman of the Possehl Foundation, Max Schön, emphasized in his address to the students and guests: “Even more than 100 years ago, our founder Emil Possehl wanted to give young people new paths into the world and to explore innovative topics. Educational trips expand horizons and knowledge – this is not only important for personal development, but is also of inestimable value for social change and progress. It was very interesting to hear the travel reports of last year’s scholarship holders – and we are already looking forward to what the students will bring back to Lübeck next year!”
Live port – work starboard
This is how Vanessa Grube imagines a quarter in Glashüttenweg: “Live portside – work starboard”. The prospective urban planner shows a lively waterfront, space for handicrafts, a community house, a day care center and a playground in a group work. “A special feature is the planned museum, which is intended to address the issue of the dumping of forced laborers in Glashüttenweg during the Second World War,” says Grube. The jury praised Vanessa Grube’s “carefully and attractively presented work. It is characterized by a feeling for a differentiated formation of outdoor space and the demand for realistic feasibility.” Vanessa Grube wants to use the travel grant to attend a summer school in Pisa. “The Summer School deals with the relationship between the city and the adjacent river. I find it exciting how we will deal with drought in urban development in the future and I am therefore very much looking forward to the trip.”
Forest bathing in elementary school
In a group project, Nick Luca Alexander Hettwer designed, among other things, a primary school building made of wood. Trees and the Japanese concept of “forest bathing” are at the center of the design. “The students should be able to discover the vegetation around the building undisturbed,” says antive architect hetwer. Wood is the main material in the school – both on the facade and in the interior. “From the large structure to the careful detailing, the works show a special sense of space,” was the verdict of the jury. Hettwer consistently chose Japan as a travel destination: “In addition to the Scandinavian countries, for example, I also see Japan as a pioneer in timber construction. I would love to work on site with wood joints and modern as well as traditional wooden buildings.”
Flying roofs
In the group work “Flying Roofs”, Yannik Schümann deals with the combination of commercial and residential areas. “The different roof heights are adapted to the existing buildings on the property and thus reflect the character of the traditional buildings in Lübeck’s old town,” says Schümann. The prospective architect planned the building in a sustainable timber construction without composite materials with a green roof. “Yannik Schümann’s works consistently show a high level of design and performance quality and precision,” was the verdict of the jury. Schumann also chose Japan as a travel destination. “In particular, the lack of space in metropolises such as Tokyo or Osaka require unconventional solutions. The scholarship enables me to dream of traveling to Japan and getting to know the country’s architecture and cultural diversity.”
About the Possehl scholarship for architecture
The Lübeck entrepreneur and founder Emil Possehl (1850 – 1919) promoted the exchange of knowledge between employees and students with travel grants during his lifetime. In his spirit, the Possehl Foundation and the courses in architecture and urban planning at the Technical University of Lübeck award the Possehl scholarship for architecture every two years. The scholarships are intended to enable students to travel or stay outside of Lübeck, which can be a valuable stimulus and inspiration for their studies and personal development.
The jury of the Possehl scholarship for architecture is composed as follows this year: Carsten Groth (Possehl Foundation), Rainer Steffens (BDA Lübeck), Inga Müller-Haagen (Architecture Forum), Prof. Tobias Mißfeldt, Prof. Melanie Rüffer, Prof. Benjamin Spaeth (all 3rd Department of Civil Engineering the TH Luebeck)