CSMM – architecture matters

As an innovative law firm, DLA Piper wanted a concept for its 4,500 sqm Hamburg offce that supports agile work and blurs the boundaries between open plan and single office. The Wilhelminian building „Alter Wall“ captivates with its architectural austerity and clearly symmetrical floor plan compositions.

Integrating DLA Piper, the CSMM designers transformed this architectural language into a contemporary, inviting ambience and designed the rooms with plenty of glass, light and transparency.

The demands of the location and the building

Situated in the “second best building on the square”, directly next to the town hall, the location of the Hanseatic branch of DLA Piper LLP in Alter Wall has special significance. The Wilhelmine building, which was originally built beginning in 1914 for the Reichsbank, impresses with its architectural austerity and clearly symmetrical layout. It was a challenge to combine this architecture, which is the same both inside and out, with an appropriate, but also contemporary, open and inviting ambience. As the main outer building was placed under a strict listed building preservation order as part of its renovation by Art Invest 2019, CSMM had the opportunity to carefully redesign the whole interior to create a contemporary response to this.