Real accomplishment with European design in Dresden travel tips and stories. Vacations ideas, cruises, spa and resorts

Dresden is a cultural centre in Germany having influenced the development of European culture. It enhanced international styles and examples to an own identity and cityscape. The nearby UFA-Kristallpalast cinema is a recent design by the firm Coop Himmelb. With its tall cube of glass it is one of the largest deconstructivist buildings in Germany. The futuristic UFA Cinema Center opened in 1998. Wolf Prix gives the term “Deconstructivist” substantial meaning. In his designs, structure and function are subordinate to the building program.

The Crystal is no longer merely a functional entry hall to the cinemas, but an urban passageway. The bridges, ramps and stairs to the cinemas are themselves urban expressions. They allow views of the movement of people on a multitude of levels, unfolding the urban space into three dimensions. The lively quality of this space can be described in relation to the dynamic structure of film. The Sky bar, the “floating” double-cone inside the foyer, is accessible and will host different functions (cafe, bar etc.).

Two strains of modern art, minimalism and cubism, have had an influence on deconstructivism. Analytical cubism, with its multiplicity of views, had a sure effect on deconstructivism, as forms and content are dissected and viewed from different perspectives simultaneously. A synchronicity of disjoined space is evident in many of the works of Frank Gehry and Bernard Tschumi. Synthetic cubism, with its application of found art, is not as great an influence on deconstructivism as Analytical cubism, but is still found in the earlier and more vernacular works of Frank Gehry.

Seen as a whole, the building’s detailing is not better than one could expect in a function as profane as a cinema. The robust and characterful interplay of materials often appears to be studied, with slabs of galvanized grates as a solid yet delicate device to screen-off the fire stairs and escape routes on the east and north sides of the building. With the edges of the stairs covered with stainless-steel panels, a rich play of reflections and shadows occurs. Toward south, the building loads are supported by oblique steel pips, while the west side is dominated by steel sections and aluminum window mullions.