HDA – Haus der Architektur

The architecture firm gaupenraub +/− was founded in Vienna in 1999 by Alexander Hagner and Ulrike Schartner. Their earliest projects included many small building conversions and expansions. Their work received its first major public response in 2006, when gaupenraub was selected for the first exhibition of Young Viennese Architects (YoVA1).

Over the course of what is now over twenty years of activity, the firm has operated in a wide variety of areas and scales: its broad field of work ranges from redevelopment of existing buildings, to urban development designs, to furniture and product design.

Some of their most important projects include sculptor Wander Bertoni’s Egg Museum in Winden am See, the renovation and expansion of the MCM Klosterfrau Healthcare Group headquarters and numerous other projects in existing contexts—for example, the conversion of the former Würzlmühle (grain mill) in the Waldviertel.

The firm has become well-known for its commitment to projects for disadvantaged people: for example, the VinziDorf Wien, a housing project for men suffering from severe alcoholism; the development of the Memobil, a composite piece of furniture for people with dementia; the VinziRast-mittendrin, a shared housing building for homeless individuals and students that has received multiple awards; and most recently, the VinziRast am Land, a project that helps formerly homeless individuals regain a footing through a broad range of employment opportunities in agriculture.  

Within the framework of the steirischer herbst, Alexander Hagner and Ulrike Schartner report on their inclusive work, which is always planned and carried out together with and for the people involved.