Renovation and extension of the cemetery in Alzingen

The cemetery of Alzingen is located on a gentle hill on the southern edge of the village. Leaving the last houses behind you, a lovely view opens up over meadows, fields and the tree-lined country road. The condition of the cemetery we found dates back to the 1970s. The dense tree population and the existing hedges were neglected and outdated. Oversized fir trees and tujas separated the cemetery from the landscape. The atmosphere was depressing and you felt trapped in the cemetery. The redesign of the cemetery should be unobtrusive. The large, partly ornamental graves and their flower decorations are not set into competition with the new architecture.

The paths were laid out in plain concrete, the sustaining walls and the three wall panes, behind which are the toilets, a garage and the common room for the gravediggers, are all executed in coloured and and bush hammered concrete. The outdated trees were removed and replaced by loosely scattered linden trees and linden hedges. A low, protruding and receding boundary wall to the fields and cow meadows marks the transition from nature to cult. The benches and trees arranged along this wall invite you to linger and reflect, just like the arrangement of the trees and benches in the entrance courtyard. The once gloomy cemetery has been transformed into a landscaped garden.