Architecture is a cultural discipline that shapes the world around us. Above all, it should enhance the quality of life. But it can also offer more. We try to build up our work by layering abstract ideas, memories of places, the feeling of things, and notions of political and social relations, that together form a complex constellation in built reality.

Architecture never starts from a blank page. It is set in a context of location, history, people, program. A good project synthesizes the manifold conditions that surround each task. It discovers potentials and offers a new view. It creates spaces for possibilities. It works together with the environment and not in opposition. It considers the beauty of every day life and human encounters.

We like our architecture to be used, adapted, altered, passed on. We want to design robust spatial structures, that can accommodate mutations of different uses over time. We believe in strong ideas, but not dogmatism. There are no generally true answers, because every situation is specific. Finding good solutions means asking the right questions.

Weyell Zipse is an architectural practice founded in 2016 in Basel by Christian Weyell and Kai Zipse. Both partners have previously taught at ETH Zurich, and were appointed guest professors at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in 2024. The practice was nominated for the Swiss Art Awards in 2021, the DAM Preis 2024 for Architecture in Germany, and received the Best architects 24 award in Gold, as well as the Golden Rabbit for the award ‹Die Besten 2024› for the best building of the year in Switzerland.