Sudeten German Museum
Project Location:
Munich
Completion:
2025
Collaboration:
With PMP-Architekten
Client:
Sudeten German Foundation
Structure:
FF2
CNC-milled Formfeld wall panels in dark-stained solid oak for the café of the Sudeten German Museum, Munich - developed with PMP Architekten. Irregularly triangulated relief with an integrated light pattern that shifts with the viewer’s position to depict the post-1945 migration of the Sudeten Germans. Completed 2025.
Formfeld developed a wall sculpture for the day café of the Sudeten German Museum in Munich, designed by PMP Architekten and opened in 2020.
Positioned in the upper rear section of the serving area, the sculpture is made of dark-stained solid oak. Of the four segments, the two central ones are operable. The irregularly ascending and descending triangular surfaces give the structure a dynamic appearance, as individual facets appear lighter or darker depending on the viewing angle. This effect results from their orientation toward either bright or dark areas of the room, which they reflect with their subtly glossy finish.
The wooden topography is overlaid with a pattern of illuminated points representing the migration of the Sudeten Germans after the end of World War II. When viewed from the café’s entrance, a compact formation of light appears in the lower right section — symbolizing the original settlement area up until 1946. As visitors move toward the staircase, this formation dissolves: the points of light disperse across the entire surface, alluding to the historical migration to Western Europe.
The effect of the luminous pattern changing depending on the viewer's position is achieved through precisely aligned perforations in the wooden surface. These perforations are calibrated so that the light behind them is visible only from specific angles. A custom-developed algorithm determined both the triangular geometries of the relief and the optimal tilt of the perforations along the visitor movement path — taking the spatial geometry into account.
Depending on the time of day and lighting conditions, either the shifting relief or the luminous pattern becomes
Positioned in the upper rear section of the serving area, the sculpture is made of dark-stained solid oak. Of the four segments, the two central ones are operable. The irregularly ascending and descending triangular surfaces give the structure a dynamic appearance, as individual facets appear lighter or darker depending on the viewing angle. This effect results from their orientation toward either bright or dark areas of the room, which they reflect with their subtly glossy finish.
The wooden topography is overlaid with a pattern of illuminated points representing the migration of the Sudeten Germans after the end of World War II. When viewed from the café’s entrance, a compact formation of light appears in the lower right section — symbolizing the original settlement area up until 1946. As visitors move toward the staircase, this formation dissolves: the points of light disperse across the entire surface, alluding to the historical migration to Western Europe.
The effect of the luminous pattern changing depending on the viewer's position is achieved through precisely aligned perforations in the wooden surface. These perforations are calibrated so that the light behind them is visible only from specific angles. A custom-developed algorithm determined both the triangular geometries of the relief and the optimal tilt of the perforations along the visitor movement path — taking the spatial geometry into account.
Depending on the time of day and lighting conditions, either the shifting relief or the luminous pattern becomes
Two of the four Formfeld-2-segments behind the bar area
View of the café from outside
Café area of the Sudeten German Museum at sunset
Migration Map of the Sudeten Germans
Light pattern that changes with the visitor’s position
Light pattern in motion
Schäftlarnstrasse 10
DE-81371 München