GROUND is more than an exhibition of Roger Boltshauser’s work. From 24 October to 1 November 2026, SHIBAURA HOUSE in Tokyo becomes a setting for an architectural conversation about material, construction and the conditions from which architecture emerges. Conceived and curated by Roger Boltshauser together with Atelier Andrea Gassner, the exhibition is less concerned with presenting a completed body of work than with articulating an attitude towards building.

The term GROUND is deliberately ambiguous. It refers to the earth itself, but also to foundation, origin and what is already present. What exists before architecture begins? The exhibition starts from this question, shifting attention away from the finished object and towards material, context, process and the conditions that precede form.

Over the course of a week, the exhibition expands into a forum for exchange between European and Japanese architecture. Architects and designers from Japan enter into dialogue with Roger Boltshauser, bringing different cultural perspectives into conversation with shared questions about how we build today. In this way, GROUND moves beyond the format of a monographic exhibition and becomes a platform where distinct positions can meet.

Earth, surfaces and traces shape the poster series and give the visual identity an immediate material presence. The design remains deliberately restrained, allowing space for images, content and different voices. GROUND thus becomes more than a title: it becomes a shared plane on which material, architecture and discourse can meet.

Saturday, 24 October 2026
Vernissage GROUND – Community, Craft, Change
Roger Boltshauser & Andrea Gassner

Monday, 26 October 2026
Exhibition Talk with Roger Boltshauser:
Jo Nagasaka & Andrea Gassner
COMMUNITY – Architecture is about people

Tuesday, 27 October 2026
Exhibition Talk with Roger Boltshauser:
Tomoaki Uno 
CRAFT – Architecture is about Material and Knowledge

Wednesday, 28 October 2026
Exhibition Talk with Roger Boltshauser:
Junya Ishigami
CHANGE – Architecture is about the Space Between

Friday, 30 October 2026
Exhibition Talk with Roger Boltshauser:
Mio Tsuneyama & Fuminori Nousaku

The Kesselhaus once served as the energy centre of the Cham paper mill. Boilers and turbines powered production, while its distinctive chimneys made its function visible far beyond the site. Today, the former Papieri is being transformed into a new mixed-use residential and working district. At its centre, the listed Kesselhaus takes on a new role: with a restaurant, office spaces and fitness facilities, it becomes a public meeting place within the emerging neighbourhood.

The signage evolves from the building’s industrial DNA. Construction, rhythm, materiality and the recurring presence of cylindrical elements — from the former paper rolls to the chimneys — are translated into a new visual system. Circular rods made of steel and light form letters, numbers and symbols. Rather than merely referencing the architecture, the design continues its language with consistency.

On the exterior, the lettering is integrated directly into the corrugated structure of the metal façade. LED rods follow its rhythm and form the name of the building. During the day, the lettering becomes part of the façade; after dark, the Kesselhaus turns into a highly visible beacon — almost like a lighthouse for the new neighbourhood.

The same principle continues inside. Signs constructed from circular rods respond to the exposed concrete, steel and raw material character of the existing building. In this way, the signage becomes a natural part of the Kesselhaus — precisely integrated, clear in its function and closely connected to the character of the architecture.

The Provostry of St. Gerold lies on a small plateau on the southern slope of the Walsertal and is rooted in the Benedictine heritage. Over the past 1,000 years, the original hermitage has grown into a multifaceted architectural ensemble. In recent decades it has been expanded and revitalized with high quality standards and careful guidance by HK-Architekten. The now complex structure and the sometimes high number of visitors require a wayfinding system for basic orientation.Atelier Andrea Gassner created a rather restrained signage concept, fully aware that the key lies not in visual loudness but in appropriateness, recognizability, and logical placement within the cartography of paths and decision points. A core element of orientation is the archway that marks the main entrance in a welcoming way, along with a stele placed in the center of the courtyard directing visitors to various locations and offerings.The cross – as the central symbol of Christianity – forms the constructive base module for steles, posts, and wall elements. The legendary Provostry emblem – a delicate, linear abstraction of a mythical creature – served as the basis for the graphic design of the pictograms. These fulfill the important task of providing memorable, language-neutral communication.The designations are typeset in a contemporary serif typeface. The materials and color palette integrate with the architectural culture of the provostry: aluminum blocks, steel constructions, and anthracite and silver-colored surfaces. Beyond all pragmatic functions, the aim of this signage intervention is to inform quietly and helpfully while fostering identification with this special place.

The new Eugen Bolz Student Residence by Cukrowicz Nachbaur Architekten, set within the inner-city park landscape of Weingarten, creates generous visual connections to the surrounding greenery. The interplay of red tones on the façade echoes the chromatic variation of the different shades of green in the tree canopy.

The three dominant tree species in the park—oak, pine, and plane tree—were translated by Atelier Andrea Gassner into a new graphic sign system for the building’s wayfinding concept. They serve as both a conceptual and visual basis for dividing the building into its three wings. Bold, graphic icons derived from these forms are used as wayfinding elements and also function as an ornamental carpet design. Along the building’s 90-metre length, the custom-developed carpet pattern transforms in response to each section of the building, offering subtle orientation for the entrances to more than 180 rooms. This intuitive wayfinding system is contrasted with striking elements: both outdoors and in the foyer, colorful posters provide orientation and act as informative accents on site.

On the exterior, directly above the elevated, semi-open ground floor, a typographic “façade band” communicates the name of the residence and is interwoven with quotations from its namesake, Eugen Bolz.

In close collaboration with pedevilla architects, Atelier Andrea Gassner developed a wayfinding system that renders the semantics and playfulness of the ornament visually tangible. The “cross motif” serves as a design ornament within the architecture and is derived from the region’s historical and traditional craftsmanship. The typographic system was further “stitched” using cross-stitch patterns. The signage oscillates between two- and three-dimensionality. The rough, porous plaster with its warm color tonality is contrasted in the interior spaces by the materialization of the custom-produced letters, numerals, and icons, while simultaneously being accentuated through pearl copper as the primary color. Through lighting and three-dimensional execution, enchanting patterns emerge in the interplay of light and shadow. The large-scale building signage is precisely milled into the wooden slats of the façade cladding. The ornament, as a system of signage, never appears as superfluous decoration but rather as an effective interweaving of narrative and architecture. The theme of the cross and cross-stitch is consistently continued at the entrances and façades.

After Osaka, the verywood installation is traveling to Tokyo. On September 9, the vernissage will take place at SHIBAURA HOUSE in Tokyo – an architectural icon by Kazuyo Sejima + Ryue Nishizawa / SANAA. It is a great honor to exhibit with verywood – Austrian Architecture Today in this unique, light-filled space. The exhibition runs until September 23, 2025.

Art objects created by Andrea Gassner

How is that even supposed to work? Presenting the astonishing renaissance of Austrian timber construction in Japan? It’s slowly making its way into international awareness: the so-called “forest-building pump” could become one of the vital lifelines in the urgent search for solutions to halt the catastrophic effects of climate change.

Andrea Gassner’s artistic intervention is tailor-made for this complex subject – and perfectly suited for presentation to the target audience of one of Japan’s most prestigious contemporary art venues. She created expansive folding objects made from slender three-layer boards, each in one of three different stages of unfolding. These nearly “floating figures” evoke the unique aesthetics and vibrancy of wood, its lightness, and the precision of assembling planar high-tech materials. It’s no coincidence that Andrea Gassner draws upon the well-known Japanese art of origami. After all, paper is ultimately derived from wood. With this formal reference, the designer establishes a dialogue between Japanese and Austrian art and culture.

The commission for this special exhibition on the occasion of EXPO 2025 was to draw attention to the remarkable development of timber architecture in Austria, presented within the popular cultural setting of the Nakanoshima Museum of Art in Osaka. We call the installation "verywood – Austrian Architecture Today."

The basic idea is to merge traditional Japanese paper folding art with the tectonics of contemporary timber architecture using new, planar wood-based materials—and to scale this fusion into a spatial experience. The wooden sculptures unfold in three sequences, alluding to the liveliness of the material. The magic of the breathing form thus merges with the beauty and flexibility of modern wood materials—their aesthetics, lightness, malleability, and structural strength. It is a coherent expression of the message suited to this occasion and space.

In addition to this key visual, interested viewers will find a selection of 26 current examples of modern timber architecture and statements from the architects, curated by Verena Konrad and Hermann Kaufmann, presented on three monitors and the exhibition website.

Wood is in motion. New wood-based materials are continually being researched and developed. Now is the time to reconnect with this globally renowned tradition of building with wood and to lead the constructive design, planning, and building with wood into the future. The goal was to avoid conventional industry marketing and instead give this new cultural building movement with wood the recognition and dignity it deserves.

Art objects created by Andrea Gassner

How is that even supposed to work? Presenting the astonishing renaissance of Austrian timber construction in Japan? And doing so in one of Osaka’s most renowned art temples, while simultaneously promoting cross-cultural knowledge exchange in this field? It’s slowly making its way into international awareness: the so-called “forest-building pump” could become one of the vital lifelines in the urgent search for solutions to halt the catastrophic effects of climate change.

Andrea Gassner’s artistic intervention is tailor-made for this complex subject – and perfectly suited for presentation to the target audience of one of Japan’s most prestigious contemporary art venues. She created expansive folding objects made from slender three-layer boards, each in one of three different stages of unfolding. These nearly “floating figures” evoke the unique aesthetics and vibrancy of wood, its lightness, and the precision of assembling planar high-tech materials. It’s no coincidence that Andrea Gassner draws upon the well-known Japanese art of origami. After all, paper is ultimately derived from wood. With this formal reference, the designer establishes a dialogue between Japanese and Austrian art and culture.

The objects are accompanied by floor-standing monitors displaying video loops with relevant architectural references and statements from leading figures in contemporary timber construction in Austria. Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen and his delegation visited the special exhibition at the Nakanoshima Museum of Art in Osaka at the end of May 2025. The exhibition is titled verywood – Austrian Architecture Today.