Consult the English-language branch of Wikipedia as to the whats and whereabouts of Krumbach, and you will discover that it is a small Austrian market town nestled in a region of some archaeological interest, that it was beset by plague and cholera in the 16- and 1700s, and that its first fire station was founded in 1884 (disclaimer: citations needed). What you won't learn, though surely it is only now a matter of time, is that the town has been the focus of seven architectural practices who were invited to submit bold new takes on the humble bus stop.
Local association kultur kumbrach invited architects from Belgium, Chile, China, Japan, Norway, Russia and Spain, all of whom responded within four weeks, Der Spiegel reports. The resulting designs, curated by Austrian architect Dietmar Steiner under the banner Bus:Stop vary from practical shelters to avant-garde sculptures. One, a design nearer the useful end of the spectrum from Chilean architect Smiljan Radic, has been built already. His enclosed design is more like a minimalist take on a railway station waiting room, though with a birdhouse on the roof.
It's unclear whether the remaining designs, depicted in both visualizations and 1:7.5 models, will be built. Health and safety advisors may have something to say about the submission from Japan's Sou Fujimoto, which appears to comprise an exposed stairway to nowhere surrounded by a thicket of narrow vertical uprights.
The remaining submissions, from Belgium's dvvt, Russia's Alexander Brodsky, Spain's Ensamble Studio, Norway's Rintala Eggertsson, and China's Wang Shu, can be seen in the gallery.
Sources: kultur krumbach, Der Spiegel
