Building substantially - a conversation with Florian Nagler
The Tannerhof in Bayrischzell continues to grow - and yet remains true to itself. After more than ten years since the last major renovation, a new house has been created that is both minimalist and multi-layered. In conversation with owner Burgi von Mengershausen and architect Florian Nagler, it becomes clear that this is not about spectacular gestures, but about the essentials.
A long shared history and values in cooperation
How does it feel for you to complete a new project at the Tannerhof - especially in light of your long history together?
Burgi: It's very touching. We've known each other since 2007 and realized our first big project in 2011. After such a long time, we were told to continue with the bathhouse - which was actually intended as the second stage of the major renovation project. In the end, it turned into something completely different, but something beautiful and very moving. I'm really happy about that.
Florian, you are the architect of the entire project. How does it feel for you?
Florian: The Tannerhof is a special project because - as Burgi just said - we've been working on it for a long time. Last time, if my calculations are correct, it took us four years from getting to know each other to realization. This time, too, we took our time and weighed up many different options. I'm very happy that we ended up with exactly the solution that we have now implemented. Because this house simply fits in wonderfully with the Tannerhof.
On the subject of origins and visions: What was the attraction for you back then to start the Tannerhof project - in other words, working together in this special place?
Burgi : The great clients, of course, right? (laughs)
Florian: Yes, of course. Building is a matter of trust. When you tackle a project together, the chemistry between those involved has to be right. You need to feel that you have common interests and are working towards the same goal - I got that feeling pretty quickly. Then it becomes a great task, especially in such a special landscape. The existing building was challenging: a building with a hundred years of history that has been continuously built and developed over the decades. At times, even after many visits, it was still quite confusing for me - but that's exactly what made it exciting. The key question for me was: How do we build in the countryside today? How do we create something that fits into a rural environment without denying that it was created in the here and now? This topic was very easy to implement with the clients because they had similar ideas. We wanted something that suited the location and the Tannerhof - and at the same time was open to being unusual and modern.
The existing building was challenging: a building with a hundred years of history that has been continuously built and developed over the decades.
What would you say: What common values unite you? Where do you meet - where do you feel understood and seen by each other, as clients and as architects?
Burgi : The freedom from convention and the ability to think unconventionally. That connects us a lot. Developing something new, like the idea back then of building towers instead of a few huts. That was exciting: going up without sealing off additional space. Then there's the love of wood as an incredible building material, the love of simplicity and the principle of 'less is more'. We share all of that.
It is just as important for us to develop things further together. We didn't learn the hotel trade, we're actually doctors. And it was also exciting for you, Florian, because you said: 'I've never done a hotel before So we both embarked on something new where we could learn together. And, last but not least, we also share a sense of humor.
Florian: You have to be able to laugh at yourself. That's really important. Together - that sums it up very well. We also like to accept what the other person brings to a project. Of course, we try to engage with the clients in all our projects. But the Tannerhof is special: afterwards you say that it would never have turned out like this without the clients. As an architect, you can't 'give birth' to a project like this on your own, it comes about through dialog. And sometimes you have to say: 'I wouldn't actually do it this way, but if you're sure it's right, then we'll do it this way' And then we get the best out of it together. It was always like that on both sides and maybe that's why it turned out the best.
From the grand plan to the essence - the art of omission and what is a Harpfe?
Burgi, when was the moment for you, after the collaboration and the first renovation, which was completed in 2011, when you felt it was time for something new again, now we can add something?
Burgi: That was around 2018. We completed the first renovation in 2011, and at that time we had already planned to renovate and embellish the bathhouse - the building with the treatment rooms and the doctor's surgery - in a second step. That was the original idea, and I said: now would be the time to take this second step. But then one thing led to another. Even then, we considered whether an outdoor pool wouldn't be nice.
So we started planning again, and over the years we added more and more. In the meantime, we even thought about changing something in the east wing of the Neue Tann and considered whether we still needed the indoor swimming pool at all. A dining room could have been created there, while we could have built a new outdoor pool and a larger wellness building outside on the lawn.
Everything was already planned until a pandemic slowed us down. This was followed by further crises, material shortages and huge cost increases. At some point, we were faced with an overall concept that was no longer financially viable. So we pulled the ripcord.
In the end, this is the essence of all these major plans, which we have now implemented. And I'm very happy about it because it feels good and is simply Tannerhöfer-esque. You sometimes need time to assess such projects: Does this still suit us at all? In this case, we now know for sure: the way it's built now is perfect.
You sometimes need time to check such projects: Does this still suit us at all?
Florian, how is it for you? Looking back, how do you feel about this essence and the long road to get here - after all the great planning that ultimately led to this result?
Florian: The essence is good, and I'm really glad that a lot of the things we had planned in between didn't end up being realized. It was a bit like canning - smaller and smaller, more and more appropriate. Sometimes it's also an advantage if you don't have enough money: then you think twice about what you really need and only build what is important and essential. This is an issue that has been with us at Tannerhof for a long time. On the door to the farm store is the phrase: 'Man, become essential I've always kept this thought in mind with our projects here: Do we really need this? Is it something essential - or is it something you can basically do without?
How did it come about that you took the Harpfe as a starting point? Perhaps you could also explain once again what the Harpfe is - figuratively speaking.
Florian: As I understand it, the Harpfe comes from agriculture: a wooden frame used for drying hay or storing other things - an open structure with a protective roof over it. I think Roger gave us the idea. He had always wanted a Harpfe and I thought it was a very nice theme too. Our previous projects weren't suitable for this - they were too big, took up too much space and required too many enclosed rooms.
With the Harpfe, we actually started in a very reduced way: with just the roof. Elements were then gradually added, such as the beautiful relaxation room or the sauna on the other side. Nevertheless, the whole thing has retained the character of an open frame with a protective roof - a strong element in the landscape. This was immediately understood, even by the local council, when we presented the project: 'Ah yes, it's like an agricultural building that stands beautifully on the slope - parallel to the contour lines, so that the impact on the topography remains minimal' And that's exactly what makes the Harpfe so special.
Burgi: That was very well explained. We have a long association with the Harpfe. We discovered the first ones in Carinthia and East Tyrol. Archaic buildings that stand there so naturally and don't overwhelm or obscure nature, but on the contrary, enhance it. This is exactly what has been achieved here: architecture that intensifies the experience of nature and creates new images.
I find this very artistic, and I am incredibly pleased with the atmospheres we have created - be it upstairs in the relaxation room with the view out, over in front of the sauna with the entire length of the Harpfe and its beams, or down by the pool when you look out. It's a much more intense way of being in nature, and I think it's incredible when you can achieve something like that with a building.
Was there a role model? Apart from the archaic Harpfe - have you ever realized something similar or do you know someone who has? Or is it actually an original idea, a building that you developed yourself?
Florian: We have already realized several long, narrow wooden buildings - they simply fit in wonderfully with timber construction. What I particularly like about the Harpfen is that they are always a strong landscape element. That was also important to us for this house.
In the Harpfe, we wanted to accommodate everything that was missing or in need of improvement at the Tannerhof - such as the fitness room. I don't know how many different places it was already included in the plans. In any case, it was clear that it needed to be improved. Then there was the desire for a nice relaxation room and an extension to the sauna - things that are really needed here.
At the same time, I think it's nice that the house is spacious and doesn't look overloaded. There is a two-storey air space in the middle, and the area below is free - you can sit in the shade there. During the topping-out ceremony, we realized that this space is also suitable for other things, such as a party. Basically, we have built a stable framework that we have already partially extended, but which can still be extended further.
Looking to the future and what feelings does the Harpfe generate?
Burgi, is the Tannerhof project now complete for you? Or do you already have ideas about what you might want to implement in the future - be it in ten years' time or maybe even next year?
Burgi: The Tannerhof is never really finished. It is always a process and also a multi-generational task. We are now the fourth generation here and it will continue. When we had reduced the planning to the essentials, it was our son Jonas who said: 'You absolutely have to add fitness rooms. If you don't do that, you're really stupid And he was right. We simply need something like that.
So there will always be new tasks for the next generation working here: Cabins need to be renovated, rooms need to be refurbished. And who knows what else we will come up with. In addition to the architecture, the topic of energy is of course a very important one in order to position the Tannerhof for the future.
Florian, do you have any other ideas for the Tannerhof that you would like to implement in the future?
Florian: Well, yes, I think there's a really nice spot above the Tannerhof - I haven't been there that often - a small pool with an area to lie down in front of it, the platform. I think that would be another place with potential because it's just incredibly beautiful.
But apart from that, I'm looking forward to seeing what the client comes up with. I really admire that, because it's an exhausting business - beyond the fact that you, Burgi, live there. Keeping a business running with constantly growing demands and the expectations of guests without being able to lean back for even a second is something you first have to manage. I find it remarkable that this has worked for so many generations.
This makes it all the more important to be calm and clear: What is the Tannerhof, what makes it special? To continue to develop it carefully, but at the same time to remain open to new ideas, even if others may develop it differently in the future. I find that really impressive.
I hope that our guests will be as touched as I was.
Now that the project is almost finished and the first guests are using it, whether they're doing lengths in the pool, looking out of the sauna or reading in the relaxation room under the beautiful lamps, what is your wish? How do you want people to feel, what do you want this place to trigger in them?
Florian: I don't really have any special wishes. You don't necessarily have to want to achieve something special with your houses. People are so different, they perceive spaces very differently. Of course, it would be nice if they feel comfortable and if they experience it as an enrichment of the Tannerhof. Especially guests who have been coming for years or decades should be able to say: 'It's nice that this is still here
Basically, it's something small: a wall, a few rooms behind it, a wooden frame in front and a swimming pool. Nothing huge or spectacular. But it creates and gives rise to an incredible number of different situations. For example, I'm now sitting here in the relaxation room and watching the clouds drift over the mountain - you could sit there for hours. Or you can look over to the towers, across the meadow into the valley. And if you look closely, you can see the pool below.
The atmosphere is completely different in the fitness rooms, which are dug into the mountain. With the raised parapet and the adjoining floor, you can immediately feel that you are in the ground. And yet another situation is the open area under the house, which looks so casual.
Despite all the reduction, the end result is a multi-layered project.
Burgi: I hope that our guests will be as moved as I was. Just sitting here, being there - without consciously realizing what is happening to you. Just looking out and thinking: 'Wow, that's beautiful. It's wonderful that something like this can still exist
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