Dietrich | Untertrifaller Architects, founded in 1994, is one of the iconic agencies of the renowned School of Vorarlberg. As Dominique Gauzin-Müller points out in her book Ecological Architecture of Vorarlberg, »Vorarlberg is currently the most convincing example of putting into practice an eco-responsible development on a European level. Hostile to the cult of image, it advocates pragmatism: think practically, act economically, and move step by step from small to large scale. Concerned about saving material and energy, the approach is a synthesis between what is aesthetically desirable, constructively reasonable and socially justifiable.«
In 1992 Helmut Dietrich and Much Untertrifaller, the two founding partners of the agency, won the international competition for the conversion and extension of the Festspielhaus in Bregenz, which was delivered in 2006. This first major project was followed by equally important ones, such as the Hall F of the Wiener Stadthalle in 2006 and the ETH sports campus in Zurich in 2009.
Laureate of numerous competitions during the last twenty years, the agency can now avail of references of a wide variety: local museums and important cultural facilities, office buildings and university sports complexes, individual houses and high-volume residential projects, interior design and revitalizations of historic buildings. Whatever the scale of the program, the architects attach great importance to the quality of the design and the implementation of the details. Their expertise in timber design and construction is maintained through relationships of dialogue and trust with clients, craftsmen and engineers and the knowledge is transferred thorugh teaching seminars and public lectures.
Today, the agency employs an international team of 100 architects working in Austria (Bregenz and Vienna), Switzerland (St Gallen), France (Paris) and Germany (Munich). The office is lead by Helmut Dietrich, Much Untertrifaller, Dominik Philipp and Patrick Stremler.Dietrich | Untertrifaller Architects develop their projects with the support of local agencies and regional partners and aim to further expand its international presence.