Dörte Gatermann (born 1956,

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

) is a German

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

who is best known for designing the

Triangle Tower Tour Triangle, also known as ''Projet Triangle'', or simply ''Triangle'', is a skyscraper under construction at Parc des Expositions de la Porte de Versailles in Paris, France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located ...

Cologne Cologne ( ; ; ) is the largest city of the States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city pr ...

Early life

Dörte Gatermann's was born in 1956 in

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

."About the Founder"
, Gatermann Schossig, Retrieved 27 October 2014. Gatermann's mother died when she was a little girl, and she was raised by her architect father. She went on to study at the

Braunschweig University of Technology TU Braunschweig (, unofficially ''University of Braunschweig – Institute of Technology'') is the oldest ' (comparable to an institute of technology in the American system) in Germany. It was founded in 1745 as Collegium Carolinum and is a membe ...

and at

RWTH Aachen RWTH Aachen University (), in German ''Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule Aachen'', is a German public research university located in Aachen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With more than 47,000 students enrolled in 144 study prog ...

where she studied under Pritzker prize-winning architect

Gottfried Böhm Gottfried Böhm (; 23 January 1920 – 9 June 2021) was a German architect and sculptor. His reputation is based on creating highly sculptural buildings made of concrete, steel, and glass. Böhm's first independent building was the Cologne ...

. After working successfully as leader for Böhm's Züblin House project in

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; ; Swabian German, Swabian: ; Alemannic German, Alemannic: ; Italian language, Italian: ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, largest city of the States of Germany, German state of ...

while still a student, she spent the next five years working for him as project leader after her graduation.Karin Bäck, "Interview mit Professor Dörte Gatermann: Architektin ohne Höhenangst"
''koeln-bonn.business-on.de''. Retrieved 7 February 2012.

Career

In 1984, together with her partner Elmar Schossig, whom she later married, Gatermann opened her own architecture firm in Cologne, ''Gatermann + Schossig''. After a few rather modest assignments, larger commissions materialized making the company one of the most innovative and successful architectural firms in Germany. By 2009, when Schossig died, they had implemented some 50 projects. In 2002, after being offered various professorships, Gatermann finally took the chair at the

Technische Universität Darmstadt The Technische Universität Darmstadt (official English name Technical University of Darmstadt, sometimes also referred to as Darmstadt University of Technology), commonly known as TU Darmstadt, is a research university in the city of Darmsta ...

where she taught until 2007, ultimately deciding to concentrate on her business in Cologne. One of her most memorable achievements in Darmstadt was arranging the so-called "Hall of Fame" museum for women, including the travelling exhibition she designed for the photographer

Bettina Flitner Bettina, also spelled Betina, is a female name predominantly found in the Italian and German languages. This name has various interpreted meanings and origins. In Italian, Bettina originated as a diminutive of the names Elisabetta and Benedetta. ...

. Gatermann's masterpiece is the Triangle Tower, with a height of approximately 103 meters."About the building"
, Köln Triangle, Retrieved 27 October 2014. Awarded the commission when she was only 47 years old, she now states with an air of self-satisfaction: "I have shown that not only men can build skyscrapers but that I can too." In 2006, the Gatermann + Schossig architectural firm was awarded the Pilkington glass company "Synthesis - Architect and Industry" prize for innovation in architecture as a result of their innovative use of glass in the Triangle building. Other projects Gatermann has been involved with include the Bayenturm, a 13th-century tower in the centre of Cologne which she repaired, renovated and extended in the 1990s, her own home completed in 2000 (one of the very few buildings on which she cooperated closely with her husband) and the recently opened exhibition space she designed for the Roman Museum in the Archaeological Park at

Xanten Xanten (, Low Rhenish: ''Santen'') is a town in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in the district of Wesel. Xanten is known for the Archaeological Park, one of the largest archaeological open air museums in the ...

.Alice Schwarzer, "Dörte Gatermann: Start gen Himmel"
''EMMA'', Januar/Februar 2004. Retrieved 7 February 2012.

Notable Projects

* Haus Neufert Cologne * KölnTriangle * LVR-Archaeological Park Xanten * State Office of Criminal Investigation of North-Rhine Westfalia * Capricornhaus Düsseldorf * North-Rhine Westfalia Ministry of school and education * Bayenturm * Kontor 19

Rheinauhafen The Rheinauhafen (lit. ''Rheinau harbour'') is a urban regeneration project in Cologne, Germany, located along the river Rhine between the Südbrücke (Southern Railway Bridge) and Severinsbrücke (Severin Bridge), just south of the inner city's ...

Cologne * Harbour office at

Cologne * Bureau office Baufeld 10 * municipal utilities Bochum * Postbank office Cologne *

Rimowa Rimowa GmbH (), often stylized as RIMOWA, is a luxury luggage manufacturer. The company was founded in 1898, in Cologne, Germany. Rimowa suitcases are widely known for their parallel aluminium grooves, which have become characteristic of the bra ...

factory * Haus P * Haus G+S * Micropolis Dresden * pump station Niehl

Sources

* Flitner, Bettina: ''Frauen mit Visionen – 48 Europäerinnen (Women with visions – 48 Europeans)''. With texts by

Alice Schwarzer Alice Sophie Schwarzer (born 3 December 1942) is a German journalist and prominent feminist. She is founder and publisher of the German feminist journal '' EMMA''. Beginning in France, she became a forerunner of feminist positions against anti-ab ...

. Munich: Knesebeck, 2004. , 84–87 p.

References

External links

Gatermann + Schossig website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gatermann, Doerte 1956 births 20th-century German architects German women architects Architects from Hamburg Living people Academic staff of Technische Universität Darmstadt 20th-century German women