I have always been inspired by the playfulness of the Vienna community. It is amazing because it’s so atypical of any kind of post-war modular housing. It incorporates green roofs and trees living within the units—way before there was any real sustainability focus. Its style is more akin to Antonio Gaudi’s organic flow of materials than gray concrete block housing that typifies European housing. Part of its playfulness is evident in the floors, which undulate up and down almost like a tree house or kids’ playhouse. The use of color has also inspired me because, too often, architects and designers exist in the realm of bland, which Hundertwasser-Krawinahaus will never be accused of.
—Andrew Bennett, principal, BOKA Powell, Dallas