Sechser: the heterotopic nightclub in vienna

From the scratches of the undergrounds of Palais Palffy, Söhne & Partner architects have created a surreal nightclub inspired by Late Renaissance.

The design concept of the new bar and nightclub is Mannerist. Mannerism, also known as Late Renaissance, has always stood for a time of change in the historical context. And is characterized by adornment, uncommonness, opulence, artificiality, and abstruseness.

To keep up with the current trend of Mannerism, the location has clashing styles as well as opulence, by using fine fabrics and wallpapers from House of Hackney London.

The most challenging aspect was to transform the basement rooms into an extravagant world. In order for the guests to have a dream-like experience, we replaced the characteristic barrel vault with a dynamic. And undulating ceiling construction, transforming the rooms into an unusual, crazy, and surreal world – making the ceiling alive.

Sechser: the heterotopic nightclub in vienna

The non-predictable aspect is the ceiling that enhances the complexity of the whole clubbing environment. The heterotopia is accentuated by the curved shapes, that evoke confusion and drama. With violent colors, patterns, shapes, and reflections,Sechser creates a decadent and provocative world never seen before. This world is born from the interplay of form, function, and materiality.

Heterotopia (from gr. hetero= different and topos= place) is a term defined by Michel Foucault in the early years (1967) of his philosophy. To describe places and their intrinsic systematic meaning made of more layers other than immediately meet the eye. Foucault assumes that there are spaces that are reflecting social relations in a special way, by representing, negating, and inverting them.

Thanks to its dimension and “function” as a bar and club, Sechser is ultimately more than just space. Instead, it harbors a colorful facet of spatial phenomena. Sechser invites the guest to perceive the space in many different ways: physical space as an object, aesthetic and personal space as a piece of art, physiological space as a body experience, psychological space as an experience space, and metaphysical space as heterotopia.