encounters

encounters

guides places and institutions through change.

We bring the right people together, create a shared picture and sharpen what a place stands for.

Stance
An independent perspective. encounters complements the specialists at the table, whether planning office, curators or site management, and does not replace them.
Origin
The origin is a master's thesis at ETH Zurich. It has become a way of working that develops further with every commission and in research.
Entry
At any time: with the first idea, during a running procedure or competition, during construction and realisation or in operation.

What encounters achieves

  • W1

    Reduce complexity

    A project becomes graspable.

  • W2

    Create a shared picture

    Everyone is talking about the same thing.

  • W3

    Sharpen identity

    What a place stands for.

  • W4

    Make decisions possible

    The picture turns into a next step.

Room of Encounters

The Room of Encounters is the hallmark of encounters: a room in which a project is shown and negotiated. It makes the project tangible for the public and helps the planners find each other.

This is where the three pillars interlock. What pillar 2 makes visible flows back into pillar 1. Pillar 3 turns every pass into a building block.

Three pillars

  1. Pillar 1 Bringing together and leading

    Mediation and orchestration. Process architecture, a curated team, leadership across the project.

    • 1.1Analysis

      Reading the starting position and anticipating what is coming: perception, expectations and open points, the procedures running in parallel and what is feasible.

    • 1.2Process

      Sequence, roles, decision points and participation as one considered process.

    • 1.3Leadership

      encounters assembles a team of specialists for the project and leads it.

    • 1.4Review

      The situation report is repeated at milestones. The results flow back into the procedure.

  2. Pillar 2 Making it tangible

    Public communication through space, encounter and all channels. It also helps the planners find each other.

    • 2.1Encounter

      Designs how the parties involved meet: space, time, material and atmosphere.

    • 2.2Space

      A project is given a place: a planning room with model, plans and film, an exhibition, mediation on the construction site.

    • 2.3Media

      One picture of the project across film, web and print.

    • 2.4Identity

      What a place stands for, in mission statement, name and narrative. Not branding.

  3. Pillar 3 Research

    Work on method and on finding solutions. Every project yields a new building block for future mandates.

    • 3.1Research

      Research on a specific question or within our own framing.

    • 3.2Method

      Every project yields a new building block for future mandates.

    • 3.3Teaching and outreach

      Teaching, lectures and publications.

Solutions

Six situations that clients recognise. Each one leads to the services that resolve it.

For whom

  • Public sector and building owners

    A revision, a site or a construction project affects many. encounters designs the process, leads the team and makes the project tangible for the public.

  • Museums and institutions

    A house plans an exhibition or is changing. encounters designs scenography, media and formats that bring audience and staff along.

  • Companies and their place

    A company, a site or a region wants to show what it stands for. encounters sharpens the identity of the place in mission statement, space and narrative.

  1. L1: A project is complex, and nobody has the overview.

    • 1.1Analysis
    • 1.3Leadership
    • 2.1Encounter

  2. L2: A procedure is under way, but the parties involved are not coming together.

    • 1.2Process
    • 1.3Leadership
    • 2.1Encounter

  3. L3: The plans are finished, and the public does not understand them.

    • 2.2Space
    • 2.3Media
    • 1.4Review

  4. L4: An institution has something to show, and the design for it is still missing.

    • 2.2Space
    • 2.3Media
    • 2.4Identity

  5. L5: A place has lost its identity or has not found it yet.

    • 1.1Analysis
    • 2.4Identity
    • 3.1Research

  6. L6: A question is new, and there is no method for it yet.

    • 3.1Research
    • 3.2Method
    • 1.1Analysis

References

1 of 5
  • Exhibition room in Rapperswil Castle with paintings on pink walls, a blue panel in a gold frame and a flock of red and white paper birds below the wooden ceiling.

    Rapperswil Castle

    Digital media and visual identity of the new permanent exhibition. Rapperswil, 2023 to 2025

    • 2Making it tangible
  • Exhibition room with an architectural model under glass on a green plinth, behind it a projection showing the word Technorama.

    Technorama 2050

    A picture of the future for the Swiss Science Center. Winterthur, 2023 to 2024

    • 2Making it tangible
    • 3Research
  • Exhibition with screens on slanted wooden desks, black stools and text panels in front of a glass facade.

    Design For Climate

    Animations and booklet for the course Design for Climate at ETH Zurich. Frankfurt, 2025

    • 3Research
  • Glass greenhouse at dusk with a pale vaulted shell structure inside.

    Echo Chamber

    1:1 test of a shell structure at Design March. Reykjavík, 2024

    • 2Making it tangible
    • 3Research

    Photo: Owen Fiene

  • Workshop hall with around thirty people standing and sitting in a circle around a round disc on the floor that is lit from above. A person is speaking on the left, two screens stand in the room, an orange brown curtain hangs behind.

    Room of Negotiation

    Mediation between stakeholders in public space. Zurich Altstetten, 2022

    • 3Research

Clients

ETH ZürichOrtsgemeinde Rapperswil-JonaTechnorama

Getting started

The first step is a situation report (Lagebild): small enough for a direct award, tailored to the starting position. A first conversation clarifies whether encounters fits the project.

Contact person

David Menzi

Director, Architect MSc ETH

Phone
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David Menzi