LVR-Landeshaus

LVR-Landeshaus stands in Cologne between Mindener Straße and the Kennedy-Ufer, surrounded by green space near the Rhine. The five-storey modernist building gathers four wings around a central courtyard. Glass and aluminium façades, blue-green parapet panels, and clear structural lines reflect Bauhaus principles and Mies van der Rohe’s influence. Reinforced concrete supports the building, while the ground floor rests on a seven-metre column grid. From east to west, the open ground level frames a view towards the Rhine.

Eckhard Schulze-Fielitz, Ernst von Rudloff, and Ulrich Schmidt von Altenstadt designed the building for the Landschaftsverband Rheinland’s central administration. The offices include finance, building management, environmental affairs, and social services. Political groups meet here, and the Landschaftsversammlung holds its sessions within the building. A disputed move from Düsseldorf brought the regional association to Cologne, where the city provided land beside the river. The former House of Rhenish History had stood on this site before its destruction during the Second World War.

Large glazed corridors flank the courtyard on the northern and southern sides. Mies van der Rohe chairs originally furnished those spaces, adding a precise interior detail to the open post-war design. The building became a listed monument and later underwent a careful renovation that preserved its heritage features. Exhibitions and architectural events have also used the halls, including the Mies van der Rohe Award presentation.