79the outer cover is the essential element of architecture. In
fact, it is primarily the > surface of the walls that we perceive
in a work of architecture. The > wall (Wand in German, a
word that is related etymologically to the word Gewand, or
garment, a relationship suggestive of the wall’s covering func-
tion), can be regarded as a planar element, which, filled (in)
or suspended like a curtain, and freed of any load-bearing
function, serves a primarily refining and communicative func-
tion alongside a delimiting one. A solid masonry wall is also
endowed with the character of a cladding element when it is
given a covering, if only a simple layer of paint.
For appeals and the creation of mood, the effect of sur-
faces is decisive. In close proximity, the linings of rooms and
the coverings of > facades also offer the sense of touch the
option of discovering and exploring details, just as the eye is
offered visual stimuli in an overview from a greater distance.
Through their > materiality, colour and > ornamentation, al-
ways beginning from the surface, diverse approaches to cover-
ing create > atmospheric and scenographic effects – from pur-
ist elegance and primness all the way to sumptuous opulence.
Our bodies are protected by our skins, while additional
protection is provided by clothing. The architectural shell is a
third skin of sorts. The sheltering of the body through archi-
tectural containment is further intensified as a form of design
expression when the building is clad with additional layers.
Just as we underscore the significance of the protection that
clothing offers our bodies by covering them in multiple lay-
ers as desired, we express our ideas about screened-off living
spaces especially clearly when we surround ourselves with an
architectural covering consisting of multiple layers (> incor-
poration).
The structure, which makes its appearance through the
form covering becomes remarkable either through the quality
of the covering, i.e. by being encased in a precious, shimmer-
ing garment, from which the body itself emerges mysteriously
only at a few places. Or there is a tension between the form