PAUSE.
Nele Oetjens, 2026
Diploma Universität der Künste Berlin
- realized with SHRINX 4903
PAUSE. is a micro-architectural outdoor lounger that creates spaces for mental recovery in urban environments. By encouraging a horizontal body position, it enables a shift in perspective, fostering distance from the surrounding city and promoting moments of pause. At the same time, the structure provides shade, responding to increasing urban heat. Developed in three variations, it offers different degrees of height, accessibility, and perception, a “third place” for everyday relief.
The starting point of this project is the increasing sensory overload and acceleration of everyday urban life. Cities are places of encounter, movement, and diversity, yet they are also environments of constant visual, acoustic, and social stimulation. The design responds to this tension by creating a retreat within public space that both attracts attention and allows for moments of calm. The initial encounter is intended to evoke curiosity and fascination, while also creating a sense of longing, for openness, for retreat, for a pause within the urban flow. The project establishes a spatial condition that encourages deceleration and enables a brief moment of withdrawal from everyday routines.
It combines principles of biophilic design with approaches from restorative urbanism and addresses the climatic challenges of contemporary cities. The aim is to integrate qualities that support stress reduction and mental regeneration, achieved through the reduction of sensory input, directed views, and the deliberate use of materiality and body posture. These ideas are translated into a minimal steel tube structure with a tensioned textile surface designed for lying. The horizontal position allows physical relaxation and creates a conscious shift in perspective. The gaze turns toward the sky, the perception of the surroundings changes, and a sense of distance from the urban environment emerges. At the same time, the structure functions as a shading element, responding to rising temperatures and improving comfort in public space. The object can be placed in highly frequented urban areas as a deliberate contrast, as well as in more regenerative contexts such as parks or waterfronts. It is conceived as a micro-architectural intervention, a “third place” within everyday life that enables moments of pause and mental relief.
The outdoor lounger is developed in three variations, forming a design family that offers different degrees of height, perspective, and accessibility.
Version 1 combines qualities of a lounger and an elevated seat, using an inclined surface to direct the gaze upward.
Version 2 reaches a greater height, creating a change in perception through an elevated viewpoint.
Version 3 more accessible version provides a nearly horizontal surface without the need to climb, focusing on immediate comfort and ease of use.
All versions are designed as durable outdoor structures. The frame consists of 1.5-inch stainless steel tubing, ensuring longevity and weather resistance.
The lying surfaces are made of SHRINX tensioned textile membranes by Krall+Roth, fixed through integrated pockets and lateral tensioning systems.
The SHRINX fabric can be additionally tightened using thermal shrinking technology and is designed to be replaceable, supporting long-term use and maintenance.
