Since 2009, the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar has had its own stand at the Leipzig Book Fair. For this year’s fair, which took place between 19 and 22 March 2026, the stand was designed and built as part of an interdisciplinary Bauhaus.Modul project led by Prof. Dr. Michael Herrmann and Torsten Müller from the Chair of Constructive Design and Structural Design.

During the 2025/26 winter semester, a group of international students experimented with space, structure, materials, light and presentation. The aim was to find ideas that could be implemented in a resource-efficient manner and be more than just an exhibition space – they should be legible, expressive and experiential. To this end, the participants were trained in preliminary craft workshops: together, the students tested material-efficient, lightweight structures in the form of truss, folding and membrane systems. Lighting artist Cornelia Erdmann provided support in the design of the exhibition stand. As part of an excursion to the Grassimesse in Leipzig, they also gained an insight into various forms of presentation. In mid-January, the student teams pitched their ideas; the design by Petter Bolstad, Nina Siegle and Ngoc Truc Phuong Nguyen proved most convincing.

Zero-waste principle: A trade fair stand made of birch plywood

Using an innovative design approach, the university demonstrates how material efficiency and design excellence can be combined: plywood panels are cut using precise waterjet technology to create interlocking frames, thereby reducing waste to a minimum. When joined together, these elements form a curved spatial structure with optimised load-bearing capacity. At the exhibition stand, the frames come together to form a striking arched wall and an apparently floating, trapezoidal roof. A distinctive feature of the structure is that it can be completely dismantled – all components can be reused multiple times, thereby making a concrete contribution to resource-efficient construction.

typotopie – Type. Structure. Scenography. at the Leipzig Book Fair
Project leaders: Prof. Dr. Michael Herrmann (Faculty of Architecture and Urban Planning & Civil and Environmental Engineering) and Torsten Müller (Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering)
Contributors: Petter Bolstad, Federico Busco, Pilar Fernández Pascual, Tabea Martha Frisch, Joao Gomes Baptista, Eva Hecht, Martha Jansen, Felizitas Khuen-Belasi, Edna Agatha Klenk, Vincent Martin, Magdalena Meusert, Lisa Nghiem, Ngoc Truc Phuong Nguyen, Nina Siegle, Marko Tonins

The event was open to all Bachelor’s and Master’s students from the Faculties of Architecture and Urban Planning, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Art and Design, and Media as part of the ‘Bauhaus.Module’ programme.

Further information can be found here: https://www.uni-weimar.de/de/universitaet/aktuell/veranstaltungskalender/highlights-des-jahres/2026/buchmesse-2026/
Recap: Vier Tage Leipziger Buchmesse (Instagram Reel)