Within the vast industrial volume of Munich’s Fruchthof, a floating ceiling redefines how space is occupied, signaling shifts in use through density and light rather than walls. The environment remains open and continuous, yet subtly calibrated to guide movement, gathering, and focus.

Designer Werktag transformed the hall into a temporary showroom and event space for eighteen design product partners. The challenge was to reshape the atmosphere of a single uninterrupted interior while accommodating multiple modes of activity—from open circulation to talks, social exchange, and performance.

A cellular ceiling system modulates height and enclosure in response to program. Above exhibition areas, the pattern lifts and opens, creating a lighter condition suited to browsing and movement. Toward the central event zone, cells become denser and drop lower, compressing the space to increase intimacy and attention.

In select areas, the ceiling extends downward to form hanging curtains, carving out smaller zones without severing visual continuity. These soft boundaries allow the hall to shift fluidly between exhibition, gathering, and pause while remaining legible as a single field.

Lighting is embedded directly into the system. Fixtures at each cell joint register changes in activity through color—brighter tones marking moments of heightened energy, calmer hues signaling quieter use. Together, variation, repetition, and light transform the hall into a responsive environment shaped continuously by the events it hosts.