#berlin

In Berlin, Am Zoo, next to Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtniskirche on Breitscheidplatz, stands a 118.8-meter-high tower with 33 floors. Upper West, as it is known, is owned and operated by Signa Holding company. The project was completed between 2021 and 2023 in two construction phases. In 2021, Signa invested in a sports-affiliated start-up, using its 30th floor for its flagship office headquarters. Justin Allen Every part of the project — from the floor plan to the smallest detail — was conceived by the same hand. Allen Kaufmann Architekten designed all 318 custom furniture pieces and objects: desks, meeting tables, plant containers, storage units, and more. This holistic authorship ensures spatial and material coherence, e... More

GRAFTLAB was conceived as a laboratory for modern working environments within the creative industry and fosters new collaborative formats through a focus on flexibility and cooperation. Located in the heart of Berlin, its open, transparent design represents the significance the creative sector plays in the city. In the context of future-oriented work formats - from conventional office presence and digital transformation to remote working and third places – GRAFTLAB provides ample scope for collaboration and coming together. The plot, at the intersection of Invalidenstrasse and Ackerstrasse in the north of Berlin’s Mitte district, was bought by GRAFT’s founding partners in 2013. Patricia Parinejad With its integrated... More

With its aluminium-glass façade, the 89-metre-high Postbank building on Hallesches Ufer is reminiscent of the famous Seagram Building by Mies van der Rohe in New York. However, even the buildings of the classic modern era will eventually no longer be up to date if they do not comply with current technical standards and changed user requirements. After Postbank moved out in 2016, the 36,000 sqm high-rise complex was to be converted into a modern residential tower. In 2018, district authorities and the investor agreed that the original use should be retained. The Postbank Tower will now be comprehensively renovated and transformed into a modern high-rise office as part of the "Macherei" mixed-use complex. Eike Becker_Architekten... More

The water city of Oberhavel is one of 13 Berlin development areas in which the municipal housing associations are to implement modern forms of socially compatible housing construction and thus create more affordable living space. Eike Becker_Architekten have succeeded as project developers and general planners in an extensive tendering and qualification process at GEWOBAG. Together with Dahm Architekten and Convis, a total of around 2,000 apartments will be built in four phases until 2021. The new quarter will offer a wide range of accommodation for all phases of life and different lifestyles. The concept envisages a green feel-good city with a high residential quality and a lively neighbourly atmosphere. Eike Becker_Architekten Socia... More

The area between Ostbahnhof, Mercedes-Benz Arena and Oberbaumbrücke is one of the most rapidly developing areas of Berlin. With a height of 70 meters, distributed over 20 floors, the Spree Tower forms the urban landmark of the area. Located on the former border strip between East and West Berlin, the building site is characterized by upheavals that are reflected in the design of the building. Jens Willebrand   The high rise tower's doubly layered façade was constructed from two to three floor high slim aluminium frames. They seem to be slightly out of alignment in position to each other. The resulting impression of a rough and faulty, fabric-like structure, not unlike a cotton fabric woven on a loom, is intentional.... More

The corner of Bundesallee and Meierottostraße in Berlin-Wilmersdorf was once a well-known location for night owls, who flocked to the legendary soul discotheque "Big Apple" until it burned down completely after a big fire in 1978. Today, the property along Pariser Strasse and Meierottostrasse is bordered by a Wilhelminian block perimeter development with apartments, offices and shops. Administration and office buildings dominate along Bundesallee, with the 13-story IBB office tower on the opposite side of the street providing a particularly striking appearance. Most recently, the 1960s building was demolished and replaced by an 8-story hotel and a 7-story office building according to the plans of Eike Becker_Architekten. The new bui... More

My parents’ house was on a slope. On an incline of about 1.50 metres. In those days the developer had thought to himself that it would be clever to raise the ground floor up a bit more to let the new owners get out to the garden, which was at ground level. Simon Menges A spiral staircase ran from the balcony on the ground floor down to the garden. This meant that I spent my whole childhood enjoying a special vista over the garden. I can still clearly remember my parents in their deckchairs; great garden parties with wonderfully laid-out tables; garden parties with happily drunken friends and mown lawns with vivid patterns I’d made myself (although only appreciated by me). Simon Menges These memories – the persp... More

It is in vain to predict the political, cultural or economic developments of the next 50 years. In order to recognise this, a look into the past is sufficient. To predict the political, cultural and technological developments in the next 50 years is an intricate effort. We know that the climate will change and that Brandenburg will become warmer and drier on average. We know that this will have consequences for food production, biodiversity and that structures in industry, agriculture and energy will have to adapt. As well as landscape, water and biological systems. These transformations will take decades and can build on the strengths of Berlin-Brandenburg’s landscape: the lakes and rivers as the backbone of a cultural landscape cha... More