Site!

Highlighted extent of my chosen site.  There are several Plattenbau apartments, including smaller buildings and a couple large ones.  Also, I've included the site of the wall, upper left, that is still currently unused.  I think I'm going to focus on recreating the spaces around the Plattenbau, in order to include them as a part of Berlin many would rather forget or ignore.  But I think it's also important to see how it affected when it meets the site of the, the even greater component of the memory of that era.

Kreuzberg analysis

As can be seen, the war devastated the built structures in Kreuzberg.  The postwar
Plattenbauten were built around whatever structures were left.  Some blocks contain buildings from all ages.  There is still an abundance of open space near the wall area, cleared fro the “death strips” but now sits vacant.  Plans exist to fill in the space with similar scale development to the postwar buildings

Beginning of a booklet

https://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B44xcGvDQx70NDljMzFjNmUtYTA2ZS00ODhkLTljMmEtNGYyN2IxMTI1MmRm&hl=en&authkey=CO2D4uEE

Incomplete beginning of final thesis booklet

What is present in the program?

Public
The most important aspect of any development on this site should be public access.  In the two aforementioned neighborhoods, the focus of new construction is on residential blocks for the middle class.  These developments fail to recognize the significance of the site they are built on.  The primary focus of the program should be on the public, and be open to all people, especially Berliners and the local community.


Memory
The path of the wall is too important to the history of Berlin to be paved over with the generic development found in other new districts of the city.  What is built on the site should in some way reflect the memory of the place, the events that occurred there, and the people it affected.  Some locations have been memorialized, like Eisenmann’s Memorial to the murdered Jews, “Checkpoint Charlie,” or the Jewish Museum by Libeskind.  There are some plaques or wall pieces scattered throughout the city to serve as a reminder of cold war era, but these are not substantial memorials or fairly represent the intensity and scale of the effects of the wall on city life.  There is not yet, a significant landmark to remember the Berlin Wall.


Diversity
Important to the city, especially in recent history, is the diversity of its people.  Berlin has welcomed immigrants from all around the world, and many have made their homes in the neighborhoods near the wall.  Kreuzberg, especially, is known for having the highest percentage of immigrants in Germany.  The diversity of its people has come to define life in Berlin.  Its different peoples have all impacted the culture of the city.  This commitment to “Multikulti” is part of Berlin’s identity and celebrating it should be prominent in the program.


Mixed-Use/Flexibility
One of the reasons many of Berlin’s Mietskaserne still exist and thrive today is their incredible flexibility of use.  On one block, one can find housing on the perimeter, retail on the street, and industrial or commercial space inside the interior courtyards.  There are no strict zoning regulations in Berlin as in America and many buildings serve multiple uses.  This is important for a city with an ever-changing population.  The ability of a program to accommodate and serve changes in use throughout time should be considered.


Learning
In order to assure the memory is not forgetten, some aspect of education or exhibition in history should be prominent.  This need not be as specific as a museum or school, although some features of both could serve some merit.  While other factors may draw visitors to the site, they should leave with a better understanding of what occurred at this location, and why it should never be forgotten.

Two Potential Sites

The area of Kreuzberg is directly adjacent to the city center, yet the path of the wall is still evident through vacant land.  On both sides of the wall, development is typical of that from the post-war era, filling in spaces that were completely destroyed.  Further east and along the river are some of the original dense structures from before World War II, now home to many of Berlin's largest immigrant communities.

Prenzlauer Berg is located in the northern part of the city, but has many similar conditions.  There is a more suburban character to this area, with more detached structures, but the old city fabric is still present in some places, such as in the bottom right.  This area connects train station with the Mauerpark, a large park and sports area that serves as a memorial to the wall, whose path is represented in the pavings.

initial bibliography

On the general subject of identity and architecture:

·         Anderson, Benedict.   Imagined Communities.  London: Verso.  1991.

Discussion of the idea of nationalism, its beginnings, and its evolution.  Argues that nations are “imagined” communities of unrelated peoples bounded by meaningless political lines.

·         Herrle, Peter.   Architecture and Identity.  Lit.  2005.

Collection of essays involving the role of architecture in the perceived loss of identity in cities.  Dispels belief of inherited or prefabricated identity.

·         Gillis, John.   Commemorations: The Politics of National Identity.  New Jersey: Princeton.  1994.

Discusses relationship between identity and memory, particularly in the context of nations and how to acknowledge their past.  Important regarding the role of history on the current condition of German identity.

·         Dovey, Kim.   Becoming places : urbanism/architecture/identity/power.  New York: Routledge.  2010.

Analysis of how place affects identity and social relation.  States people become defined by where they are from and the environment they live in.  Uses studies such as nationalist monuments and post-war suburbs.

On the history and architecture of Berlin:

·         Ladd, Brian.   The Ghosts of Berlin.  Chicago: University of Chicago.  1997.

Analyzes the history of Berlin and its built environment, broken down by subject using a specific district as focus: The Berlin Wall, Historical city core, Weimar era, Nazi era, East Berlin, and reunified.  Reference for different styles and how each affected the city.

·         Daum, Andreas.   Berlin, Washington, 1800-2000 : capital cities, cultural representation, and national identities.  New York: Cambridge.  2005.

Examines the urban landscape of Berlin compared to that of Washington, DC.  Looks at how the political situation is reflected in the architecture and social environment in the city.

·         Schreiber, Mathias.   “Interview with Albert Speer: ‘Calamity of Postwar Construction came from Rejecting History” Spiegel Online, 8, November 2010 .

Interview with son of Hitler’s architect Albert Speer.  Argues that the disasters in the housing situation in Berlin came from an attempt by both sides to ignore their history.  The refusal to acknowledge its past resulted in the current architectural landscape, fragmented and unsuitable for many people.

On current situation in Berlin:

·         Gittus, E. J.   “Berlin as a Conduit for the Creation of German National Identity at the End of the Twentieth Century,” in Space and Polity.   Volume 6, Issue 1, April 2002.

How Berlin and its development since reunification has been regarded as the model for a national identity.  The modern developments in conjunction with historical sites are all relevant in the new nation, but mainly has been used by the elite as a way to market the “new” Germany.

·         Marcuse, Peter.   “Reflections on Berlin: The meaning of construction and the construction of meaning,” in International Journal of Urban and Regional Research.   Volume 22, Issue 2, June 1998.

Questions what the new developments and hundreds of construction sites in Berlin mean for its future.  Are they trying to create a new symbol of Berlin through starchitects and international competitions?  And What does that mean for the current population of the city?

·         Krüger, Thomas.   “Architeckturstadtplan Berlin” 2006.

Not really a book, but a reference guide and map of nearly all notable buildings in Berlin with dates, architects, and summary.  A good reference guide, since it is cross-referenced by location, age, type, etc.

·         Scheuermann, Christoph.   “Building Spree: Developers and Dreamers battle over Berlin Identity” Spiegel Online, 11 September 2008.

Article on the current battle between developers/government and the local architects and people in Berlin over the future of a former Berlin Wall site on the river.  Developers want megastructures and a new Media-center, while the people want a return to the styles present in the local area, if any development at all.

On the specific topic of the Berlin Wall and its effect on the city:

·         Rose, Brian.   The Lost Border: The Landscape of the Iron Curtain.  2004.

Photo documentation of several areas along the wall, illustrating the conditions that developed on both sides as a result.

Topics most frequently discussed:

“Collective memory” and “Selective memory construction”

-dictated by govt?

-used to attract business?

-erasure of former DDR buildings and their legacy through “critical reconstruction”

Representation of identity in monuments,

-determination of location

 -develop urban planning principles

Integration vs. alienation of groups of people

Relation to a “national” identity

Critical reconstruction fails to recognize changes since 1930s, nostalgic return to romanticized Germany

Mapping Berlin

A mapping of Berlin showing the different architectural and spatial characteristics of areas.  This is an overall generalization, the areas are very varied in type, age, style, etc, but there is an overall feel to each.  The red line is the Wall, which cuts through several of these "zones", illustrating the opportunity for an intervention relateable to all Berlin.

Revised methodology

Yes, it's the plan of the Jewish Museum.  But I think it's a good parti for the form of my thinking of the process.  The straight line is the desired path to completion, while the dark line is the actual path to getting there, hitting the goals at certain points, but making a broader approach and deviating.

1 + 3 + 9, Take 2

(The concept hasn't changed much, but I've tweaked the implementation)

 

The architecture of Berlin is suffering an identity crisis from decades of political and social disorder.

In less than 2 centuries, Berlin has been the center of six different regimes, and each movement has made an attempt to create its own identity in Berlin through architecture.  The result is a chaotic confusion of constructions, heavily divided by unactivated spaces, social and historical boundaries, and failed attempts at creating unity.  The issue brings into question: what is the definition of Berlin architecture?

Is it a reference to the past or a push into the future?  The current focus has been twofold: one on “critical reconstruction,” recreating the spatial and building patterns of Berlin prior to its destruction in World War II, the other on massive construction projects designed to help define Berlin as a national capital, making no reference to anything that came before.  One approach driven by nostalgia, the other by government strength.  But neither one comes close to portraying Berlin’s storied history or the diversity of its peoples.  The architecture of a place should connect with its residents; it should be something with which they can identify themselves.  After the fall of the Berlin Wall, which opened up huge swaths of land directly through the center of the city, much of which is still unbuilt, lost in the tangled mess of urban renewal speculation.  This is an opportunity to rebuild part of Berlin and recreate a former symbol of division with an architecture that can reconnect it.  The German people have endured so much change and confusion, a source of national pride and identity is needed.  The scars of what has happened cannot be forgotten but should not be simply memorialized; they must help foster the vision for what is ahead and redefine a city long defined by its past.

Method

I

 I could bore you with a chart or words describing the process I want to take, but I think this diagram is more effective.  Each step along the way is not a single path, there's hundreds of directions to take, some leading to the desired result, others are dead ends.  Each step presents new directions, but the point is to start broad, narrow it down, and then spread out at the next phase.  By the end, the path should be very direct and clear, but until then, endless possibilities...

Yesterday and Today

 Some articles I came across that relate to what I want to research, both from the German English language newspaper "Der Spiegel:"

http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,702213,00.html

An interview with Albert Speer's son Albert Speer on the disaster of postwar reconstruction in Germany and the types of housing that arose failed.

http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,577649,00.html

One take on the question of what is Berlin and what its architecture should be (and the corporations trying to destroy it).

1 + 3 + 9 : The Proposal

The architecture of Berlin is suffering an identity crisis from decades of political and social disorder.

In less than 2 centuries, Berlin has been the center of six different regimes, and each movement has made an attempt to create its own identity in Berlin through architecture.  The result is a chaotic confusion of constructions, heavily divided by unactivated spaces, social and historical boundaries, and failed attempts at creating unity.  The issue brings into question: what is the definition of Berlin architecture?

Is it a reference to the past or a push into the future?  The current focus has been twofold: one on “critical reconstruction,” recreating the spatial and building patterns of Berlin prior to its destruction in World War II, the other on massive construction projects designed to help define Berlin as a national capital, making no reference to anything that came before.  One approach driven by nostalgia, the other by government strength.  But neither one comes close to portraying Berlin’s storied history or the diversity of its peoples.  The paradigm case for this concern is the fall of the Berlin Wall, which opened up huge swaths of land directly through the center of the city, much of which is still unbuilt, lost in the tangled mess of urban renewal speculation.  This former division has the potential to become a model for Berlin architecture and planning in the future.  What becomes of this space can define what it is to be a Berliner, giving a population that for so long has struggled with its own self-image something to bring it unity and national pride.   This is not a new building typology or residential strategy, it is a way of thinking about urban space, the needs of the people in it, and how the city can prepare for future growth and prosperity.  The mistakes of the past cannot be forgotten, they must help foster the vision for what is ahead and redefine a city long defined by its division.

My visual response to the question "Architecture is?" is my feeling on what architecture education is, or isn't.  It seems as though the process of learning architecture is through a series of examples on what not do.  Thus, the image.  Not that all my feelings are negative, or that there is much "right" about the collection of images, but it is rare to find a professor that is enthusiastic about something happening in the real world, or a popular architecture literature that doesn't criticize the way things are done today.  Maybe I'm wrong, maybe I just haven't slept much lately, but this is the impression I have been getting lately.

architecture is...

The art of human intervention.  From the first human to use trees for shelter to the most high technology “green” construction.  Everything people create, build, modify, inhabit, or destroy is architecture.  Not that nature cannot be architectural; it often serves as the inspiration for architecture, but architecture comes to existence through human means.  Architecture is part of our everyday lives; it manifests itself in everything we do, our emotions, our well-being, our environment.  It changes with us and we change with it.  It is the foundation of society, our legacy to be remembered by, and that by which we define ourselves and our peoples.  Without it, and without its diversity, there would be no tomorrow.