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2013–2016

Office Building at Schinkelplatz, Berlin Read more

© Marcus Ebener

The relief of the whitewashed concrete facade is articulated floor by floor, and on the first floor is reminiscent of the bossing of historic plinth floors.

Digitally designed façade reliefs: for each story digital data was generated to create the positive forms used to produce the façade relief. With the parameters perception, demolding, and repetition of structural elements in mind, layers of bush-hammered stone and enlarged stucco surfaces were used in a three-dimensional model to determine the degree of progressive smoothing in the façade.

On a historically sensitive site opposite the new Berlin City Palace, residential and commercial buildings are to be constructed in Berlin’s characteristic block structure. The office building rounds off the block with a finely detailed, punctuated facade toward the Neuer Kommandantur (New Commandant’s Office). The building clearly displays its contemporary origins and reacts to its historical surroundings in a complex way. The whitewashed facade is furnished with a relief that is reminiscent of historical ground floors, which with each floor increases in subtlety and is articulated by cornices. The windows sit in contoured concrete frames and have smooth borders that merge flush into the facade’s relief texture. Similarly, the reveals of the vertically divided windows and the width of their borders decrease with each floor, which results in a larger percentage of glass. Set back deep in the facade, glazed downlights highlight the variance between the floors and allow for an undisturbed view of Schinkelplatz. On the ground floor, the concept of the window elements is reversed. The large French doors are flush with the interior whereas the transom window is almost flush with the facade. The interplay of these details leads to a carefully wrought, lively facade, which confidently integrates itself into it’s environment.

Projektdetails

AIT Office Application Award 2017

Competition 1st Prize, 2012
Client Moll Immobilien Holding GmbH
Planning started 2013
Completion 2016
Total floor area 3,600 sqm

Competition
Project Management: Petra Wäldle
Team: Diana Sarić, Veit Eckelt

Planning and Realization
Project Coordination: Thomas Schmidt
Project Management: Dominik Weigel
Team: Charlotte Stein, Michael Fenske, Dirk Wischnewski, Hjördis Klein, Anna Schneider, Sabine Zoske, Sophie Büchner, Züleyha Timur, Sophie Hartmann, Johanna Bornkamm, Fabian Weber, Melanie Wolfrum, Thomas Martin, Viktoria Rot, Dominik Müller, Miriam Rieke, Cornelius Giacalone
Construction Management Coordination: Dirk Richter
Senior Construction Management: Nicole Braune

Landscape architecture: Levin Monsigny Landschaftsarchitekten, Berlin
Photography
Marcus Ebener
Discourse