Summer 2022: Study Abroad in Berlin Sketch Series

  Week 1: Reflections of the Past

The concept of this composition is to highlight the stark contrast between medieval and modernist urban development. This is done through the now-destroyed Petri Kirche, which used to be the center of medieval Cölln (Berlin’s medieval twin city). This church served as a landmark which towered over the surrounding homes. This contrasts with the Soviet-Era housing on the site today, which is non-hierarchical with straight orthogonal buildings. To represent this, the drawing moves from contemporary site on the left of the page to medieval site on the right, as well as using dotted lines to insert the medieval urban fabric into the current context.

Monument to Fachwerk Construction

The monument to Fachwerk Construction proposes a Fachwerk museum on the site of the Soviet-Era housing. This would educate residents about the significance of the land which they stand upon in Berlin’s history, and explore the history of Fachwerk construction methods, the primary building method of the Medieval period.

Week 2: Visions of the Far East

This sketch is of the Chinese House at Sansoucci Palace. It was built in the 18thcentury for Friedrich Wilhelm II. During his time, travel to other parts of the world was difficult so locations such as China were seen as “Exotic” and “Mysterious” to Wilhelm. This was built to allow him to feel like he was visiting the Far East without leaving home. As a result, the architecture creates an exaggerated version of Chinese art and design. The style, called “Chinoiserie” is the focus of the drawing. Details such as statues, windows, trim, and columns are removed from the whole and examined more closely. 

Monument to the Transparency of Cultural Exchange

Since the Chinese House is currently undergoing renovations and is closed to the public, I am proposing a temporary exhibit which plays into this closure and enhances the original concept of the drawing. The monument would be a translucent box which surrounds the building, allowing the basic shape to be visible from the outside, while blurring details. Some important details will be visible through transparent “frames” within the box. This would give visitors the same experience of “Chinese” architecture as Wilhelm had: a blurry generalization of the style.

Week 3: Edge and Center

This drawing focuses on the: Hufeisensiedlung Britz specifically, how a sense of edge and center are created through architecture and landscaping. The three best examples of this, (the Diamond Courtyard, the Horseshoe Courtyard, and the “Medieval Walls”) each get a perspective to show how they define different spaces for cars and people, as well as creating hierarchy. In addition, the Horseshoe courtyard gets a cross section to understand how hedges of different heights and topography define different outdoor spaces and privacy levels within the larger courtyard.

Monument to the Center of Community

While visiting the site, the weakest moment in the theme of edge and center occurred in the center of the Horseshoe Courtyard. It was intended to be a space for residents to come together and interact, also serving as a public park. However, the space is mostly unused today. To solve that, my monument creates Greek Amphitheater seating which carves into the landscape. This seating faces the pond and allows people to stay rather than walk around the center. It allows for people to watch their dogs or children play and encourages socialization. 

Week 4: Contradictions in Scale

Tempelhof Airport is the subject of this drawing: specifically focused on how the complex is perceived at different scales. There is a stark contrast between the oppressive fascist architecture of the street-facing facades and the smart urbanistic moves which define threshold and create public space. To show this contrast, the underlayer of the drawing is the master plan of Germania, showing how Tempelhof was meant to fit into an even larger planned city. Above this is the plan of the complex. Moves such as “bending the bar” and pulling out ends create public squares both of hardscape (Eagle Square) and greenspace (Platz der Luftbrücke). The fascist architecture of the facades is seen in the perspectives through details such as relentless punched windows and square pier colonnades. 

Monument to the Refugees of the Syrian War

Following the closure of Tempelhof as an airport in 2008, there has been an ongoing debate to determine what to do with the enormous space. One use the site saw was as a refugee camp, especially for those impacted by the Syrian Civil War, which began in 2011. However, living conditions in the camp were not ideal, especially for long-term housing. Therefore, this memorial aims to use the generous public space created by Tempelhof’s urbanism to create a “neighborhood” of permanent social housing buildings, which follow the existing architectural principles on the site and adapt them to be more friendly to humans.

Week 5: Democracy in a Divided Berlin

The Berliner Philharmonie revolutionized and democratized the process of attending a concert. Before its completion, typical concert halls were very grand, hierarchical spaces, such as the Schauspielhaus by Karl Friedrich Schinkel. Now, Scharoun envisioned a concert hall which was decentralized, non-hierarchical, and dispersed. This is best seen in the interior circulation and seating layout of the concert hall, which is the highlight of my drawing. Spaces which have multiple paths of travel within them are expressed and overlapped into the large cross section of the main seating.

Monument to Hans Scharoun’s Decentralization During a Divided Berlin

While the space in the Philharmonie is decentralized, there is still a set path and experience for each ticket holder when attending a show. My monument aims to fix this by creating a pathway on the floor which invites visitors to follow and see the concert hall from all angles before the show starts.

Week 6: Fitting In

Frank Gehry’s DZ Banks sits on one of the most significant plots of land in Berlin as part of Pariser Platz. This is the square which includes the Brandenburg Gate and one of the three major public squares of the second baroque expansion of Berlin. During WWII and the subsequent Cold War, the buildings of the square were destroyed, and the site remained barren. Frank Gehry’s DZ Bank is part of the post-reunification reconstruction plan. The concept for the drawing emphasizes how the building fits into the strict rectilinear code on its facades, while having unique geometries and spaces on the interior. 

Monument to the Atrium

While Gehry’s design is brilliant to fit into Pariser Platz and its unique building codes, it is still a private building which is not open to visitors. This presents a problem for those who wish to see the significant architecture of the building, as it is hidden behind layers of security. To solve this, the monument is a series of scaffolding on the front façade to allow for views into the most celebrated space in the building, the atrium.