Mausebunker and Hygieneinstitut: Two Berlin Brutalist Icons places two of Berlin's most contested concrete structures at the centre of an urgent debate about preservation, memory, and what cities owe their architectural inheritance.
About This Book
In Steglitz, Berlin, two facing buildings form one of the most remarkable brutalist ensembles in Europe: the Mausebunker, designed by Gerd and Magdalena Hänska, and the former Hygieneinstitut, by Hermann Fehling and Daniel Gogel. Both are threatened with demolition; both are celebrated as icons. This volume interrogates that contradiction head-on, examining the distinct architectural principles behind each building alongside the fierce public debate over their future. Historical design documents from the architects ground the analysis, while artistic contributions and Kay Fingerle's photographs of rarely seen interiors expand it into something richer than a preservation argument alone. Essential reading for anyone invested in brutalist architecture and heritage discourse.
Key Features
- 304 pages of architectural analysis, historical design documents, and interior photography by Kay Fingerle
- Edited by Ludwig Heimbach
- Published by JOVIS, ISBN: 9783986120306
What You'll Discover
- The contrasting architectural principles governing two buildings that face each other yet were designed by entirely different hands — the Hänskas versus Fehling and Gogel
- How the preservation debate around these structures reflects broader tensions between economic development and cultural heritage in contemporary Berlin
- A view of the buildings' interiors through Kay Fingerle's photography, access that is rarely afforded to the public
- The cultural and economic value arguments being made for and against the survival of these concrete structures
About the Author
Ludwig Heimbach serves as editor of this volume. [Details available upon request]
Specifications
- Format: Paperback
- Pages: 304
- Dimensions: 23.98 x 17.02 cm
- Language: English
- ISBN: 9783986120306
- Publisher: JOVIS
- Publication Date: [Details available upon request]
Perfect For: Architects and historians with an interest in brutalism and concrete construction, heritage practitioners engaged with demolition debates, and researchers working on postwar European urban architecture.