BERLIN:
THE ORCHESTRATED CITY. Composing a New Urban Fabric.
MARK JASON WARREN | tutor PHIL AYRES | THESIS PROGRAMME 2013 Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, School of Architecture | Dept. 2
This is a collage of thoughts, research and direction.
CONTENTS. BERLIN. - ii TIME LINE. - iv URBAN MODULATIONS. centres. centre: The Spree* - 03 decentre: The Wall* - 05 different centres - 07 expansion. industrial revolution: BOOM* stacking programs building densification
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13 15 18
time. prep work: Germania* programmatic tempos programmatic hierarchy
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21 23 25
re-programming. crisis* - 27 programmatic densification - 29 city densification. re-unification: dead space* density and centrality
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33 35
new urban values: light
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39
new urban values: centre
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41
URBAN DIRECTION.
SUBMISSION. - 42 CURRICULUM VITAE.
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48
* indicates a historical event.
i
“Berlin is the newest city I have come across.”1
1 Mark Twain, US writer, 1892.
“Berlin is a city condemned forever to becoming and never to being.”2 2 Karl Scheffler, Art historian, 1910.
“Paris is always Paris and Berlin is never Berlin!”3
3 Jack Lang, French former culture minister, 2001.
All three quotes were written during different periods of time but all suggest that Berlin is always changing. Berlin is one of the most active and transformative urban fabrics. It has gone through many radical shifts in it’s lifetime. iii
The following program is based around the timeline below. Each of these events have effected Berlin’s Urban fabric drastically, and will help indicate the future progression of Berlin. The program has not been put in chronological order - instead the history has been put in order of propositional relevance.
population
v
fall of the wall
plans for Germania WW2 wall is built
industrial revolution
URBAN 1 MODULATIONS.
Densification and flexibility are challenges that many cities attempt to deal with. These issues have a global impact and are highly relevant to the future of many developing and developed cities. Unlike other major world cities, Berlin has been through many radical modulations1. It can be seen as a constant testing ground for radical shifts in its urban fabric . In my opinion, this makes Berlin a great city to test future methods of change. From the merging of two small medieval villages, to the industrial boom through to the most recent re-unification of Berlin, its history has allowed for radical changes in the city’s composition - so what is next? Cities are predominately planned in planar projection. This limits the interaction between buildings to an X-Y relationship - however they should be developed in four dimensions, X-Y-Z through time. Relationships occur above and below, and relationships change relative to time. If four dimensional planning is used correctly, Berlin could be reconfigured into a city that is highly densified and still allow for flexibility. The city can be programmable, a well oiled machine, whilst still maintaining its city like nature of a varied architectural expression, flexibility in terms of expansion, program, time and multiple uses. I propose to densify a multifunctional district of Berlin into a building scale. “The house is like a small city and the city is like a big house.”2 By using speculative drawings I can investigate urban relationships, in particular issues that revolve around density, usage and flexibility by re-configuring the city. 1 ‘modulation’ is a musical term for when a piece of music transitions from one key to another. I call these changes ‘modulations’ as they are a change in tone - not better nor worse for Berlin, just a change. 2 Leon Battista Alberti.
2
CENTRE: THE SPREE.
The city started as two separate cities that joined. The River Spree would act as the epicentre for the future growth of Berlin. The idea of centre is important to every city, but these ideas can offer completely different thoughts on what is considered the centre. In fact, the city ‘centre’ is often geographically not in the centre. The centre is usually thought of being historical, being the most valuable, being the most important - but this is not so. An example of a fabricated ‘centre’ is the ‘Equator Park’ in Ecuador which is said to be in the middle of the Earth. However, with modern GPS, it has been found that the monument is 240 metres north of the equator, this is a prime example of a centre constructed on ‘value’. I will investigate what the centre is for the city of Berlin - factoring in both geographical location and cultural/historical value. The centre will be my site.
above: The medieval beginnings of Berlin, 1237. It began as two separate entities that were bound by the River Spree.
above: Karl Friedrich Schinkel, Medieval Town by Water, 1841. The castle acts as the centre as it is surrounded by water and is the tallest and most dominant structure. The centre is exclusive with limited access. 4
Satellite image showing the extent of the Berlin Wall.
DECENTRE?: THE WALL.
The Berlin Wall divided the entire city. The East and West developed their own centres - Charlottenburg for the West and Mitte for the East. But, it could be considered that the wall was the true centre of Berlin as it was the threshold between the two. The Wall, was an unpopulated, unused centre.
John F. Kennedy visits the centre of Berlin (the wall). People from the East try and peer over the centre to see him. 6
THE SPREE.
This was the original centre of Berlin. It is the where the expansion began. The Spree was the centre.
WEST, WALL, EAST.
The Berlin Wall divided the city in two. The city of Berlin now had three city centres, one for the East, Mitte, one for West, Charlottenburg, and one in the centre, The Wall.
8
52°30’5”N 13°24’9”E.
In a modern city that does not thrive off trade through the river, what is the new centre of Berlin? Above highlights the absolute geographical centre of Berlin. It is celebrated with just a granite stone. This is a point that is relative to the boarders of Berlin.
POPULATION DENSITY.
The districts of Berlin were extruded relative to their population density. The whole of Berlin was then balanced on a single point to find the point of balance - therefore finding the center of Berlin’s population density.
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geographical centre, 1996.
A composition of all centres. The two modern centres of the Cartesian co-ordinates and the balancing point of population density are continuously shifting centre points relative to an active variable, either the boundaries of the city or the change in population. These points will shift throughout time. The centres of the past are historical areas of Berlin and are static. Could my proposal absorb or callibrate the constantly shifting centre points?
population density: balancing point, 2011.
12
THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION: BOOM.
The industrial revolution increased the speed of growth. The population grew from 322,000 in 1840 to 1,122,00 in 1880. The city coped with this by expanding outward. By expanding outward, you begin to stretch the urban fabric, making the city less centralised. Instead of expanding outwards, they could have expanded upwards.
above: expansion during 1650-1890. left: Adolf Friedrich Erdmann von Menzel, ‘eisenwalzwerk’, 1872-1875. 14
STACKING: HIERARCHY OF PROGRAM. The Pallasseum is an example of this method of building upwards. The social housing scheme was built over layering the bunker. This relationship opens many questions on what program goes where and why. What I enjoy about this example is the architectural detachment, both structurally and aesthetically.
above: The Pallasseum, 1977, is a social housing scheme by J端rgen Sawade. The project was built over an existing bunker.
above: Both structures are independent. They do not physically interact. 16
above: Which is more acceptable? What has more value, the church or the housing?
above: Which is more acceptable? What has more value, the road or the housing? 18
BUILDING DENSIFICATION.
The buildings surrounding the Pallaseum were stacked in a similar way. The footprint taken up by all the buildings is far less when stacked.
20
PREP WORK: GERMANIA.
In preparation for Albert Speer’s redesign of Berlin into Germania, the Nazis relocated the Victory Column from Königsplatz to Großer Stern, its current site, in 1939. The preparation work speaks about urban reconfiguration. Slowly moving large monuments to prepare for the [much] bigger picture. I will be investigating the reconfiguring of program in the city and how these occur at different tempos. By reconfiguring the urban fabric, you allow new relationships to evolve that may or may not be better.
above: Original location of the Victory Column. right: Albert Speer’s vision for Germania.
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PROGRAMMATIC TEMPOS.
The Re-configured City. The building core rotates through a daily cycle, whilst the public space rotates through a yearly cycle, allowing it to be south facing every summer. The city is made from different tempos. The city must respond to the many tempos, such as seasonal, daily and also tempos relative to events.
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PROGRAMMATIC HIERARCHY: DAILY USE. _housing
church_
telecom_
_public space
supreme court_ _offices
_educational institutes
abandoned buildings_ _infrastructure
_0400 The following series of illustrations highlight the tendency of programmatic use over a day period. The higher the program, the more active it is. This is a dynamic form of stacking.
_0800
_1200
Throughout a single day, the hierarchy constantly changes. When a space is not used it becomes void. If spaces could support many programs, the hierarchy can be reduced to the essential spaces.
_1800
_2000
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CRISIS: RE-PROGRAM THE CITY.
During and after the war, the city was damaged. People began to inhabit different areas for safety. The city was re-programmed. This also encouraged a sense of community as boundaries were forcibly broken down – people were forced to share space and live through the war together. Programs actively functioned regardless of their detachment from their traditional architectural expression and atmospheres. Broken churches became playgrounds, exhibition halls became mortuaries. The spaces, as well as the people, became flexible.
above: An Exhibition Hall turns into an area for bomb victims. right: Children play in a bombed church.
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PROGRAMMATIC DENSIFICATION: FLEXIBILITY. As some spaces are not used during different times, the spaces can support other programs, making space more efficient and flexible. However, a lot of the architectural expression and atmosphere is at danger of being lost.
The church spire still functions as a bell tower, but also functions as a telecommunications tower. Specific architectural components have been meshed together, such as the stain glass windows of the church and the steel structure of the telecoms tower.
Maison du Peuple de Clichy, Marcel Lods , Eugène Beaudouin , Jean ProuvÊ and Vladimir Bodiansky, 1935. A further method of densification is by densifying programs into less spaces. The building above supports multiple programs (market, local union offices, conference rooms and a theater) by using movable boundaries. The roof retracts for markets, and sliding panels create space for rooms. However, the market never co-exists with the other programs. Each program is activated when it is scheduled to happen, making the architecture orchestrated. By doing this, the building allows a flexible use of a single space that different programs can occur in. Can this type of method be used for the complexity of a city?
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above: cross section through the three dimensional city: this drawing explores the detachment of activity and space.
The church supports an office as well as a telecoms tower. The boss sits in the bell tower. The bunker supports a school. However, by doing this much architectural expression is lost. 32
RE-UNIFICATION: DEAD SPACE.
When the wall fell, a linear void was left where the death strip was once located. The void was now space for development. Much of the wall has become large roads that make the immediate urban fabric feel out of scale. This space could be used better, making the city less sparse. In my opinion, the falling of the wall was an opportunity to make it into a linear centre to blend the two sides together.
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RE-CONFIGURING CITY: DENSITY AND CENTRALITY.
The population density of Berlin, 2011, shows the full extent of the urban sprawl. The proposed population density for the future allows for a hyper centralised city and a increase of free space surrounding the city.
Stacked Berlin. 36
URBAN DIRECTION.
There have been many proposed vertical cities such as OMA’s Hyperbuilding, Bangkok, 1996, [pictured behind] described as “a self-contained city for 120,000”1. However, in my opinion this is not a city. It does not display the varied architectural expression a city has, nor supports a changing architecture in terms of expression and expansion for the future – it is inflexible. This vertical scheme is a static2 tower with a single holistic architectural expression, although the contents of this building are highly dynamic and varied like a city. 1 Description from OMA website www.oma.com 2 Static in time - as it does not allow for architectural development and change, and static in movement - as it does not allow programs to shift.
James Wines, Highrise for Homes, 1981, is a scheme that allows the vertical stacking of homes. In my opinion, the scheme is a commentary on urban density, expansion and architectural expression. The scheme allows a stacking of individual homes that still maintain their architectural expression, allowing the cross section through this vertical scheme to be one closer to what would be found in a residential part of the city. Can Wines’ proposal support an entire multifunctioning city? By adapting it, a new set of urban parameters and values will emerge for a three dimensional city.
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NEW URBAN VALUES: LIGHT
The above diagrams show the shift in land value. In a typical city, the land closest to the centre would be most expensive. This would be because of its geographical location relative to the centre. Where as in the three dimensional city, light would be an important measurement of value. The areas that receive the most light would be the most expensive, this would include the outer edges and the very top floor.
Adapted James Wines’ sketch to a city scale.
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THE CENTRE.
The centre of the three dimensional city would now be the outside. As we have established, light is a measurement of value. The most prestigious buildings will be placed in the light. The core of the three dimensional city will now house the cheaper buildings, such as those found in the suburbs. Therefore, the actual centre is now the suburbs and the surburbs is now the centre. By further densifying the three dimensional city by allowing single spaces to support multiple programs relative to time, we can create a four dimensional city.
SUBMISSION.
I will initiate the exploration of density and flexibility on the geographical centre of Berlin which is located in the district of Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg. Not only does the geographical centre point of Berlin sit within this district, but it also the district with the highest population density at 13,334 people per km2. By adapting a single district I can test and adjust the parameters for the four dimensional city. A merge of multiple programs and architectural expressions will be compressed into a reduced dynamic building that will respond to the many tempos of time and different forms of inhabitation. The goal is to create a truly flexible space that will support the multiple functions found in a city such as residential, education, cultural, entertainment, commercial and services. This method requires a rigourous exploration at a building scale, showing how programs begin to bleed and introduces the notion of privacy and flexibility. Drawings exploring spatial merging between programs will be produced, which in turn may result in detail drawings showing devices and methods of creating and adapting space. 42
The diagram above shows the programs two individuals may do over a typical day. The programs can never co-exist i.e. when you are not at home you are somewhere other than home. Each program takes place in a different space meaning spaces constantly become void.
I will explore what happens when different programs merge together. The above diagram shows all the programs layered on top of each other. As already stated, programs can not co-exist - each program is spatially temporal. Some programs may be more fixed, whilst some are more dormant, and some programs will be better married to others to occur in the same place. Certain components may need to be imported/exported to keep architectural expression as well as function. By exploring this, I will create a densified space that supports multiple programs for living, working, learning, playing. Each of these occur at different times, and some occur spontaneously, such as going to the park when it is sunny, or going to the shop to buy milk.
Creating a reduced district will effect its urban surroundings. The land will be changed, and the surrounding area now becomes a large threshold to the neighbouring districts. The proposal may lend itself to the neighbouring areas and vice versa creating a synergy between the reconfigured Berlin and the existing Berlin.
By furthering this study I aim to create a set of parameters for a flexible four-dimensional city. By doing what has been outlined, I hope to question and challenge how we use space and why. My proposal aims to predict an utopian-esque scheme that answers the relevant problem of urban density and flexibility. With the closing of many highstreet shops and rise in virtual services many spaces in the city are void. My project will challenge this on-going change. The study is highly speculative, trying to discover new urban territories. I believe this suits the city of Berlin well due to it’s constant radical changes. 46
CURRICULUM VITAE. EDUCATION. The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, School of Architecture. Copenhagen, Denmark. MA Architecture 2011-2013. University of Brighton. Brighton, UK. BA (hons) Architecture 2006-2009. PROFESSIONAL. studio SQUAT* with RIBA London. 2012-2011. Student led project for the London Pleasure Gardens, 2012 & Festival of Britain, 2011. Hampson Williams Architects, London. 2009-2011. Architectural Assistant. Bblur Architects, London. 2008. Work experience. MAKE Architects, London. 2008. Work experience. PERSONAL PROJECTS. 2012 innosite, solar dreams. Winner of ‘most extraordinary and innovative idea’. Lawyers for Justice in Libya, London. Designed and built their new offices. 2011 Rare, London. Designed and built their new offices. 2010 Seoul International ‘Design for All’ Competition. Honourable mention and exhibited at Seoul Design Fair, 2010. Seoul Cycle Design Competition, Bronze award and exhibited at Seoul Design Fair, 2010. 2009 Nissan ‘think outside the parking box’ Competition. Shortlisted. 48
Art work from the Berlin Wall’s East Side Gallery. ii 50