Berlin's Architectural Citations: Reconstruction, Simulation, and the Problem of Historical Authenticity

Abstract

S INCE BERLIN WAS ELECTED AS REUNITED GERMANY'S NEW capital, in 1991, the city has been exploring its future through a complex investigation of its past while vigorously asserting its cosmopolitan newness. 1 Nowhere is this process more visible than in the city's characteristic, perhaps even unique, fascination with a ubiquitous practice I term "architectural citation." I refer to a specific type of eclectic building design, most notably the Reichstag's late-nineteenth-century facade combined with its postmodern glass dome and new interior; the plans for a partial rebuilding of the Stadtschloß; the Sony Center at Potsdamer Platz, framing remnants of the Grand Hotel Esplanade; the replicated facade of the new Hotel Adlon near the Brandenburg Gate; and the FriedrichstadtPassagen, evoking the Kaisergalerie, a premier symbol of Berlin's status as the capital of the German empire after 1873. When read in the context of present and past cultural discourses (newspaper articles, Web pages, advertisement pamphlets, literary responses, critical theory), these designs variously inscribe contemporary architectural styles with allusive reinventions of previous cultural manifestations and discourses, incorporate actual remnants of older edifices, or use partial reconstruction for new social purposes. Architectural citation, I should emphasize, is different from projects such as the Museum Island, the Berlin Cathedral, and even the front sections of the New Synagogue on Oranienburger Straße, victims of World War II destruction or of neglect by the German Democratic Republic that have now benefited from relatively conventional principles of restoration

Gentrification e urban gardening a Berlino. Riflessioni da Tempelhofer Feld e Prinzessinnengärten

“…La divisione in settori e blocchi, il regime di terrore a Est instaurato dalla dittatura del Ministero per la Sicurezza di Stato (meglio noto come Stasi), la caduta del Muro e la colossale riunificazione hanno condizionato lo sviluppo della città, a cui gran parte del presente lavoro è dedicata. In particolar modo, si è imposta non solo una ricostruzione materiale, bensì anche una rilettura del passato, una ri-negoziazione della memoria e una risignificazione dei luoghi ad essa legati (Frowein 1992;Greene 1997;Häussermann and Simons 2001;Goebel 2003;Wittlinger and Boothroyd 2010;Harrison 2011;Gehler 2013).…”

The difficult relationship between nationalism and built heritage: the case of late nineteenth-century Krakow

“…Scrutiny of the discourse and the actions taken on the restoration of historical monuments can unravel the role of the past in national projects beyond such vague and general phrases. These issues are far from a mere curiosity; the questions posed here remain highly relevant, as the discussion on the reconstruction of the Stadtschloss in Berlin demonstrates (Goebel 2003(Goebel , 1268(Goebel -1289. The unification of Berlin after 1989 and the dismantling of symbols of the Communist regime created an opportunity to reconstruct the Hohenzollern residence, which stood at the very center of the city before being replaced by the cubist Palace of the Republic (built 1973Republic (built -1976 during the Communist era.…”