With renewed energy from the night
before (thanks to a hearty serving of German brew, pork knuckles and sausages) we were all revved up and raring to go on the much anticipated city bike tour! What better way to commence our Berlin leg than with a 4-hour architecture induction around the city on the ubiquitous 2-wheel urban steeds!
Out the hotel door we went at 8am to be greeted by Georg Dux, our tour-guide for the morning (and arguably Kevin McCloud’s German doppleganger)! His brief introduction about Berlin’s urban fabric gave us an insight into the main districts our bike route would take us. As we threw caution to the wind and navigated the city streets without helmets (oh the horror) we learned about the historic Baroque city centre, its urban typology and pre/post war urban conditions and tendencies. We dodged traffic along narrow streets, soaking in the city’s charming courtyard houses as we went. Green walls and equally green gardens offered a much welcomed relief to the concrete-and-glass jungle we witnessed in the Middle East. The urban fabric slowly unveiled itself the further we rode. A quick zip around Museum Island left us salivating and wanting more. Georg completed our crash-course education of the city at Historische Zentrum which houses impressively detailed scaled models of inner city Berlin. German precision at its finest.
Still buzzing from our bike ride, we scoffed down lunch and headed for our practice visit with Realities United. Jan Elder’s quirky yet insightful presentation surmised an interesting body of work where collaborations with other international architectural practices birth creative outcomes that enhance and strengthen original ideas. A broad range of concepts are rigorously tested in this office, invariably pushing the envelope between physical space and data space resulting in what Jan terms “augmented realities”.
We experienced first hand Berlin’s hospitality and eagerness-to-please with an extraordinary taxi ride to our next destination… Graft Lab! Hidden amongst a grungy industrial estate we tirelessly scaled to the top floor office (not our first time today!) decked with bespoke joinery… a preview of Graft’s experimental nature. Lars Krueckeberg takes us around the activity filled office swiftly before unleashing a thought-provoking presentation in which his office challenges the status quo by pushing Graft’s vision of sustainability, hybridization and social contribution.
Next stop, site visit to KU64 Dental Clinic, an earlier project of Graft’s. An unassuming 150 year-old heritage building belies an ultra-modern, ultra-chic dental clinic on the inside. A cacophony of curvaceous forms, colour and creativity throws all pre-conceived impressions of a dental clinic out their German double-glazed full-height windows. The clinic’s Communications rep, Petros Prontis, generously gave us an intimate tour of the space. Drawing inspiration from sand-dunes and the pleasant experience it wished to invoke, the clinic blurred the lines between floor, walls and joinery… every corner a new surprise. We leave the clinic with contemplations of returning for a dental check-up.
Feet aching, minds blown, camera batteries exhausted, we head for a well-deserved dinner of pizza, alcohol and conversation of the day well spent.
