Haus Marlene Poelzig, Berlin
An award-winning publication about the demolition of a house and questions of equality in building culture.
Background
Designed between 1929 and 1930 by the architect and artist Marlene Poelzig, the residential and studio house in Berlin-Grunewald was demolished in 2021. This raised questions about equality in building culture and about how we treat cultural heritage.
Brief and approach
ato took on co-editorship of the publication „Haus Marlene Poelzig, Berlin. Abriss und Aufbruch“ (Urbanophil Verlag): building the network and editorial team, developing research and interview formats, working with original documents and staging the launch event with an artistic installation. More than 20 authors contributed, alongside the artists Francis Karat and Constanze Zacharias.
Outcome
The print publication was released in June 2025, with the launch held on 28 June 2025 at Kino Babylon Berlin. It received the Architectural Book Award 2025, presented by the Deutsches Architekturmuseum and the Frankfurt Book Fair. The work was widely covered in the Süddeutsche Zeitung, taz, Bauwelt and on Deutschlandfunk Kultur.
- Role
- Co-editorship
- Commission
- Bundesministerium für Wohnen, Stadtentwicklung und Bauwesen
- Publisher
- Urbanophil Verlag
- Location
- Berlin-Grunewald
- Period
- 2021 to 2025
- Award
- Architectural Book Award 2025