26-30 Unter den Linden/51-53 Mittelstraße

In the evening of October 5, 2005, we received a call from our principal, during which he posed the almost parenthetical question as to whether our firm might be interested in participating in a competition, or rather, an architectural selection process. Accordingly, the subject matter was a refurbishment project, the conversion and if possible also expansion of a building complex with an address Unter den Linden. More specifically, the building complex stretching from 26-30 Unter den Linden/51-53 Mittelstraße.

He told us to arrive at the project location for a first property inspection the day after the next if we were interested at all. The fateful day arrived. On October 7, a small group composed of ten or twelve people – representatives and agents of the principal and several colleagues from different architectural firms, eyes sparkling with keen interest and equipped with cameras, made its way through the – as it turned out – gigantic colossus of a structure that appeared to be partially confusing and labyrinth-like at a first glance located between the grand boulevard and Mittelstraße. It was everyone’s first encounter with this imposing business complex erected in the early 20th century at this Unter den Linden address and which is still a definitive reflection of the representative intentions of those who commissioned its construction and of its builders.

The first impressions were certainly diverse. The imposingly designed lacustrine limestone facades were impressive. The visuals of some individual rooms in the buildings that had remained intact were beautiful as well, such as the vault and the marble hall, both dating back to the time of the building’s original con­struction. The numerous details in the historic staircases were also striking.
The quality of the expansion made by the previous owners during the post turnaround period in Germany, on the other hand, made a negative impression on us and we still do not understand to date what happened here.