Forum of Sand (1988)

West Berlin 1988 − shortly before the fall of the wall, a city characterised by absences. Sand, the surface upon which Berlin is built is here, formalised, ordering the void between Scharoun’s Library and Philharmonie, and Mies‘ National Gallery.

A relocated bridge hovers above the sand field. The 85 m riveted ‚Pfennig Brücke‘ comes from Wedding, freed from its impotent collision with the ‚Wall‘, laden with the memory that Mies while project architect for Behrens‘ AEG Factory Halls passed under it daily (reference − the black beam roof of the National Gallery).

On the bridge are the orderly ‚Café of the North‘ and the turbulent ‚Café of the South‘ (a relief from endless East-West discussions).

A second peripheral structure (mechanical car park towers and a library for images of Berlin) is a partial reconstruction of the 19th Century Transatlantic Steamer ‚Havel und Spree‘.

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Exhibition ‚Berlin − Denkmal oder Denkmodell‘ 1988, Aedes Gallery

 

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