© OMA

Kochstrasse / Friedrichstrasse Housing

The project is located at the eastern end of Block 4, in the center of the former Friedrichstadt. An area formed by a baroque plan but more recently characterized by architectural remains of both the pre- and post-war period as well as the wall and Checkpoint Charlie.

In the debate on the reconstruction of the European City and Berlin in particular the attitude of OMA was to establish a retroactive concept based on inherent but latent principles of the urban context. Rather than mere restoration or reinterpretation of the 18th century block, the project set out to the contradictory characteristics of the site in order to invest in the project as a definition of Contemporaneity.