A giant concrete structure rises in the north of #Berlin Ostbahnhof. Erected in 1979 the building formerly housed the Centrum Warenhaus – the most important shopping centre in East Berlin. After the German Reunification it accommodated the chain store Kaufhof. It is currently being gutted and then converted into a new office and retail building. Designing architects @jasperarchitects developed quite an unorthodox concept: the cubic volume with its 80x80 meters footprint has parts of its concrete structure removed on all four sides. The block perforation is designed to optimize solar gain and to increase layout funcionality.
Regularly visiting the construction site from now on, I have been starting to document the conversion process of the project called UP! Berlin.