549:. The design of the Friedrichshain heating plant is clearly based on the type of architecture for which Henselmann was known. Henselmann's influence affected several planners and institutions in East Berlin. Together with Hanns Hopp, Henselmann and Paulick are considered the key figures in GDR architecture in the 1950s: "The question of what a 'new German architecture' should look like, which was supposed to be 'national in form' and 'socialist in content', became a complicated challenge for architects, who were required to produce 'exemplary designs'. Without the architects Richard Paulick and Hanns Hopp, the construction of the early 1950s would not have been possible either. Like Henselmann, they had been involved in the construction of the ‘Stalinallee’ as head of a ‘master workshop’ at the German Building Academy . On behalf of the academy, these three leading architects are said to have supervised almost all design work in the entire country." Even though these planners were not directly involved in the design of the Friedrichshain thermal power station, their architectural concept is closely linked to the design of the project described here.
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resembled the Bonatz bunker in Berlin city's centre. The enormous power plant had a monumental composition. Especially the horizontally lined plinth made the building look extremely heavy. Above the plinth vertical windows were put in, articulated with piers that hold up the cornice, elongating the building's volume. Small mezzanine windows, kept in a strongly horizontal articulated cornice, gave the building the appearance of a
Renaissance monument. The bunker-proportioned facades reflected the 'new' aesthetics of socialist realism. Built in two phases, the building was made out of two 'cubes' of 40 x 40 metres. Oddly enough, considering the scale and monumental expression, the entrance was a small double door at the rear of the building, reflecting the non-human use of the interior.
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its north side on Rüdersdorfer Straße. The former outer wall of the first construction phase's boiler house now faces the
Berghain bar area. Thomas Karsten: "The plant was gradually expanded. So today we have a former external façade in the interior." Since the Lab.oratory also takes up a small part of the turbine and generator house ground floor, the boiler house outer façade also forms an inner wall here.
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for endangered regional wild plants and its mission statement condemns, on the one hand, racist, sexist, homophobic, and nationalistic behaviour while also demanding equal respect for 'all humans, animals and plants' in the park (although some 'weedy' trees such as the Black Locust, White Poplar, Tree of Heaven, and
Japanese knotweed are trimmed or removed).
754:(in German). In 2021, architect Thomas Karsten talked about his and Alexandra Erhard's work on the Berghain project, supervising the conversion from power station to nightclub. The interview was conducted by Johannes Medebach for the german-language website moderneREGIONAL. Quotes from this interview were translated into english
528:. The height of the plinth conceals the true height of the space behind it. The ground floor ceiling itself is higher than the band rustication indicated by ashlar plaster, which ends with a cornice at the top of the plinth. The first row of small horizontal windows above the plinth's cornice also belongs to the ground floor.
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The surrounding area's unique
Stadtbiotop is maintained and in part created by a neighbourhood organisation called Nirgendwo, which means 'nowhere' in German . Based in the redesigned shed for the locomotive that delivered coal into Fernheizwerk für die Stalinallee, Nirgendwo (2019) offers protection
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Although it was already clear during the planning of the first construction phase in 1952 that the south façade of the boiler house would soon be an interior wall – surrounded by the turbine and generator house – the boiler house south façade was built with the same elaborate architectural design as
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Even if no information is known about the architects of the power plant, great design similarities to the other buildings in the monument ensemble can be seen. Thomas
Karsten: "The ensemble was protected because the complex was part of the GDR's national reconstruction program. This design language
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Not far from Ostgut, the club owners found a new temple to fulfill their dream of creating one of the most notorious clubbing venues in the world: the former power plant, nowadays known as
Berghain. Not far from the Frankfurter Tor and unknown to many, a power plant was erected that very much
440:. Thomas Karsten: "It was clear from the start where the 'Panorama Bar' should be: the power plant's former control room with its large windows." The club Säule is located in the northern part of the turbine and generator house ground floor, between the Berghain
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plant when the second building phase's electrical equipment was put into operation – and was no longer a pure heating plant – electricity generation always remained secondary. The main purpose of the plant was to generate heat.
351:. Other buildings on the site include the low-rise buildings on the western edge of the property. At the northern corner of the property there is a row with no public use. At the western corner of the property is the so-called
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along Karl-Marx-Allee, which was still called
Stalinallee at the time of construction. Not only electricity, but above all heat was needed for the modern heating of the new residential and representative buildings."
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South side of the former turbine and generator house with clearly visible ground level plinth. The
Berghain dance floor level is located behind the parapets above the small horizontal windows above the plinth's
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that connected to the east side of the boiler house. Immediately after the completion of the boiler house, construction began on the turbine and generator house. In 1955, this addition was complete and a
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era at the beginning of the 1950s." Although the boiler house is a single large hall, from the outside it appears to be four or five storeys high. The large vertical windows seem to be interrupted by
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can be found all along the former
Stalinallee." A particular similarity exists between the north façade of the boiler house and the façade of the Deutsche Sporthalle arena. Its architect was
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497:. "The combined heat and power plant in Berlin-Friedrichshain, built in a style unusual for power plant buildings, is a classic example of the technical buildings designed in the
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Coal loading bridge and chimneys at the time of the power generation; on the left of the picture the cooling tower can be seen through the steel lattice of the coal loading bridge
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513:. The facades are structured with pilasters. "Small mezzanine windows, kept in a strongly horizontal articulated cornice, gave the building the appearance of a
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The coal bunkers of the power plant are still visible in the first construction phase's boiler house. These large concrete funnels are suspended from the main
789:] (in German). Robert Riedel, Peter Lemburg, Peter Güttler, Sabine Röck, Hilmar Bärthel (2nd ed.). Berlin: DOM Publishers. pp. 302–306, 396.
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The original site of the plant stretched from the power plant building eastwards towards
Helsingforser Straße and Marchlewskistraße. This was where the
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Used as 'Berghain' Club in the southern part of the building since 2004, the northern part remained without maintenance and allowing limited usage.
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The most striking design feature of the boiler house and turbine and generator house is the elaborate historicizing architecture in the style of
371:. The concrete structure, which is now used for the bar and terrace of the beer garden, originally housed a district heating transfer station.
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1133:[National tradition between theory and practice – The competitions in the reconstruction cities of Magdeburg and Rostock in 1952].
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The official construction period is 1952–1955. "Built in two phases, the building was made out of two ‘cubes’ of 40 x 40 metres." First, a
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Berghain is housed in the ruin of a thermal power station, built in 1953 as part of the Soviet Union's flagship Stalinallee development.
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was specially built in Friedrichshain. From the outset, it was planned to first implement the heating function in 1952, and then to add
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428:. The second building phase included the turbine and generator house. The turbine and generator house is now occupied by Berghain and
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Former cogeneration plant today without chimneys and cooling tower, in the foreground the turbine and generator house, now Berghain
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was built, which then served as the electricity supply. The first construction phase also included two – now demolished –
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1131:"Nationale Tradition zwischen Theorie und Praxis – Die Wettbewerbe in den Aufbaustädten Magdeburg und Rostock von 1952"
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in a second step in 1954. "The heating plant was built with the apartment block development in the style of
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Exterior façade of the boiler house as interior wall in the turbine and generator house, Berghain bar area
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The first construction phase was the boiler house. The boiler house is now used for art exhibitions as a
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were located, among other things. A remaining structure on the former power station's plot is the former
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993:"Collection Online | Berlinische Galerie | Ihr Museum für moderne und zeitgenössische Kunst in Berlin"
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was not sufficiently developed to supply the large residential area. For this reason, a new district
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was completed, which served as a district heating plant. Then, directly after that, the
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1137:(in German). Quotes from this german-language article were translated into english.
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822:(in German). Quotes from this german-language website were translated into english
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The planning and construction of the thermal power station are part of Berlin's
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and parties. The area between the canteen and the main building is now used as
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in Berlin-Friedrichshain. This project included buildings on Stalinallee (now
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Berghain's main room was once the turbine hall of an East Berlin power plant.
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521:-proportioned facades reflected the ‘new’ aesthetics of socialist realism."
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to nightclub took place in 2003/04 and was supervised by the design firm
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545:. An important planner for the architecture of Socialist Classicism was
418:. The southern half of the boiler house ground floor is occupied by the
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Berlin and its Buildings – Section X, Vol. A (2) – Urban Infrastructure
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Klusemann, Christian (2017). Butter, Andreas; Hofer, Sigrid (eds.).
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prestige projects in the 1950s was the construction of an exemplary
1020:"HALLE AM BERGHAIN | REFURBISHMENT AND STRUCTURAL UPGRADING – ZRS"
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Western perimeter of the property, footpath to Rüdersdorfer Straße
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856:"Berlin's queer archipelago: Landscape, sexuality, and nightlife"
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A special feature of the façade design is the machine house's
713:"Berghain at 15: What Next for Berlin's Legendary Nightclub?"
684:"Function Follows Form: How Berlin Turns Horror into Beauty"
226:. Today the building is widely known as the location of the
783:
Berlin und seine Bauten – Teil X, Bd. A (2) – Stadttechnik
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is also is located at Rüdersdorfer Straße in the district
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Architekten- und Ingenieur-Verein zu Berlin, ed. (2006).
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Medebach, Johannes (2021-01-08). Berkemann, Karin (ed.).
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Structural concrete inside the former boiler house, now
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Buildings and structures in Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg
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Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers
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653:Locomotive shed, today neighbourhood organisation
505:. Behind the supposed parapets there are no floor
292:on Rüdersdorfer Straße (now Ellen-Key-School), a
135:1990–1994: Energieversorgung Berlin AG (EBAG)
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216:Friedrichshain combined heat and power plant
22:Friedrichshain Combined Heat and Power Plant
748:"INTERVIEW: 'What happens in Berghain ...'"
641:Low-rise building on property, north corner
605:Low-rise building on property, north corner
629:Low-rise building on property, beer garden
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1105:"Deutsche Sporthalle in der Stalinallee"
1044:"In Berlin, Still Partying in the Ruins"
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566:Both building sections viewed from east
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196:Related media on Commons
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617:Low-rise building on property, canteen
16:Former heat and power generating plant
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997:sammlung-online.berlinischegalerie.de
489:North side of the former boiler house
252:Alexandra Erhard and Thomas Karsten.
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1169:Coal-fired power stations in Germany
1078:Erhard, Alexandra; Karsten, Thomas.
966:Erhard, Alexandra; Karsten, Thomas.
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854:Andersson, Johan (2022-10-12).
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1109:sammlung-online.stadtmuseum.de
968:"Projects: Bierhof Rüdersdorf"
816:"Heizkraftwerk Friedrichshain"
472:. Although the plant became a
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1111:. Stiftung Stadtmuseum Berlin
282:Weberwiese high-rise building
1042:Pareles, Jon (2014-11-21).
711:Cagney, Liam (2019-12-20).
396:turbine and generator house
101:Adaptive reuse as nightclub
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1135:archiv.ub.uni-marburg.de
127:1952–1978: Bewag (East)
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1080:"Projects: Laboratory"
839:: CS1 maint: others (
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169:Power generation
82:52.51111°N 13.44306°E
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943:"Bierhof Rüdersdorf"
590:Boiler house annex,
495:Socialist Classicism
432:as well as the club
409:circular hyperboloid
329:Socialist Classicism
148:Berghain OstGut GmbH
107:Commission date
752:moderne-regional.de
688:Failed Architecture
481:Architectural style
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357:Kantine am Berghain
337:coal loading bridge
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1086:(in German)
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820:www.vde.com
515:Renaissance
426:Lab.oratory
317:East Berlin
315:network in
141:2002–2011:
129:1978–1990:
85: /
61:Coordinates
1163:Categories
1148:2024-08-06
1115:2024-08-06
1090:2024-08-06
1061:2024-08-06
1025:2024-08-06
1002:2024-08-06
978:2024-08-06
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693:2024-08-06
662:References
365:beer gaden
341:stockpiles
250:architects
238:conversion
143:Vattenfall
73:13°26′35″E
70:52°30′40″N
1056:0362-4331
929:berlin.de
904:NIRGENDWO
882:0020-2754
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449:Berghain
423:sex club
400:chimneys
234:Berghain
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353:canteen
280:), the
192:Commons
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311:The
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