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Architecture & Politics

Hauptstadt Berlin 

After devastation caused by aerial bombardment during the Second World War, a city planning competition was held for the rebuilding of the central area of Berlin, following confirmation by the West German Bundestag in 1957 of the status of Berlin as capital of the Federal Republic.  

Alison and Peter Smithson with P. Sigmond-Wonke, London, won the third prize. The main idea raises on a connected city through a network of pedestrian platforms that separated motorized mobility from pedestrian mobility by an irregular pattern. As you can see on images above their design uses three clear colour plastic overlays to show street patterns, site and traffic layout. 

Many of the proposals emphasised the separation of motor and pedestrian traffic. For example, Hartmann, Nickerl and Scharoun which won the second prize, proposed most of the motor traffic underground. The project in the end could not be built due to the economic and political climate.

The city planning competition ‘Hauptstadt Berlin’ was widely published, including in a large format book entitled Berlin: Ergebnis des Internationalen städtebaulichen Ideenwettbewerbs Hauptstadt Berlin, published by the Federal Minister of Housing (Stuttgart : Krämer, 1960). 

Image: Sketch from the southern part of competition area, Alison and Peter Smithson with P. Sigmond-Wonke. AA Archives

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