UP! Berlin

In 2016 JASPER ARCHITECTS won the competition organized by Signa, Austria’s largest privately owned real estate company, for an over-all redesign of the Building of the former “Centrum Warenhaus” of the GDR built in 1979.

The competition task was to present a concept to turn this massive square building block of 80m length and 80m width into usable office space, generating future work places for the digital era.

The biggest challenge was to bring natural lighting into the building.

The presented idea was to cut triangular shaped prisms on each side of the square building to flood the interior with natural light and by this loosen up the massive monolithic geometry of the existing building. These created voids redefine the building’s urban presence entirely, opening the volume up on all four sides.

These cuts, as well a strategic terracing and twisting of the floors, optimize views to central Berlin. All floors have access to outdoor communal spaces for working, entertaining and relaxing.

To compensate for the cut-out real estate sqm, two floors are added on the top.

A big roof top terrace creates an amazing view on Berlin.

For the redesign, the existing Building is stripped down to its structural concrete columns and floorplates. Wrapped in high-quality glass, what was once an interior-focused shopping center has been reimagined as an outwardly-focused center for productivity, creativity and community.