Threatened with demolition and celebrated as icons of brutalism, Gerd and Magdalena Hänska’s Mäusebunker and the former Hygieneinstitut designed by Hermann Fehling and Daniel Gogel in Steglitz, Berlin, form a unique ensemble of exceptional buildings. This volume takes as its subjects the different architectural principles underlying the two facing buildings, the intense debate concerning their preservation and reuse, and their economic and cultural value. The questions now posed by these concrete structures and the impact of their designs and power are explored using the architects’ historical design documents as well as artistic contributions. Photographs by Kay Fingerle offer a view of the buildings’ interiors rarely afforded to the public.
