Out behind the 16th-century Zeughaus, or armory that houses the German Historical Museum in Berlin, almost hidden by the museum itself, is one of the masterworks of star architect I.M. Pei, serving as a center for the museum’s special exhibitions.
In contract to its Baroque neighbor, the newer building is glass, angles and curves, always suggesting a connection to the older building without actually imitating it.
Pei, clearly one of the star architects of the last and this century, has designed a number of museum projects, including the Louvre in Paris and the East Wing of the National Gallery in Washington, but no two are alike. It’s hard for me to even suggest what constitutes a Pei ‘style,’ since each of the buildings was made for a unique location.
In an interview with German radio at the time the building opened, Pei explained his goal: “The architecture should seduce people to move through the whole building full of curiosity and pleasure. I even want to tempt them to the top-most floor through ever more steps, new views.”
And that, I think, he has clearly achieved. Where his reorganization of the Louvre around the focal point of the pyramid draws viewers in one direction, the Berlin building entices the visitor to look in every direction. The dramatic open spaces (no floor is without an open atrium connection to others); the sharp angles drawing the eye in one direction and then passing on to a circle. The building almost demands that you keep moving around.
At the moment, it’s the only part of the historical museum that’s open, while the main building undergoes major renovations. Its four floors each house a large gallery with flexible wall and space arrangements. When I visited, among the exhibits was one about Karl Marx and Capitalism, and another that showed 40 or so portraits of former Chancellor Angela Merkel over her years in politics.
Editor’s Apology for late acknowledgement: PortMoresby was the only reader to correctly identify the building as this week’s One-Clue Mystery
