Quartier Schützenstraße is, like the Hotel Roter Adler, located not far from Checkpoint Charlie in Berlin’s Mitte district. The area was devestated during World War 2, and due to its proximity to the Berlin Wall the property lay empty.
After German Reunification in the early 1990s, the city began investing heavily in redeveloping the area. The Italian architect Aldo Rossi was selected to redevelop this particular property. Construction began in 1994.
From the outside, you’d never guess that they were actually all built at the same time by the same architect.
Photo Credit: Creative Commons.
Rossi wanted to pay homage to the historic urban structure of the area, in which each plot of land was used differently. He drew inspiration from many sources when designing the different facades, in particular from the Palazzo Farnese in Rome.
The grey section of the facade is intended to pay homage to the Palazzo Farnese in Rome.
The Palazzo Farnese in Rome. Aldo Rossi drew inspiration from this facade for the Quartier Schützenstraße in Berlin. Photo Credit: Creative Commons
The building complex has more than a dozen different facades. The interior of the complex, however, does not mirror the facades. Rooms and offices are arranged independently of the facades.
A selection of the different facades. They are very colorful and dynamic. Photo Credit: Creative Commons.
Quarter Schützenstraße has four interior courtyards, each slightly different than the others. One of them is octogonal, which for me is a very nice little architectural surprise.
Two of the inner courtyards in the Quartier Schützenstraße building complex. They remind me of an old Italian building, except they were actually built in the 1990s in Berlin. Photo credit: Creative Commons.
Rossi never saw the completed ensemble, as he died before construction was finished in 1998.
The octogonal courtyard inside the Quarter Schützenstraße.