Apartment Building Fraenkelufer

Friederike Schneider

Description

This addition, which makes use of organic forms, has been placed against a firewall (Elisabethhof). All apartments open up toward the garden courtyard; the entrance zones with elevators and stairwells are placed against the end wall. The division of the apartments does away with hallways and lobbies, the soft outlines and height differences of the floor plans create zones that can and must be interpreted by the resident.

Two-room apartments: the kitchen (as counter/bar) is lit and ventilated indirectly via the living room. The rounded area adjacent to the kitchen can be used as a cloakroom. Separation or connection of sleeping and living area is possible.

Four-room apartments: the kitchen is part of the large living room/throughway (the traditional “Berlin room”). From there, second and third floors provide direct access to the garden via spiral staircases.

Six-room maisonettes of exceptional size in basement story/ground floor and on fifth and sixth floors: galley kitchen in living room/connecting space. A spiral staircase leads to the second living room/connecting space, which is divided into different areas by steps creating varying levels and/or galleries. Bedrooms/bathroom are located off the sleeping zone hallway behind the living room. The lower maisonettes have direct access to the garden, the maisonettes on the top floors enjoy rooftop terraces.

Drawings

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Floor plan diagram, scale 1:500

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Site plan

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Ground floor and basement: upper and lower level of 6-room duplex apartment

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5th floor: lower level of 6-room duplex apartment

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Typical floor plan with 2-room and 3-room apts., scale 1:200

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Cross section

Photos

Courtyard façade


Originally published in: Oliver Heckmann, Friederike Schneider (eds.), Floor Plan Manual Housing, fourth revised and expanded edition, Birkhäuser, 2011.

Building Type Housing

Morphological Type Block Infill/Block Edge, Complex/Ensemble

Urban Context Urban Block Structure

Architect Inken and Hinrich Baller

Year 1984

Location Berlin

Country Germany

Geometric Organization Linear

Building Depth 8/18 m

Number of Units 48 Units in Courtyard Buildings
40 Units in the Gate Buildings

Size of Units 2-Room Apts., Approx. 64 m²
3-room apts., Approx. 93 m²
6-Room Duplex Apts., Approx. 167 m²

Height Mid-Rise (4 to 7 levels)

Load-Bearing Structure Solid Construction

Access Type Vertical Core

Layout Living Room as Circulation Center, Open Plan

Outdoor Space of Apartment Balcony, Roof Terrace, Terrace

Parking On basement story with garden above

New Building, Refurbishment or Extension New Building

Additional Information Courtyard building along firewall
6 stories
facing S

Address Fraenkelufer
Berlin-Kreuzberg

Map Link to Map