Anti-monument

The BIZ has a double character, it fits into the zoo, becomes "his" pavilion and merges with the park landscape without, however, its architectural style in addition to the outstanding buildings around the zoo such as the Hansaviertel, the Philharmonie, the Neue Wache or the Victory Column to give up identity. In a paradoxical way, the BIZ blends in harmoniously with the surroundings, which are strongly influenced by the surrounding buildings. The Chancellery, the Reichstag building and the Soviet memorial require a clearly legible architectural intervention. At the sametime, the BIZ does justice to the magical nature of the zoo and its demand for a subtle, light and varied intervention.

Immaterial

The BIZ presents itself in two different ways, a precise, coherent volume, an easy to grasp polygon, but of fleeting materiality, shaded by transparencies and reflections. At times it reflects the park, takes on the color of the sky, or at other times it reveals its interior. The polygonal floor plan creates various relationships with the outside space, the monumental Platz der Republik, the Soviet memorial framed by strict yew hedges and the linden avenues along the Simsonweg, the Kleine Querallee, the Zeltenallee and the space at the intersection of the three paths.

Infrastructure

While the external appearance of the BIZ expresses the fine, expressionistic approach to the location, the spatial organization is linked to the structuring skeleton of the building. In the center there are two mighty pillars, which take up the vertical access. These hold a sequence of concrete beams with a strong cross-section. The support structure defines the interior of the central room, the foyer, in which the strong structure of the building comes into its own in an interplay of light andshadow through the lighting via ceiling lights.

Scenes from the zoo

The project presents itself in the form of an “analytical collage”, individual, surreal fragments put together to forma whole. Each fragment corresponds to the specific conditions of its environment and depicts individual “scenes”. The sequence of the scenes enablesa variety of visual perceptions, depending on the viewer and his point of viewin rest or movement. The scenes can be repeated in the simple geometry of the facade. The BIZ emerges as a paradigm of the anti-monument and fully accepts its subordinate role to the Reichstag building.

Facets and camouflage

The aesthetics of dissolution and camouflage materialize in the architecture of the BIZ. The building is hidden between the trees of the Tiergarten and remains inconspicuous and camouflaged with facades in diffuse gray tones which dissolve in the sky, duplicate on the reflective parts of the atmosphere and reflect the landscape of the Tiergarten. The composition of the BIZ levels enables each facade to have its own character. This peculiarity dissolves the unity of the building, making it ananti-monument and complex in its perception.