Berlin, Germany

Bet- und Lehrhaus Petriplatz Berlin

The structure is a facing brickwork construction tracing the tracks of Petrikirche. Its perimeters including the choir are retraced by solidly basing the new construction on the foundation walls of said church. The external characteristic of the House of Prayer and Learning is the tranquillity of its cubic appearance. In the city, the structure communicates its appearance with its staggered height that towers above its environment and makes it recognizable as a special place. Large contained brick surfaces distinguish it from the façades of the surrounding residential and commercial buildings, specific openings in the brick façade that are joined to form an entity around the central domed hall characterize the sacral locations within the building.

The interior space forms a suspenseful contradiction to the cubature of the building. The balance between unity and diversification of the House of Prayer and Learning is communicated in the denouement of the room shapes from the overall shape. The outside and the inside find their link in the threshold of specific light openings. In the dividing wall on the other hand, the difference between the cubic body and the differently shaped design of the interior rooms, sculpted as room plastics from the building mass, is articulated. Its expression is specifically developed with the religious communities; the double-storey domed hall designed in facing brickwork forms the gathering point of the teaching house in this context.

Stations and route
The House of Prayer and Learning is a sequence of stations. These are located in the city and in the interior like stations along a route. Each station fulfils its own purpose, and jointly these stations form a lively arrangement of situations. Access is granted from all sides of the building and unites in the elevated entrance level to the reception area. The public space moves through the House of Prayer and Learning as a path between Brüderstrasse and Gertraudenstrasse.

Petriplatz
An elevated free space spans to the north of the House of Prayer. Its lavish perrons and a ramp extend to the street, while a semi-high surrounding wall offers a protected space. Flanked by the opposite façade of the former Hertzog department store and the old trees, this mediates between the hustle and bustle of urban space and the tranquillity of the sacral building. With its south-west orientation, Petriplatz is suitable for the outside terrace of the café and as a meeting point of urban life.

Arcade
The on average seven metres high passage continues the urban arcade along Gertraudenstraße as a public space. As a sculptured room, the arcade continues the sequence of interior rooms in the House of Prayer and Learning. Extensive wall openings connect the space of the arcade visually with the archaeological field of Petrikirche and act as natural lighting and ventilation as well as as a filter between urban space and museal excavation.

Archaeological field
In the basement floor of the House of Prayer and Learning, an eight metres high hall contains the archaeological excavations of the former Petri churches. Their surrounding walls were constructed on the foundation walls of the neo-Gothic church dating back to 1853 and serve for their protection as well as for the visualisation of the historic fragments. By elevating the entrance level by one and a half metres, it is possible to continue the archaeological walkabout on the existing level -1.5m along the historical floors, foundations and fragments in the planning area of the sacral building and the former chancel.

Reception and stairway cylinder
A spacious opening in the brick wall marks the main entrance at the start of Brüderstraße. The visitors enter the two-story, cylindrical reception area with a café, enclosed by a spiral staircase, at +1.5m through the archaeological hall. From here, the visitor spirals upwards, overlooking the archaeological excavations.

Dome hall
Via the south entrance, the visitor enters the central dome hall at +9m. This hall is the clearly laid out central room of encounter and also serves as event hall for readings, concerts and exhibitions. The dome hall gathers the three separate sacral rooms around it; these are arranged it in regular form and axially continued by it. At the same time, it is an autarkic place of encounter, inviting visitors to rest and dwell within its sublime appearance. The Library of the Religions is located in a spatial unit with the dome hall at gallery level (+14m) whose gallery opens towards the central event room.

Sacral rooms
The three autonomous sacral rooms are grouped around the common dome hall. Its equipment and function serve the three communities as separate places of worship. These are separately accessible to ensure autonomous use of the sacral rooms at any time. The room quality and character will be developed specifically with the religious communities and differentiate themselves through light openings in the outer cubature. Rooms for ecclesiastics and adjoining rooms for performing rituals are in immediate proximity to the respective sacral rooms. The synagogue and the mosque each have their own, spatially integrated yet separate, gallery at +14m.

City loggia
The protected tower room of the city loggia completes the solitary construction. At a height of 32 metres, it provides a view over the urban landscape and significantly shapes the urban silhouette. As the last level of the central room, the city loggia is another place for gathering and meditation. The lighted dome of the central room visibly unites it with the dome hall and lets its appearance protrude into urban space.

Material
The interaction of facing brickwork and daylight are the construction material of the House of Prayer and Learning. Surface and opening, limit and threshold, earthing and transcendence find their expression in this interaction. Numerous light-guiding perforations in the facing brickwork characterise the different locations within the building. Arcade, dome hall and city loggia are united by the theme of dissolved walls as filters of different public intensity. Contrary to that, each sacral room is characterised by its own, light-designing brickwork perforation: the interior space takes on shape; the facade appears specifically in urban space.

Design
For bracing and static reinforcement, the solid brickwork will be fitted with steel reinforcements and additional reinforced concrete reinforcements. The weight will be borne by the outer walls and in the area of the cylindrical rotundas by pillars in the solid lime stone foundations. In some areas, the loads will be deflected by additional small and large drilled piles to the soil, depending on static requirements.

Europaconcorsi Beta

Bet- und Lehrhaus Petriplatz Berlin