Building with Stone

We’ve all followed the never-ending discussions about plans for Pariser Platz in Berlin. With the aim of keeping the traditional look of the square, the City of Berlin (supported by a ‘society for the preservation of historic Berlin’) brought out a regulation that required all facades fronting onto the square to be clad at least 50% with natural stone. Stone was thus thrown into the spotlight as a symbol of ‘the good old days’. In the opposing camp, of course, were the architect and the client, both of whom wanted a modern architectural idiom with glass. The result was – as so often – a compromise in the form of a ‘revised’ design.