Ever since their first major construction project, the Engelhardt Hof in Berlin, Petra and Paul Kahlfeldt have joined the ranks of the premier league of contemporary architecture. Their modern adaptation of traditional Berlin courtyards was received with much applause, yet the residential building implemented by them in Dahlem shortly thereafter appeared equally scandalous. The perfect exercise of a classicist canon shocked specialists who are still committed to Bauhaus functionality. However, the fact that the Kahlfeldts cannot be pinned with the label of reactionary traditionalists was proven by the apartment building created by them at the same time. Located at the Friedrichstrasse, it demonstrates the best architectural qualities of Modernism. The architects aim to always deliver the “right architecture for the right location using the right elements”. In this book, Petra and Paul Kahlfeldt provide the evidence that their architecture is the result of an in-depth thought-process on their profession. Only the reflection upon (one’s own) practical implementation shows what the nature and meaning of architecture in our contemporary times can be.
