Technische Universität Berlin, Mathematikgebäude, Mathematics building at Technical University of Berlin, Germany.
The Mathematics Building of the Technical University of Berlin is an H-shaped high-rise set slightly back from Strasse des 17 Juni, designed by Georg Kohlmaier and Barna von Sartory. Its glass shell carries metal panels painted bright blue and red, and the existing electrical engineering lecture hall by Karl Wilhelm Ochs (1960–1963) is built into the complex. Inside, in-situ and lightweight concrete were left exposed as thermal mass.
The building stems from a 1967 campus competition that TU Berlin did not realise as a whole; Georg Kohlmaier and Barna von Sartory, second-placed, received a direct commission, with planning starting in 1973. Construction ran from 1976, and completion is given as 1981, 1982 or 1983 depending on the source. The existing electrical engineering lecture hall by Karl Wilhelm Ochs (1960–1963) was incorporated into the design.
The building's name derives from its use by the Institute of Mathematics, and it also housed the Institute for Mathematics and Basic Computer Science Training. Its interior combines high-tech, solar and Pop Art elements with Brutalist concrete, cast in place or laid as lightweight concrete masonry. The lecture hall facing Strasse des 17. Juni is deliberately bulky and closed in concrete, while the forecourt holds the Werner-von-Siemens monument.
The building has been fully closed since June 2023 after a water damage caused by blocked drainpipes; parts were already closed in April 2023. The student cafeteria sits beneath the lecture hall on Strasse des 17. Juni, while the staff canteen on the top floor was permanently closed in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Werner-von-Siemens memorial stands on the forecourt.
The triple glazing was a first for an office building in 1976, but the glass skin was only half the concept: the architects hoped the high glass share would capture heat, an idea borrowed from greenhouse construction. Interior concrete left exposed was meant to store that warmth.
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