The Biosphere and Flower Pavilion was originally constructed for the six-month German Horticultural Show (BUGA) 2001 Potsdam, in the vicinity of the Sanssouci Palace. The project is located in the Bornstedter Fields, a site where it is used for the previous 100 years by the military for troop exercises and barracks. Designed by Berlin-based architects Barkow Leibinger, this building has an intended lifespan of at least 20 years, as a Biosphere and a major part the site’s transformation into a new residential district of nearly 20,000.

The architects looked at the history of the site as a conceptual basis for the competition-winning design. While used by both the Prussian and Nazi armies, it was the postwar creation of earthen berms to enclose Russian barracks. Then the design is generated by these forms of earthen berms, framing an artificial valley which is enclosed by a simple flat roof with multiple skylights. The Biosphere and Flower Pavilion is one of a number of projects that offer potent symbols for Germany’s post-reunification future, in this instance replacing barracks and a training ground with a giant greenhouse.

(more…)