Lost Track of Time

In 1841, when Anhalter Bahnhof started operating, the area became a central hub of modern industrial transformation, connecting Berlin to other regions of Prussia and Europe. 

This glorious era, spanning over 9 decades, is revealed through virtual reconstruction of the splendid Anhalter Station, the Hochbahn triangle floating above a sea of 50 parallel railways, depots and freight yards, and even train lines breaking through residential houses.

This part also engages texts written by Egon Erwin Kisch, Joseph Roth and Walter Benjamin, expressing their visions of a fast-paced metropolis.

The tour reflects on the role of the big passenger stations around Gleisdreieck during WWII, showing how these cosmopolitan “temples of progress”, built to open Berlin to the outside world, became sites of tragedy.

For thousands of Berliners threatened by the Nazi regime, Anhalter Bahnhof was the last stop before fleeing into exile. The tour also traces the memory of Gleis 1 to commemorate the fate of Jews who were deported. Following that will be shown footage of its destruction and demolition.

Looking into the future is envisioned by realistic renderings of the planned Exile Museum at this very place.

The division of Berlin into two cities during the cold war - East as the capital of the GDR, and West as an isolated extension of the FRG - sealed the fate of Gleisdreieck as a nexus of international rail traffic. 

On the surface, the area stagnated, as the land was located in West-Berlin, and the infrastructure owned by East Germany and it quickly became a wasteland in the heart of Berlin.
The tour focuses, however, on two fascinating movements occurring during those years: the growth of wild vegetation, creating a unique ecosystem of both native and migrating flora and fauna, and the grassroots movement of active citizens rising up to protect this habitat from the construction of a south-north highway.

The fall of the Berlin Wall and the reunification following it, generated plenty of reconstruction plans. The development of the reunified capital was enabled by the massive selling of public grounds and property. Located at the very heart of the city, Gleisdreieck turned from a wasteland to a real-estate gold mine.
Environmental legislation stated that due to urban density in adjacent areas, large parts of the area should stay undeveloped. In parallel, privatizing the former Reichsbahn assets, and rising market value of the ground, challenged this plan. After a long phase of negotiation, it was decided in 2005 that the investor must develop an open park for the public. As compensation for the costs, however, they received the rights to build additionally 7 high rise buildings.

Gleisdreieck Park, designed by Atelier LOIDL Landscape Architects, was inaugurated in 2013, winning numerous prizes for its environmental, cultural and social qualities.

In 2015 the architecture studio Ortner&Ortner won the contest for planning the compound of 7 high-rise buildings, solely dedicated to offices and commercial development, following the agreement from 2005. In contrast, 11 local initiatives calling to adjust or cancel the plans arose, submitting more than 200 objections between 2016 to 2022.

Realistic renderings of the plans will be visualized on-site through the AR technology, as well as the expected ecological impact of the compound, illustrating forthcoming alterations.