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International Building Exhibition Berlin facts for kids

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The International Building Exhibition Berlin (also known as IBA Berlin) was a big project to make West Berlin, Germany, better. It started in 1979 and finished in 1987. This was just in time for Berlin's 750th birthday!

The IBA had two main ideas: "careful urban renewal" and "critical reconstruction." Think of "urban renewal" as making old city areas new again. "Careful" meant they tried to keep the good parts of the old city while improving it. "Critical reconstruction" meant building new things in a way that respected the city's history and style, but also brought in new ideas.

This huge project had a budget of about $1.2 billion. Its goal was to create homes for around 30,000 people in certain parts of West Berlin.

How it Started

The IBA project was split into two main parts. Each part was in charge of building about 6,000 apartments.

In 1979, Josef Paul Kleihues became the director of the "IBA Neubau" section. This part focused on new buildings. Another person, Hardt Waltherr Hämer, led the "IBA Altbau" section, which was about fixing up older buildings.

Kleihues organized the exhibition around two different themes:

  • IBA Alt: This part looked for the best ways to do "careful urban renewal." This meant making old city areas better while keeping their original feel.
  • IBA Neu: This part was for trying out new ideas in "critical reconstruction." This involved building new structures that fit in with the city's history but also showed modern design.

Many famous architects from 10 different countries were invited to help. Some of these included Gottfried Böhm, Mario Botta, Peter Eisenman, Vittorio Gregotti, John Hejduk, Herman Hertzberger, Hans Hollein, Arata Isozaki, Léon Krier, Rob Krier, Charles Moore, Aldo Rossi, and James Stirling. They built in areas like Prager Platz in Wilmersdorf, and the Tegel, southern Tiergarten, and southern Friedrichstadt districts.

Because so many top architects were involved, Time magazine called the IBA "the most ambitious showcase of world architecture in this generation." It was a really big deal for architecture!

Gallery

  • Berlin schlesische-str-7 bonjour-tristesse 20050224 p1010029

    The Bonjour tristesse apartment building, designed by Alvaro Siza.

  • Haus am Checkpoint Charlie

    The Haus am Checkpoint Charlie, designed by Peter Eisenman.

  • Koolhaas-Haus am Checkpoint Charlie

    Another view of the Haus am Checkpoint Charlie, designed by Rem Koolhaas.

  • Lützowplatz Berlin Ungers

    Apartments at Lützowplatz, designed by Oswald Mathias Ungers. (This building was taken down in 2013.)

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