DAS STUE BERLIN High End Hotel
Berlin, GERMANY. 2012
CLIENT: SPANISH INVESTOR GROUP
SIZE: 10.500 m2
COST: 14.000.000€
AUTHORS: HABITAN + GCA ARQUITECTOS + STUDIO URQUIOLA
EN/ES
Das Stue is housed in the former Royal Danish Embassy, which was built in the 1930s. The neo-classical building was designed by architect Johann Emil Schaudt (1871-1957), who immortalized his architectural approach to Berlin’s cityscape with the Kaufhaus des Westens (KaDeWe) department store and the subway station at Rathaus Schöneberg. The elegance of his work, visible at Das Stue, is distinguished by a convex façade, following the arc of the road. Four unpretentious pairs of columns support the sublime balcony of the Bel Etage, where the Ambassador himself resided in days gone by.
Having been only slightly damaged in World War II, the building served as a consulate and the location of diplomatic representation for the Danish military in Germany until 1978. Between 1978 and 1987 the magnificent building was vacant, and subsequently used by the Deutsche Post, and later the Deutsche Telekom as an “executive academy”.
Today, the link between the structures’ historic existence and modern architecture is distinct right from the start. A glass porch in front of the 24-hour main reception, allows a glimpse into the inner workings of the Design Hotel. The eye wanders past the dual grand staircases, over the design of the contemporary bar, and finally rests on the vast panoramic façade overlooking the expanse of the Berlin Zoo.
The extension behind the grand main building the addition, designed by the Potsdam architect Annette Axthelm, completes the impressive fusion between old and new. The extension in the rear courtyard is designed with an innovative photo concrete surface covered with a historic flower pattern, offering an elegant counterpoint to the rough stone façade of the main structure.