The striking red "gatekeeper's lodge" that welcomes visitors to the popular Holzmarkt cultural quarter could hardly be better suited to its role. Office ParkScheerbarth architects call the building "House 2+." Realized almost entirely in wood, the structure serves as a reference to the site's former use as a timber transshipment hub. In the 19th century it was indeed a lumber market; during the GDR era, the riverside property sat in the border zone between East and West Berlin. After the wall fell, it remained a vacant lot as stakeholders couldn't agree on its future use. In 2004, the interim phase began with the legendary Bar Bau 25. By 2012, a cooperative was established that secured the right to use the site for non-commercial purposes. Gradually, additional non-profit institutions and creatives joined, transforming "Holzmarkt 25" into a sought-after creative quarter.

The striking red main entrance spans three stories, and its designers affectionately call it a "friendly parasite." This refers to the building's strategy of working in and with the existing structure. Access is provided by the staircase of the adjacent concert hall, "House 2." The building's floor slab functions as the lid of the neighboring basement level, and the existing district heating station is shared with the adjacent building. This approach made the project feasible despite tight budget constraints. The building's unconventional form is another distinctive feature: from the street, the gateway to Holzmarkt appears as a narrow addition leaning against the concert hall with its half barrel roof. The front elevation surprises with a cutout at the top floor, from which a sky bridge extends to the opposite building. On the rear, a cubic addition projects from the façade, punctuated by irregularly positioned square and rectangular windows. There's also a balcony and terrace on the top floor. Even a narrow green roof was incorporated to further optimize the timber structure's carbon footprint. Six tenants now occupy the 240 m² of commercial space: a bakery on the ground floor, a booking agency, a tattoo studio, a physiotherapist, an artist, and a photography studio. The "Red House" employs three different timber construction systems: the façade is a timber frame structure with a ventilated timber cladding. Interior walls are solid wood, and the ceilings use hollow-core timber elements. All prefabricated components were produced regionally and fastened with screws rather than glue, allowing each element to be disassembled and recycled separately. This "friendly parasite" is exceptionally environmentally conscious. Its versatility integrates seamlessly into its surroundings while its striking signal color draws countless visitors.

www.o-ps.com

Photography:
Jan Bitter
www.janbitter.de

(Published in CUBE Berlin 02|26)