From artistic action to model project: the 50,000 m² building complex on Alexanderplatz stood empty for over a decade. Originally, the site was to be sold and demolished – until an artistic protest action turned the tide in 2015.
During Berlin Art Week, the Alliance of Threatened Berlin Studio Houses (AbBA) affixed a large banner to the façade in the style of a construction sign. This symbolic intervention made the impending loss publicly visible and triggered a broad discussion about the future of the Haus der Statistik.
This movement gave rise to the Haus der Statistik initiative, an association of artists, architects, cultural workers and politicians. With creative actions, high-profile campaigns and city-wide networking meetings, the initiative succeeded in stopping the previous plans and developing an alternative vision. In 2018, this civil society success led to the founding of KOOP5, a unique cooperation between civil society, politics and administration, which is now developing the Haus der Statistik district as a model project for urban development geared towards the common good.
