<Eternitový dům>Eternit house</Eternitový dům>

The Eternit house designed by Paul Baumgarten was created as part of Interbau 57 (the International Building Exhibition held in West Berlin in 1957). Baumgarten's design aims to innovate classical housing. From the very beginning, the author found it inappropriate to develop the assigned plot directly adjacent to the public Tiergarten park with seven terraced family homes with private gardens (Arne Jacobsen, Eduard Ludwig, and Gerhard Weber adhered to the urban plan of Werner Düttmann and created single-story family homes surrounded by high fences with atriums that preserve privacy in the midst of the urban park). Instead, an elevated "living ship" (Wohnschiff) emerged, which hovers lightly above the glazed ground floor. This private deck was accessed via a single-flight staircase and the seven residential modules were entered from a north-facing gallery. The exit platform may resemble a captain's bridge, and other nautical elements evoke living quarters or lightweight railings that encircle the building's perimeter. The originally planned single-story terraced houses transformed into seven duplexes with private rooftop terraces instead of gardens. On the ground floor, there was an exhibition area, lecture hall, office, facilities, and a janitor's apartment. On the entrance floor to the apartments, there was a trio of bedrooms with sanitary facilities. From here, a spacious hallway led up a single-flight staircase to the social area with a dining room and kitchen module. Generously glazed surfaces open to three sides, with the longest facade connected to a rooftop terrace, offering residents a narrow contact with the treetops while providing ample privacy despite the fact that the building is located in the midst of a public park. The modern language, rich glazing, color palette, and gentle shed roofs give the building Baumgarten's characteristic lightness. During Interbau 57, Eternit AG utilized the ground floor to showcase its construction products. At the same time, it financially contributed to the realization of the building, and the facade and roof also featured products from this construction company.