Checkpoint Bravo – between remembrance and renewal evelyn osvath
«The ambition was not focused towards depicting the whole, but rather towards grinding and dissecting its basic elements in order to establish scenic contrasts» — K Malevich 1921
copyright Stiftung Berliner Mauer
i n t r o d u c t i o n Along highway A115, leading to Berlin, there is a widening framed by several iconic, colourful buildings. This widening, which appears as a motorway station, is a remnant of the Cold War era: Checkpoint Bravo, built after the 1948 separation of Germany into an eastern and western part by the WWII Western Allies to control any social, economic and cultural exchange between the two sides. This characteristic urban structure in the shape of an isolated, enclosed island floating in the wooded outskirts of Berlin is the epitome of the parallel reality a border crossing creates – one of the most striking ones the history of divided Germany has to offer. However, over the past 30 years since German unification, this place has experienced declining public interest and material decay. In this sense, it seems legitimate to speak of an (un)defined space; a space with missing awareness, despite its importance as a heritage site since 1992. It appears somewhat ahistorical, yet still full of untold stories and memories of its past. This rich and somewhat ironic history of the site and also its very unique spatial and structural condition of a checkpoint has led to my interest in a potential architectural intervention aimed at bringing back awareness and acknowledgment. It goes without saying that as an architect, any interference with such a historically important site requires sensitivity and self-reflection. I was born after Germany’s reunification and thus have never been an immediate part of the scenery and experiences that Checkpoint Bravo has had produced. At the same time, I find myself bound up with the past of the state I call home and thereby cannot escape subjective feelings or attachments. It is part of this journey to make myself aware of them. In its original function, Checkpoint Bravo structurally supported an oppressive political regime and thereby inherently has carried elements of structural violence and control ever since. This said, it is at the core of my research to not only reflect on but also draw the reader’s attention to the bias that ultimately occurs from dealing with someone else’s memory and history attached to a certain space. This is challenged by questioning the usual processes of either eliminating history or overloading memory, therefore our aim should always be to strike a balance between remembrance of the memorable and renewal of the oblivious. Only then will we be able to find meaning in new structures that carry the past.
h i s t o r y At the end of WW II, Germany was divided into four occupied zones by Great Britain (northwest), France (southwest), the United States (south) and the Soviet Union (east). Berlin, the capital city, was also divided into four occupied zones. These complex realities have produced different terms; for ease, this article follows terminologies as defined by the German Federal Agency for Civic Education. West Germany, or the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG), was officially established in May 1949, and East Germany, or the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was established in October the same year. Under their occupying regimes, the two sides followed very different paths. An increasing separation of the two systems had culminated over the years in the gradual erection of the ‘Wall’ in 1961. Beyond mere separation, the Wall had obtained political relevance through the control of movement – of resources, goods, humans – across the border. This was supported by several border crossings between the FRG and the GDR. One of the most important crossing between West and East was Checkpoint Bravo (in German known as Kontrollpunkt Dreilinden ). The present location and appearance of Checkpoint Bravo has undergone transformation over time but took definite shape in the late 1960s. Its relevance was emphasised by its location on the western territory as part of the American Sector — in fact, as the most important entrance to the West. It was the only entry point that allowed access to the transit routes leading from West- Berlin to West Germany. As these routes were crossing over East German territory, the GDR had established their own checkpoint as a counterpart around 3km away, the Kontrollpunkt Drewitz , less significant and demolished in the 1990s. The transit routes through Checkpoint Bravo were mainly used by West German citizens and diplomats. To maintain control of movement, the GDR gradually established a powerful system that operated in two ways: on one hand, it prevented intrusion by people hostile to their regime from entering; on the other, it prevented people from escaping their regime; it prevented influx to the West. The supportive structure for this endeavour was manifest in a heavy border fortification of diverse features such as a security wall, watchtowers, a safety area, various minefields and the Todesstreifen (death strip). Structures can tell a lot about the values and ideas of those who have created them and need to be carefully examined before encountering them and creating interventions.
on site review 38: borders, lines, breaks and breaches 20
Made with FlippingBook interactive PDF creator