In Germany, working with existing structures has become the architect’s most important task, the objective being to recognize and redevelop the energy and potentials of such structures: moreReduce, Reuse, Recycle. The approaches put forward here for dealing with them demonstrate what is possible in “everyday” building endeavors. Architects respect existing buildings, examine them from a contemporary point of view, and develop architecture through their interventions. With numerous best-practice examples, this book offers an overview of innovative strategies for regenerating, reusing, renovating, and augmenting pre-existing structures. Interviews, statements, and international references generate a changing self-image—of architects who, when transforming existing buildings, no longer see themselves as creators but as developers.
