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The Old Temple by Hubert Robert, 1787. Public domain via Art Institute of Chicago.
On Ruin Lust
The term Ruin lust originates from the German word Ruinenlust, describing the appreciation of decay and destruction. Some architects have even designed a building with the vision of it becoming an aesthetically pleasing ruin even after it collapses. The infamous architect Albert Speer coined the term Ruin value (Ruinewerte), envisioning structures that would maintain their grandeur even in a state of ruin.
Both architects and city dwellers are fascinated with ruins. Is it a pure melancholic nostalgia, or is there something we can learn about the city and ourselves, when we gaze upon these remnants in partial decay?
While Germany’s oldest cities such as Trier (founded in 16 BC), and the former capital Bonn (12 BC) boast ancient architecture, Berlin is a relatively young city, established in the 1200s. Berlin doesn’t hold a catalogue of grandiose Monuments to begin with, and the city was heavily bombed during the Second World War. The Francisian Monastery in Mitte was one of the few structures that existed since the founding of the city.
Erected around 1249 near what is now Alexanderplatz (former East Berlin's city center), the monastery has undergone many transformations: it served as a school, then a printing house, before being largely destroyed by Allied bombing during the war. Today most of the monastery complex was demolished to make way for a park. The only part still standing today are the facades enclosing an open-air space. Since 1982, the site- now known as the Klosterruine Berlin, has served as a venue for concerts and art installations. The mediaeval structure and contemporary art forges a harmonious relationship.
It is hard to imagine that today’s office buildings or shopping malls will survive planned demolition and remain standing for 700 years like the Monastery ruins. The ruin lust is not only a romantic nostalgia- it is also a subtle resistance to change, a reminiscence that stands against the real estate economy.
As a city that has borne witness to destruction from wars and the fall of the Berlin Wall, Berlin's ruins play a powerful role in shaping the city’s historical narrative. They help us make sense of both past destruction and potential futures.
The pandemic has brought our urban life to a standstill and many public venues have become temporary, modern-ruins during the lockdown. While we remain nostalgic of our pre-Pandemic lives, let us also be inspired and imagine new uses of these obsolete spaces.
Ruins trigger imagination and creativity, something that architecture strives to achieve.
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