The architects pictured a tree. Berliners saw a shaving brush.
If you've ever walked down Schloßstraße in Steglitz, you've seen it: a strange, polygonal tower perched above the street like something that landed rather than was built. This is the Bierpinsel - the Beer Brush - and it's the subject of the newest design in our Brutalist Berlin series.
Why "Bierpinsel"?
The name isn't immediately obvious to every visitor, but look up at the 47-metre tower for a moment and the "brush" part becomes clear. The nickname stuck during construction, partly because the scaffolded tower looked like an enormous shaving brush, and partly because it was always meant to house a restaurant. When free beer was served at the opening in 1976, the name was settled for good. You can still see "Bierpinsel" on a sign at the tower today.
A tree, by the architects who built the ICC
The Bierpinsel opened in 1976 after four years of construction. It was designed by Ralf Schüler and Ursulina Schüler-Witte, the architects behind Berlin's ICC convention centre. Where they envisioned a tree - a trunk rising to a wide, branching crown - Berliners, in their usual way, saw something more down to earth.
The tower is structurally built into the Joachim-Tiburtius Bridge, which spans Schloßstraße. Next to it stands the stair tower that carries the steps up to the top, and inside there are three floors, which first served as a restaurant.
Pop architecture in Steglitz
The Bierpinsel is a prime example of pop architecture, the playful, futuristic cousin of brutalism. You see it in the unusual polygonal shape and in its original orange-red colour. Since 2017 the tower, including that distinctive red paint, has been a listed historical monument.
In 2010, street artists redesigned the facade. What was planned as a temporary one-year project is still visible today, although there are plans to restore the tower to its original appearance. That makes now a good time to take a proper look.
From photo to print
Our Brutalist Berlin design started with an original photo of the tower by Roger C, looking up from street level at its stacked crown and the zig-zag stair tower beside it. We reworked it in heavy black halftone ink, a nod to old comic book and newspaper printing, and kept a little of the graffiti at the base as a reminder of the building's street art years. A bold red BRUTALIST BERLIN banner underneath ties it to the rest of the series.
Wear a piece of West Berlin
The Bierpinsel is the kind of building that divides people, and that's exactly why we love it. If you're into brutalism, modernist and concrete architecture, or you just know Schloßstraße well, this one's for you.
Brutalist Berlin is available now as a unisex T-shirt and a crewneck sweatshirt in the .ryte TRACK online shop. Each piece is printed to order.
Follow us on Instagram at @rytetrack2020 for more from the Brutalist series.