09 January 2026
Georg Schmidthals, Partner, is member of the jury at Brillux Design Award
21 November 2025
13 November 2025
Wolfram Putz, Partner and CEO, speaks at Plenba Conference
PLENBA is the new platform for anyone who wants to rethink construction, development, and planning.
The conference will take place on November 13 & 14, 2025, at Cafe Moskau in Berlin. GRAFT partner and CEO Wolfram Putz will speak about the "Bauwende" and innovations in serial construction.
13 November 2025
Facade of EDGE Friedrichshain revealed
The "EDGE Friedrichspark" construction project in Berlin-Friedrichshain has reached another milestone. The striking green facade elements are currently being installed, while the building shell has now reached its full height. The project on the site of the former Wriezen train station clearly demonstrates how the area is gradually being transformed into a new office and commercial location: edge.tech/portfolio/friedrichspark
06 November 2025
Construction begins on the Modellblock Wittenberge
At the groundbreaking ceremony for the model block at Külzberg in Wittenberge on November 6, 2025, the project was presented to the public and the funding agreement with the State of Brandenburg was signed.
With this model block, GRAFT is redesigning a prefabricated building from the 1960s, transforming the existing small floor plans into new, flexible apartment layouts and types that address current issues such as demographic change. The goal is to offer needs-based housing at affordable prices.
The overall project also emphasizes the community aspect with improved amenities: a large roof terrace and a neighborhood meeting place on the ground floor are available for all residents to use and connect the interior spaces with the spacious outdoor area.
The project includes apartments with 2 to 5 rooms, accessible either without thresholds or barrier-free. In addition, modern two-story maisonette apartments with private gardens are being built on the lower floors.
Currently, the dismantling work is underway in the apartments, removing non-load-bearing walls, floors, and sanitary facilities.
Photo from left to right: Mayor Dr. Hermann, developer/cooperative board member Mr. Elverich, Minister in the Ministry of Infrastructure and Regional Planning of the State of Brandenburg Mr. Tabbert, Caroline Lossack (Graft), Thomas Willemeit (Graft), Daniel Finck (Graft GP), Elbstrom Housing Cooperative
Further information:
www.wittenberge.de
30 October 2025
GRAFT outlines Berlin's path to Expo 2035
Berliner Tagesspiegel, October 29, 2025, excerpts:
"The idea of the 2035 World Expo in Berlin is taking shape – both figuratively and literally: The circle of supporters is growing, and key aspects of the concept have now been established. For the first time, the planners are presenting images.
(...) To achieve these milestones, the Global Goals Berlin association, led by IT entrepreneur and former Chamber of Commerce president Daniel-Jan Girl, has professionalized its organizational structures in recent months. Girl is currently soliciting seed capital from a total of ten private companies and chambers of commerce to establish the operating company, Expo 2035 Berlin GmbH, on a solid footing: €2.5 million in capital is to be raised by the end of the year. The Berlin Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IHK Berlin) is confirmed as the first shareholder, having contributed €250,000.
(...) As a result, Girl can now present more tangible, or rather: visible, results! Together with partners from two renowned architecture firms, he has translated ideas for the Expo project, which began a few years ago with his guest article in the Tagesspiegel newspaper, into computer-generated images. The Tagesspiegel is permitted to publish these illustrations here for the first time.
The creators recognize the risk that viewers might read too much or too little into these visualizations and therefore clarify at length: An Expo in Berlin could indeed look like this in 2035. But it could also look completely different. These are "only" designs to illustrate the topic, which might otherwise remain too abstract.
(...) In a conversation at the Expo office, Christian Tschersich, partner at the Laboratory for Visionary Architecture (LAVA), and Thomas Willemeit, co-founder of the internationally renowned firm GRAFT, make it clear that they do not expect to automatically win tenders for the construction of central Expo pavilions should Berlin receive a successful evaluation. However, it also becomes clear that they could implement something. The LAVA team also designed, among other things, the German Pavilion at the Expo in Dubai (starting in 2020) and the Expo in Osaka, Japan, which closed in mid-October. They were currently working in Japan on a solution for dismantling, transporting, and reassembling the building – possibly in Berlin. A Subsequent use as a school or daycare center is conceivable."
Expo 2035 is also featured on Entwicklungsstadt.de:
https://entwicklungsstadt.de/eine-stadt-als-ausstellung-so-koennte-die-expo-2035-in-berlin-aussehen
30 September 2025
GRAFT writes about the Future of Living for the Anniversary Edition of the Tagesspiegel
Contradictions are not the city's problem,
they are its quality!
Four walls and a roof to live under – living space is the fundamental task of architecture. But how do we shape the future of this building task? What developments influence the structure of neighborhoods? What will the cities of the future feel like?
For the 80th anniversary edition of the Berliner Tagesspiegel, the GRAFT founders Lars Krückeberg, Wolfram Putz and Thomas Willemeit wrote an essay about the future of living. This future will only become a positive place when we understand that it stems from the present and our actions today. Therefore, when we think of the homes of the future, we are not merely asking an architectural question; we are reflecting on our attitude toward living together and our vision of a vibrant city.
This text was first published on the 28. September 2025 in the German Newspaper Tagesspiegel Berlin: tagesspiegel.de
25 September 2025
GRAFT designs for the Funkytown Campus
With Station A, GRAFT designs the entrance gesture of the Funkytown Campus in Berlin Treptow-Köpenick:
GRAFT's Station A opens the Funkytown Campus to the northeast and begins the row of buildings along Rummelsburger Landstraße. At this point, a dynamic building corner with projections and recesses sets a striking architectural accent in the urban space. Large-format windows emphasize the idea of arrival and outlook, opening up targeted sightlines to the city, the Spree River, and the historic broadcasting center.
With the transformation and revitalization of a property and an existing building on the site of the former GDR broadcasting center on Rummelsburger Landstraße – in the immediate vicinity of the Berlin Broadcasting Center and the Spree River – the Berlin-based project developer Trockland is opening a new chapter in the urban development of the Treptow-Köpenick district.
In collaboration with the eight Berlin architectural firms Julian Breinersdorfer, GRAFT Architekten, Grüntuch Ernst, KSP Engel, Hillig Architekten, LAVA, LXSY, and Tchoban Voss Architekten, Funkytown is now taking concrete shape. Each firm has developed its own vision for one of the so-called "stations" and has taken on the façade design of one of the eight new buildings. In conjunction with the historic existing building "Block-E," which is being designed by the Leipzig-based architectural firm AIP, the eight stations form the Funkytown campus.
09 July 2025
GRAFT participates in memorial day and exhibition for Johanna and Eduard Arnhold
To mark the 100th anniversary of Eduard Arnhold's death, Villa Massimo is commemorating its patron at the site of his home in the Tiergarten district―today the Kulturforum and the newly dedicated Eduard-und-Johanna-Arnhold-Platz.
In addition to other works of art and presentations in memory of the great patron of the imperial era, the design by Rome Prize winner Lars Krückeberg 2018/2019 and GRAFT for a memorial garden for the Arnholds and a meridian in memory of the lost Tiergarten district will be on display. Plans, visualizations and a model illustrate the concept. Virtual reality glasses allow visitors to enter and experience the future site.
An event organized by the Deutschen Akademie Rom Villa Massimo in cooperation with the Association in Memory of Johanna and Eduard Arnhold and the Stiftung Preussischer Kulturbesitz.
Further information about the association, the exhibition and the anniversary can be found here (in German): arnhold-initiative.de
01 July 2025
Ukraine Expert Conference with GRAFT founding partner Wolfram Putz
On Thursday, 3 July 2025, GRAFT founder Wolfram Putz will attend the Ukraine Expert Conference in Berlin, a symposium focusing on civil society, resilience and reconstruction in Ukraine. Organised by Be an Angel e.V., European Ukrainian Bridge and the Evangelical Academy, the event will bring together experts from various fields to discuss strategies for the period following the armed conflict in Ukraine.
During the fourth session, 'Rebuild – Digital Solutions & Practical Aid', Wolfram Putz will discuss innovative approaches and sustainable solutions alongside Adrienne Goehler (HOPE HOME-НАДІЯ), Nataliya Pryhornytska (Open Platform e.V. & Alliance of Ukrainian Organisations/Foundation EVZ) and Yuliia Chechotkina (100% Life). This session will take place from 16:25 to 17:25. His contribution will focus on architectural and urban planning perspectives that support reconstruction in Ukraine and strengthen community resilience.
The symposium will provide an important platform for fostering partnerships, exchanging knowledge, and collaborating on sustainable strategies for Ukraine's future. The results of the event will be presented at the Ukraine Recovery Conference 2025 in Rome.
When: Thursday, 3 Juli 2025 | 09:00–18:00
Where: Französische Friedrichstadtkirche zu Berlin, Gendarmenmarkt 5, 10117 Berlin
Host: European Ukrainian Bridge, Be an Angel e.V., Evangelische Akademie
Programme
