How did people in divided Berlin simultaneously create cultural communities, subcultures, routes, and simply live alongside each other?
City of Two Realities
Berlin has always been a magnet for diverse people. However, in 1961, the city was divided by a wall, and its residents were split between two fundamentally different political and social systems.
On either side of the wall, distinct regimes of daily life and cultural freedom were forming. People created musical communities, experimented with fashion, sought ways to cross the border, negotiated relationships with the state, and cultivated their own cultural environments.
I am interested in exploring how people continued to live, create, and seek freedom in a city where daily life existed against the backdrop of political conflict.
Target Audience
Поколение, которое не застало стену и хочет узнавать историю через человеческие судьбы, музыку, моду
The City as a Collection of Narratives
Издательский проект, объединяющий серию книг разных жанров и форматов и интерактивную карту-архив.
Each book explores a distinct facet of divided Berlin life. Together, they compose a multifaceted portrait of the city—a complexity that cannot be reduced to a single historical timeline.
A unified system—diverse characteristics
Each book adopts a unique format and presentation style depending on its theme—ranging from a documentary atlas to a visual archive. All publications are unified by a common typographic system and navigation principles. The visual foundation of the project comprises historical photographs, maps, posters, and other printed materials from the era.
From Book to City Map
Publication Series:
— Atlas of Escapes Through the Berlin Wall.
— Publication on the Industrial and Post-Punk Scenes.
— Claudia Skoda Fashion Archive.
— Supplementary City Stories and Routes.Interactive Archive Map:
The user selects a location on the map, views the history and archival materials, explores related points, and proceeds to the corresponding publication.
New Optics on the City’s History
The project proposes exploring divided Berlin through daily life, cultural communities, and personal narratives. The result will be a publishing series and a digital archive, allowing readers to discover the city through individual storylines and independently connect people, events, and places.
From Research to Realization
Этапы работы
— Research and material collection. — Selection of narratives and development of publication concepts. — Development of the overall visual system. — Book design and layout. — Creation of the interactive map prototype.
Required Resources: Access to archives and historical materials, expert consultations, image usage rights, and technical tools for developing the digital prototype.
Future Scope: Project expansion in collaboration with archives, museums, and cultural institutions.
