Christopher Lehmpfuhl

The once and future home to Berlin’s City Palace, the Schlossplatz is an ever-changing space that reflects its city’s dynamic history. Published to coincide with the completion of the reconstructed building, this volume collects Christopher Lehmpfuhl's atmospheric panoramic paintings of Berlin’s historic center as it undergoes dramatic change. Lehmpfuhl documented the vast construction site over a decade—returning again and again to the same handful of sites in every season. From the excavation of cellar vaults dating to the fifteenth century to the completion and dismantling of a temporary art gallery, from the creation of new city parks to the final laying of the foundation stone for the new palace, these magnificent landscapes illuminate the lifecycle of a metropolis. Lehmpfuhl painted each work on site, in every kind of weather, and the paintings’ thick and swirling strokes reflect the energy of a city in constant flux. Behind-the- scenes photos of Lehmpfuhl at work demonstrate his signature technique—applying large amounts of paint by hand directly onto the canvas—and reveal the sheer physicality of his effort. The result is a love letter to Berlin, and a unique artistic glimpse into the laborious process of reimagining and rebuilding a city.