Koppenplatz

Welcome, traveler. We have arrived at Kop-pen-plots, a deceptively tranquil park situated in the historic Scheunenviertel, or 'Barn Quarter', of the Mitte district. …

Before we approach the memorial at the center of the park, let us analyze the architecture bordering the square. Look up at the tall, elegant buildings flanking Kop-pen-plots. …

Now, walk toward the center of the park and approach the bronze installation resting upon the parquet-patterned stone floor. This is 'The Deserted Room', created by the artist Karl Biedermann and landscape architect Gabriele…

Walk slowly around the bronze floorboards of the memorial and look down at the text engraved into the perimeter. These are the words of the German-Jewish poet and Nobel Laureate Nelly Sachs, who herself narrowly escaped Berlin to…

While we are gathered here near the memorial, I urge you to momentarily look away from the bronze table and cast your eyes downward to the cobblestone sidewalks surrounding the park. If you walk along the edges of Kop-pen-plots,…

Step back slightly from the memorial and take in the entire scene of the park as it exists right now. This is perhaps the most analytically challenging aspect of Kop-pen-plots: the jarring juxtaposition of profound, unspeakable…

Our analytical pause at Kop-pen-plots comes to an end here. Take a final, quiet look at the knocked-over bronze chair. …