Deutsches Architekturmuseum

"To make architecture the subject of public debate", was the declared goal of the German Museum of Architecture (DAM) on its founding in 1979 - then the only museum of its kind on the European continent. The Museum building opened in 1984 is a design by Oswald Mathias Ungers. Eye-opening feature in this refurbished villa is a quadratic spatial raster with the integrated "House in house" - a veritable envoy of architecture. Throughout the year the DAM presents modern German and foreign architecture via changing major and smaller exhibitions. On the basis of large-scale models, a permanent parallel exhibition depicts mankind's building and settlement history, from the primeval hut to present-day high-rise urbanizations. The DAM's outstanding architectural collection is a virtual treasure trove: 160,000 plans, 500 models and various pieces of furniture, depict-ing all tendencies and periods of the 20th century. Engravings, sketches and drawings from Schinkel to Gehry, from Mies van der Rohe to Archigram provide material for exhibitions with historic themes. To learn more about architecture visit the DAM Presence-Library with about than 25,000 books and magazines, or access DAM in internet.