The 10th edition of the DAM Preis 2026 has been awarded to Peter Grundmann Architekten for the ZK/U Center for Art and Urbanistics, an adaptive reuse project located in Berlin, Germany. This endeavor transforms a former single-story warehouse at a freight station in Berlin-Moabit into a cultural space that fosters encounters and interactions. The jury recognized the practice's transformative approach, highlighting the use of an above-average amount of manual labor and a modest budget to encase the existing hall in a lightweight steel-and-glass structure while adding an additional floor. Developed in close collaboration with the non-profit association KUNSTrePUBLIK e.V., the project supports a wide-ranging public program established at the former freight station since 2012, including exhibitions, performances, artist residencies, repair workshops, neighborhood markets, and public viewings. Peter Grundmann Architekten was selected through a Europe-wide tender process and commissioned to build the acclaimed extension in 2019. Awarded by the Deutsches Architekturmuseum (DAM) in cooperation with JUNG, the DAM Preis 2026 followed a multi-phase jury process. The ZK/U Center was commended for its carefully articulated construction, in which structural loads are clearly legible and transferred to new columns. While the original structure remains largely unchanged, non-load-bearing walls were retained, and the former storage hall on the ground floor was preserved as a shell that now defines the main event space. Beneath it, a vaulted cellar accommodates exhibition spaces and a bar. The existing structure is enveloped by a second, lightweight spatial layer made primarily of glass with minimal steel. This envelope provides thermal protection and meets energy requirements without additional insulation. On the entrance side, it forms a foyer and windbreak, while on the garden side, it extends six meters deep to accommodate a bar area. A prestressed slab supports the new second floor, and recessed façades provide solar protection. A wide access gallery ensures circulation to all rooms and enhances interior flexibility, while exterior steel staircases connect both levels to a large roof terrace. The ZK/U is embedded within a public park maintained by the association. Buildings nominated for the DAM Preis 2026 were required to have been completed between late 2023 and spring 2025. Approximately 100 buildings and ensembles were nominated following extensive research by DAM and an advisory board of experts, including Ursula Baus, Christina Beaumont, c/o now, Lukas Fink, Florian Fischer, Florian Heilmeyer, Angelika Hinterbrandner, Christian Holl, David Kasparek, Katja Knaus, Moritz Kölling, Mario Krämer, Katharina Matzig, Eun-A Pauly, Elina Potratz, Jan O. Schulz, Something Fantastic, Heiner Stengel, Finn Warncke, Christian von Wissel, and Uta Winterhager. The 2026 edition reflects several recurring themes in contemporary German architecture. Residential projects continue to represent a significant proportion of the nominations.
