Viewing architecture and city planning from the perspective of developers is a significantly neglected theme in histories of art and architecture. If mentioned at all, developers often figure as adversaries of architects—their actions taken to be driven by profit alone, with little regard for aesthetic or social factors. Yet it was often developers—with their resolute entrepreneurial spirit and creative drive—who made it possible for architectural ideas to be realized at all.

This book is dedicated to the multifaceted actions of six selected developers who made decisive and indispensable contributions to Berlin as it flourished to become a world city. The compact essays about these men’s life and work aim to illustrate their far-reaching though largely unknown impact on the cityscape and architecture of Berlin.