Beton & Nicht Beton

The debate on the sustainability of concrete as a building material rages on, shaped by interest groups from the construction industry to climate activists. With over 1600 completed projects, Felix Sommer and his team at Berlin-based company SB5ÜNF are one of Germany's best-known experts specializing in concrete repairs, maintenance, and renovation. His engaging stories provide an insight into spectacular building projects, into perfecting the craftsmanship, and into cooperating equitably with all parties involved in a project. This lavishly designed volume offers an extraordinary perspective that enriches the conversation around one of modernism's most impactful construction materials.

Bound in concrete

Featuring a handmade cover consisting of a 5mm layer of concrete, concrete lovers will appreciate this remarkable special edition devised by the author himself with Berlin-based designer Robert Schumann and printed by the Druckerei zu Altenberg.

• Offers an unconventional entry point into the ongoing debate on the sustainability and aesthetics of concrete
• Engagingly presents the expert knowledge of a concrete repair, maintenance, and restoration specialist
• Features previously unpublished photographs of well-known constructions, from Peter Haimerl's renovated forest house in Schedlberg to the Futurium (Richter Musikowski) and the Neue Nationalgalerie (Mies van der Rohe) in Berlin

• Selected for the shortlist of The Best German Book Design 2024 (Stiftung Buchkunst)

  Autorentext
  Felix Sommer is an entrepreneur, carpenter, and musician, and owns the Kulturhof Dretzen together with his wife Anke Sommer. He is the founder of the companies Betonretusche (2004) and SB5ÜNF (2016). Felix Sommer advises architecture offices, as well as teaching at university level, lecturing, and consulting. He also hosts the Beton:Kontexte event held in Berlin.