Kristin Feireiss-Commerell, founder of the Aedes Architecture Forum, has died

She shaped the discourse around architecture and urbanism both in Germany and around the world, was a juror for the Pritzker Prize and the Golden Lion at the Venice Architecture Biennale, and founded the first private gallery dedicated to architectural work. Kristin Feireiss-Commerell, German critic, curator, and ambassador for architecture, died on April 20, 2025 at the age of 82.

Kristin Feireiss-Commerell, born in 1942, graduated in art history and philosophy from Johannes Gutenberg University in Frankfurt. One of her greatest In 1980, together with Helga Retzer, she founded the Aedes Architecture Forum in Berlin - the world's first independent gallery dedicated to architecture, which initially presented mainly architectural drawings. Since 1994, she directed it together with Hans-Jürgen Commerell. In 2009, she established ANCB - Aedes Urban Laboratory.

In her long career, Kristin Feireiss has curated more than 350 exhibitions, including many of international significance, such as "Berlin - Monument or Thought Model. Architectural Designs for the Dawn of the 21st Century" (1987), presented in Paris, Bern, Krakow, Kyiv and Moscow, among others, or "Paris - Architecture et Utopie" (1989). Together with Prof. Romuald Loegler, she realized an exhibition on Polish architectural drawing: "Polnische Architekturzeichnungen der Gegenwart" (1989) and an exhibition entitled "Dialog mit Zeit und Ort" (1998), presenting the work of Prof. Loegler.

From 1996 to 2001 she was director of the Netherlands Institute of Architecture (NAI) in Rotterdam. She twice served as commissioners of the Dutch pavilion at the Venice Architecture Biennale (1996, 2000), and in 2012 served on the Golden Lion jury. From 2013 to 2017 she was a juror for the Pritzker Prize.

For her work, she has been honored with numerous awards and titles, including the Cross of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (2001), an honorary doctorate from Brunswick University of Technology (2007), as well as awards from the Netherlands, Austria and the United Kingdom. In 2024, she was awarded the Fritz-Schumacher-Preis for lifetime achievement.

Kristin Feireiss-Commerell died on April 20, 2025, at the age of 82, leaving behind a rich body of publications and a lasting mark in the reflection on architecture and urbanism.

Przemysław Ciępka