In 1950, the obligatory participation of visual artists in state building measures at home and abroad was decreed in the German Bundestag as well as in the parliament of the GDR. Over a period of 70 years, numerous artworks that reflect the politics, society, and architecture as well as the tasks of institutions have been created. The book sheds light on the significance and potentials of building-related art for state authorities and institutions, research institutes, military facilities, and German representation around the world. It discusses its specific aspects, like the creation of the works, as well as their maintenance and preservation, and elucidates how close building-related art can be to day-to-day life-as inspiration, statement, and national visiting card that adds value to architecture.

Building-related art commissioned by the state brings politics, society, architecture, and urban design together in a unique way. In the German Democratic Republic (GDR), it was initially given the function of propagating political contents and idealized images of society. Artists increasingly emancipated themselves from government guidelines and developed their own forms of expression in interplay with their surroundings. Until today, many people identify numerous artworks with their home country. The publication documents the symposium "Building-related Art in the German Democratic Republic" on the occasion of the anniversary "seventy years of building-related art in Germany" in 2020. Renowned experts examine building-related art in the GDR from the perspective of aesthetics and contents and discuss this internationally unique stock of artworks in detail.

The Neue Nationalgalerie, which was erected in 1965-68, is the only building by the architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe in Germany from after the Second World War. With its steel roof over the glass-walled exhibition hall and its reduced design vocabulary, it is regarded as an icon of modernism and as the legacy of a visionary master builder. Following the restoration by the firm David Chipperfield Architects, the Neue Nationalgalerie is reopening with new glory in 2021. With numerous specialist texts and large-format photographs, the book focuses on the architecture of the museum in three thematic groups: the historical building, the fundamental restoration, and the renovated building. Detailed and large-format photographs heighten awareness of the unique architecture, which Mies van der Rohe designed down to the smallest detail.

The Neue Nationalgalerie, which was erected in 1965-68, is the only building by the architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe in Germany from after the Second World War. With its steel roof over the glass-walled exhibition hall and its reduced design vocabulary, it is regarded as an icon of modernism and as the legacy of a visionary master builder. Following the restoration by the firm David Chipperfield Architects, the Neue Nationalgalerie is reopening with new glory in 2021. With numerous specialist texts and large-format photographs, the book focuses on the architecture of the museum in three thematic groups: the historical building, the fundamental restoration, and the renovated building. Detailed and large-format photographs heighten awareness of the unique architecture, which Mies van der Rohe designed down to the smallest detail.