Episode #83 - Elke and Nicolas STERLING PRESSER

This episode was recorded on 12.12.2025
in the premisses of Studio25 in Berlin.

picture from Chloé Desnoyers

Name: Elke and Nicolas / STERLING PRESSER
Topics: architect, engineering, culture, language, AI, Berlin
Landed in Berlin: 2015

In this episode, we meet Elke Sterling-Presser and Nicolas Sterling, architects and engineers, co-founders of a Berlin-based studio STERLING PRESSER, where creative thinking and cultural translation are the base to building meaningful spaces.

Elke and Nicolas shares how her path from multidisciplinary training to collaborative practice shaped their approach to design; one that listens deeply to place, people, and difference.

We explore how architecture becomes a language of connection, the art of translating across cultures and ideas, and what it means to hold space with humility, curiosity, and joy.

From long conversations about international collaboration to insights on creative partnership and the role of technology in practice, Elke and Nicolas reflect on the art of constructing buildings, but also relationships, with clients, contexts, and the world around us.

Enjoy listening! 🎧

Notes from episode #83

🏗️ Projects & Concepts

🏛️ Architecture & Engineering

🎨 Art & Other Disciplines

📚 Philosophy & Thought

Chapters

00:03:42 Crossing paths: Germany, France, London
00:07:07 Architecture, culture, and a shared language
00:11:03 Designing abroad: the Outdoor Water Theatre in China
00:14:33 Collaborating as a duo: creative abrasion and finding balance
00:24:00 Carrying a shared vision with clients
00:26:17 Building a legacy: seven years of projects and reflection in a book
00:29:11 Creating with AI without loosing control
00:34:52 La Comtesselation in France: building with the living and the sacred
00:40:41 Art, philosophy and nature as sources of inspiration
00:43:36 End of the Year rituals and walking the line

More about the guests

Date of your arrival in Berlin: 2015 and for Nicolas, full-time arrival in Berlin in 2017, after a back and forth between UK and Morocco on site construction.

Why did you come to Berlin? For personal reasons and to embark on a new professional
adventure…Entrepreneurship! With this quote in mind: « What we believe to be possible, defines what we are capable of creating. » – Nassim Haramein

What do you like the most about Berlin? The invisible (this rich history, these buried bunkers, these walls that are sometimes still standing, these spirits and this creative scene)
The green spaces and lakes to the west.

What bothers you the most? Bureaucracy. The constant need for an “Anmeldung!”. The architectural uncreative conservatism and the slowness in the building industry.

What are your 3 favorite places in Berlin?

What is the most Berlin-like thing about you? We need time to think about this one! We will take our time!…

Your recipe for a successful integration?

  • Networking and a lot of curiosity and patience.
  • Learning the language while accepting its differences and imperfections!
  • A project in itself!

Your recipe for homesickness? Travelling and a few mountain trips (to forget about borders and gain altitude). And once again, networking 🙂

Who would you like to hear on the podcast? The lighting artist Christopher Bauder or the dancer choregraph Sasha Waltz. Their design work grounded in Berlin inspires deeply.

For what reasons could we contact you?

  • To build or design the bridges or buildings of the future.
  • To embark on a new venture or project that we think is impossible.
  • Whenever innovation is involved.
  • To discuss international architecture, entrepreneurship, the art of representing, VR, AI and hand sketching.

Do you want to add anything? Thank you for this podcast and for the valuable opportunity to exchange ideas in such a cosy and open atmosphere.

Contact Elke and Nicolas

Acknowledgements​

Thank you Elke and Nicolas for this fantastic first-time interview with two guests at once! 🙂

Big up to the incredible team from Studio25 and the beautiful location the recording took place in 🙂