Private homes, banks, shopping centers — Karla Zipfel’s works examine the built promises of prosperity from past decades and the attempts to modernize them. The focus is on small towns and suburbs and how they have been shaped by postwar and postmodern architecture. The forms she finds there are transformed into sculptures and installations that incorporate techniques from model making, advertising, and home improvement DIYs. Through her exploration of the built environment and living spaces, Karla Zipfel addresses the lingering influence of West German ideals such as thrift and diligence, doubts about the promise of social mobility, and the impact of the West German perspective on East Germany as a modernization project.