 As the ensemble's sixth building, the gallery has a prominent position at the site of the former "Packhof" designed by Karl Friedrich Schinkel, which was demolished in 1938, and its design is inspired by the construction history of Museum Island.Chipperfield's first designs featured plain cubes with a hull of satin glass and steel, causing various protests which led to an extensive revision in 2007.The design of the reception building consisted of a stone basement, framed by a modern continuation of Friedrich August Stüler's colonnades at the Alte Nationalgalerie.