poniedziałek, 28 marca 2011

The Siemensstadt housing complex

The Great Housing Complex Siemensstadt (German Großsiedlung Siemensstadt), also housing the Ring (German Ringsiedlung) - modernist housing estate in Charlottenburg in Berlin. Erected in 1929-1931 under the direction of Hans Scharoun, then expanded existing residential Spandauer Siemensstadt. Homes in the spirit neues Bauen designed by renowned German architects of the period of the Weimar Republic: Walter Gropius, Otto Bartning, Hugo Haring, Fred Forbat and Paul Rudolf Henning. Areas around the settlements laid out Leberecht Migg.
In July 2008 the estate Siemensstadt along with five other teams modernist Berlin housing was inscribed on the UNESCO cultural heritage. The settlement grew in Charlottenburg, around the Goebelplatz in the vicinity of the Siemens companies employ 60 000 staff. Was financed by the city after Martin Wagner has been the main planner of Berlin. To work on the six selected residential architects: Hans Scharoun, Walter Gropius, Hugo Häring, Bartninga Otto, Fred and Paul Rudolph Forbata Henning.
Hans Scharoun staged here the concept of a large, loosely built estate with a large number of green belts, which became a model for housing construction after World War II. Architecture of the complex swept away with the concept of single-family houses and gardens of individual, offering a multi-storey blocks with interesting details that distinguish it from the later post-war housing estates - the facade of beige brick and unusual kidney-shaped block with balconies project Goebelstrasse Hugo Haring and sail-like metal block with balconies SHEATS Jungfernheideweg Hansa project Scharoun). In most five-story houses set in parallel rows from north to south. Particularly noteworthy is the building project Scharoun like a warship, and therefore referred to as an armored cruiser (German Panzerkreuzer).
Streets and squares named after commemorating the settlement of engineers, inventors and physicists who have contributed to the success of Siemens.

środa, 23 marca 2011

Hugo Häring

After graduated from high school in 1899, Haring began studying at the Technical University in Stuttgart (1899-1901), Skjold Neckelmann. Then he studied at the Technical University of Dresden, including in Fritz Schumacher, Hugo Hartung and Gurlitta Cornelius (1901-1902). He graduated in Stuttgart under the direction of Theodor Fischer in 1903.
In 1904, Haring moved to Hamburg, where he taught at the School of Arts and Crafts (German Kunstgewerbeschule). In the years 1915-1921 involved in the reconstruction of East Prussia. In the last three years of World War I he worked as a translator in the Balkans.
In 1921 he moved to Berlin, where in 1922 he took part in the Great Berlin Art Exhibition (Grosse Berliner Kunstausstellung German). In the 1923-1924 co-founder along with Mies van der Rohem group Zehnerring "in Berlin. From 1926 Secretary of the architectural group "Der Ring, " which he represented in 1928 at the founding meeting of the Congrès International d'Architecture Moderne (CIAM) (Engl. International Congress of Modern Architecture) in the Swiss La Sarraz.
In 1935 he took over the Berlin Reimannschule, which renamed the school "Kunst und Werk". After the bombing of the school during the war in 1943 the family moved to Biberach an der Riss. In 1946, responsible for reconstruction in the zone of French. In the years 1947-1950 associate of the Institute of Civil Engineering at the Academy of Sciences in Berlin. Since 1955 member of the Akademie der Künste.
In 1925, Haring completed his essay, "Wege zur Form", in which he outlined his thoughts on architecture - architectural form should grow from the environment and the function of the building, which was to be by a separate, individual project [2]. These considerations were in opposition to the idea of ​​universality of Mies van der Rohe, and Haring is often identified with the organic tradition of modernism, in addition to Frank Lloyd Wright and Alvar Aalto.
At the end of 1920. Twentieth century designed multi-family residential homes to the newly-emerging neighborhoods Siemensstadt Berlin and Onkel-Toms-Hütte, but new projects have been abandoned after the Nazis came to power

piątek, 18 marca 2011

Organic architecture

The direction of the modernist architecture based on the premise that architecture should be modeled in analogy to nature. It is characterized by fluid and plastic forming molds, sometimes modeled on living organisms. Organic architecture evolved from the early twentieth century, especially in the 20s and had its big boom in the 50s and 60
The author of the thesis of the analogy between architecture and nature has been operating in the first mid-nineteenth century American sculptor Horatio Greenough. He called for a departure from the straitjacket of historicism and natural shaping without binding patterns. Among the prominent architects of this topic has an analogy in Louis Sullivan, who believed that the formation of architecture is not about naddawaniu form, but the tracing. In 1896 in his book The tall office building (literally high office), wrote that life is characterized by the fact that it takes the form of the functions and the essential nature of each problem is that it contains a solution and tells them.
While functionalist modernism currents used the analogy of nature only in the ontological sense, the founder of organic architecture to imitate nature quite literally, taking care not infrequently, that architecture should become a part of nature. Hugo Häring wrote that in order to find the shape, rather than to a rigid form, we will be in harmony with nature. Proponents of organic architecture have argued that modernist architecture, as directed to human needs and based on scientific understanding of the world, must flow from the vital currents of nature, and not be on the line is drawing. Also criticized as unnatural and unnecessary stylization cubic shapes of buildings, especially if their external form przyjmowała different shape than the spatial function. Their works thus taking over the complicated shapes, but drawn from actual functional and spatial dependence. Hence, the terms are sometimes used functionalism organic or organic modernism.

poniedziałek, 7 marca 2011

Postmodernism - the characteristics, p2.

Postmodernism is the architectural style of referring to the archetype, and reminiscences. Modernist rebellion against the historical tradition has been replaced by the discovery that it is an inexhaustible source from which you can take a variety of themes. Quotes of the architecture of the former, however, did not play the same role as in the historical patterns, they are often artificially attached to the building. Postmodernism is not the kind of historicism, because it usually does not imitate a particular style, but combines freely borrowed themes from their own ideas of contemporary artists and determinants of function. Sometimes referred to as the mannerisms of modernism.
The facade of the building gives it a postmodern meaning (sometimes symbolic) and places it in an appropriate typology, with no direct connection with the distribution function. Functionalism is rejected, the architecture is treated as an art detached from reality. Ornament and symbol, and the symmetry of the return to favor. Means of shaping the architecture becomes irony, surprise, and absurdity.

piątek, 4 marca 2011

Postmodernism - the characteristics, p1.

Postmodern architecture has no single ideology. There are parallel trends in it for inclusion in the context of an object, often making eklektyzującym to historical forms, as well as the stylistic pluralism.
In postmodernism there is often disjointed treatment of form and function. Developers operate universally understood cultural codes, considering the readability of functions and the idea of building a superior value over the shaping of the functional conditions. Exterior decoration of the object is a conscious and a cap on his stylistic neutrality, and the decorated shed building (called decorated shed - an expression venturi). Opposes it modernistycznemu-duck model building, namely the relationship wyprowadzonemu models, but niezrozumiałemu. Modernist duck, which was opposed to the postmodernists often takes the form of essentially random, contrary to conditions created a cultural and recalling other content than intended (for example, some churches are associated rather with the factory). In postmodernism elevation is treated as equivalent to dress in humans. The importance of building a suitable, both the classic and newer symbols (portal, tower, pedestal, lattice, glass), sometimes formed their contrasting statement. Password modernist form follows function (Louis Sullivan), and less is more (Mies) was replaced by slogans form follows fiction and less is bore, which can be easily translated into a form of fiction and follows the less is boring. Focusing on the formal aspects of architecture, however, often leads to severe functional deficiencies.

wtorek, 1 marca 2011

The history of postmodernism, p.2

Venice Biennale in 1980, a further breakthrough in the development of postmodernism - from that moment it can be regarded as the dominant style. Postmodern tendency to reject participation of residents and exhibited functional zoning in the planning of large cities. Narrative and the desire to fragmentation in the architecture of earning more and more supporters, it also took over many artists of late modernism. At the same time, however, by Aldo van Eyck, called for poszczucia dogs [postmodernists], and Berthold Lubetkin called postmodern architecture, cross-dressing (Transvestite called architecture).
At the end of the 80s classic (historyzujący) was hailed as a dead postmodernism began to dominate the currents, such as high-tech and neomodernizm, but since the mid-90s more common, especially in commercial architecture, goes back again after a historicizing themes, in parallel with the development of deconstructionism.
Architecture of the early years of the XXI century is still based on assumptions of postmodern, while exacerbating the polarization between the developers seeking the identity of sources in history and the supporters of stylistic pluralism. Supported by new forms of computer programming (deconstructionism, blobs) still eludes classification.