THE SKYLINE BEYOND THE WALL PRESERVING GDR ARCHITECTURE AGAINST THE DAMNATIO MEMORIAE
Seconda UniversitĂ degli Studi di Napoli
FacoltĂ di Architettura
Corso di laurea in Architettura U.E. A.A. 2011/2012
Laboratorio di Sintesi Finale di Progettazione di Restauro Architettonico ed Urbano Relatore: Prof. Arch. Luigi Guerriero Correlatore: Prof. Arch. Luca Molinari Referee: Prof. Florian Urban (Glasgow School of Art Mackintosh School of Architecture) Elaborato di Prova Finale di Federico Cosimo Biancullo Matricola: 800000804
PART ONE
SCHLOSSPLATZ: AN EMBLEMATIC CASE
Out of sight, out of mind?
05
10
21 ARCHITECTURE OF THE GDR AFTER THE REUNIFICATION
INTRODUCTION
Socialist architecture as a foreign body After the fall: demolition as a solution The aesthetic autonomy approach: a real normality? A ‘hierarchy of the pasts’
PART TWO
HalleNeustadt
21 27 35 40
ASPIRATIONS OF A SOCIALIST COMMUNITY 70
A role model town
77
Education, participation and equality shaping the socialist man
82
Limits of a cybernetic dwelling machine
70
85
THE FORM OF THE NEW CITY
Construction and planning of Halle-Neustadt Rational-socialism?
85 99
CONTENTS DEALING WITH A FINANCIAL BURDEN Creation of debts, relieving of debts Limits of the Stadtumbau Ost programme
49 51
49
53
A MODERN URBAN HERITAGE
53
The cultural value of urban modernity
60
The operative framework
REQUIEM FOR AN UTOPIA: POST 1989-NEUSTADT Portrait of a ‘shrinking city’
105
Job outmigration, segregation patterns and aging
109
105
REFERENCE LIST
124 128 CONCLUSION
INTRODUCTION
4
1 INTRODUCTION Most of the time, the suburbs of our cities
Such dialectic is particularly felt in East
are quintessentially seen by architects and
Germany, where the massive urbanization
planners as ‘trouble areas’. Developments
programme issued by socialism – which
from the ‘60s to the ‘80s in particular are
also included the construction of several
usually
of
satellite quarters and new towns – was
poor aesthetic and functional quality: a
strongly tied to propaganda and ideology.
historical accident to rectify – whenever
The reunification process and the victory
possible – with the tools of contemporary
of capitalism over socialism accelerated
urban planning. But what about the ideas
the
and theories behind these projects? The
settlements: the ‘westernization’ of East
temporal
present
Germany began, and the painful memories
makes the recognition of historical and
of separation had to be ideally torn away,
architectural values an arduous task, as
without much care for the pedagogical
these urban fabrics may seem to belong to a
power of memory of GDR architecture.
‘still-becoming’ or ‘not-yet’ past.
Our study is entirely focused on the
considered
proximity
demonstrations
with
the
INTRODUCTION
5
obsolescence
of
Eastern
planned
architecture – and in particular urban
has always been present in German history.
planning –of Eastern Germany, which
A special attention will also be given to the
retains a strong historical value and a
analysis of the economic factors affecting
number of interesting design solutions.
the destiny of socialist architecture in the
The
West.
convergence
of
several
issues
-
erasure of memory, demolition, economic
Subsequently, the topic will be approached
conditions, depopulation phenomena and
under the light of the current architectural
acknowledgment of the aforementioned
restoration theories. More in general, we
values - make GDR architecture an ideal case
will see how the modern - and all the more
study for the creation of a generally valid
so GDR architecture, because of the strong
theoretical framework, defined through
historical value retained – bears significant
the field of architectural restoration and
cultural values and is therefore worthy of
applicable to the single European local
preservation. By analysing several positions
realities.
on the matter, we will eventually attempt
The first part of this study focuses indeed
to define an operative framework for the
on analysing the attitude towards the
approach to the modern, one in which the
architecture of GDR, and aims to verify
architect-restorer should join designers and
whether a damnatio memoriae process existed
planners for the refurbishment of suburbs.
or still exists towards the Socialist heritage.
The
The research will be conducted through
introduces the case study of Halle-Neustadt,
an analysis of the stances adopted after
a district founded in 1964 and entirely built
the German reunification. We will also
with prefabricated concrete plates. Before
highlight the preference towards a certain
applying the framework defined in the first
type of figurative image for the homeland
part, an in-depth study of the town will be
and how the issue of the erasure of memory
presented: the programmatic statement
INTRODUCTION
6
second
part
of
the
dissertation
behind the construction, the outcomes of
spent following the myth of endless growth,
the urban design project and its limits will
we believe that is time for architecture and
be extensively covered in paragraph 3.1 and
urban planning to take construction as a
3.2. The last paragraph of the section will
starting point and not as a goal (Oswalt,
describe the shrinkage processes afflicting
2008).
Halle-Neustadt, and their causes. The analysis conducted will eventually lead to the third part of the work, with the application of the aforementioned framework to an urban renewal project for Halle-Neustadt. The methodology adopted shall be respectful of the spatial and cultural values belonging to the East German history, and will try to deal with the emergencies highlighted by our study. The fundamental idea behind this work, which is also connected to a personal interest in contemporary history, is the preservation of the Socialist architectural heritage as an act of protection concerning the collective memory of humanity. But aside the tangible evidences of the Cold War years, the conservation of our heritage, even if so close in time, responds to a crescent need for a sustainable development model: after years
INTRODUCTION
7
PART ONE
? D N I M F O T U O HT,
G I S F O OUT
Architectural legacy of the GDR in post-reunification Germany
2.1 SCHLOßPLATZ: AN EMBLEMATIC CASE The fall of the Berlin Wall marked the end
Nevertheless,
of a thirty years long, unnatural and painful
affecting the population of the two German
separation for the German people. Under
states were far more resilient than the
the slogan wir sind ein Volk1, the following
concrete slabs of the Mauer. A culture shock
months led to the end of the German
caused by the disruption of lifestyle and
Democratic
Republic,
pride and economic heart of the Eastern bloc. Yet, there was more at stake than the reunification of a country: the events of
“BIGGEST CAPITALISM TOOK THE SHARE IN TERMS OF IMPOSING ITS OWN FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE „
the
ideological
barriers
certainties of the Eastern people
is
something
that is nowadays still lingering3.
In
this
regard, architecture and urban planning played
die Wende2 mirrored the current geopolitical
an important role in habits, formation
situation, and the victory of capitalism over
of culture and memory of the ‘socialist
the Socialist model. The winning ideology
man’. Eastern planned spaces are often
took the biggest share in terms of imposing
considerably different from Western ones,
its own lifestyle, rules and especially its
due to a number of factors: type of use,
own imagery and figurative language.
ideological structure and economic reasons
1
3 The theme of Ostalgie is rather complex and controversial. The word is derived from the words Ost (east) and Nostalgie (nostalgia) and refers to the sense of longing for some aspects of life under socialism, especially social welfare and guaranteed employment. However, certain Ostalgie related aspects involved social life - such as party-oriented social meeting - and consumer goods produced in the Eastern bloc.
Literally, ‘we are one people’.
2 In German history, the term Wende (literally ‘change’ or ‘turn’), encompasses several processes and events marking the shift from Eastern Socialism to Western form of government, market economy and culture. The word is often used in reference to the whole reunification process or to the fall of the Berlin Wall.
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
10
and purposes. We could see former socialist
Hence, we have a cover debate, which hides a
urban and architectural development from
deeper and less implied issue. The former is
the ‘60s to the early ‘90s as a crucible of
expressed in architectural terms,and revolves
‘visual languages’, where the heritage from
around the choice of the most appropriate
past decades has still a great weight on
architectural style to develop for the image
urban spaces and on the ‘westernized’ image
of the Berliner Republik. However this implies
of the city. Such conflict has its most drastic
a debate about the Geschichtsaufarbeitung4, i.e.
outcomes in Berlin: construction cranes
the struggle to come to terms with a sixty
delineate the landscape of a city dealing
years long painful history. In an interview
with its future, its present and mainly with
with Daniel Libeskind, Anne Wagner
its past imagery of a painful separation. To
acknowledges ‘the condition of Germany
use Huyssen’s words (1997: 60):
as one which is particularly susceptible to stimulation of memory’ (Libeskind, 1999).
Berlin now finds itself in a frenzy of future
The end of Socialism and of the post-war
projections and, in line with the general
division of Germany probably triggered the
memorial obsessions of the 1990s, in the
unconditional acceptance of western values
midst of equally intense debates about how
as a symptom of this repressed memory,
to negotiate its Nazi and communist pasts
an almost Freudian repression of memory
now that the safe dichotomies of the cold war have vanished. [...]. The goal is nothing less than to create the capital of the twenty-
4 Geschichtsaufarbeitung is a less common term for Vergangenheitsbewältigung, whose meaning is similar. Literally, is the ‘struggle to deal with the past’, which refers to the effort made by German people to cope with the guilt of Nazism and after the reunification, with the scar left by the Socialist regime.
first century, but this vision finds itself persistently haunted by the past.
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
11
following a painful experience. Halsall
Hohenzollern Castle until 1945, when it
(2000) clearly identifies the occurrence of
was almost entirely destroyed by the Allied
this removal process in the first months
bombings. Built between 1443 and 1451, the
following the end of Communism:
Schloß has always had a tormented existence. The
construction
site
was
frequently
Like the period after the Second World
flooded by villagers which rioted against the
War, the initial period after the end of
raising of the fortification – although it was
Communism in Eastern Europe was
meant to appease rivalry between the twin
accompanied by the desire for a Bildersturm,
villages of Berlin and Cölln (Sept, 2007: 3). In
the immediate removal of the most easily
1538 the castle was razed down and rebuilt
identifiable symbols of the previous regime.
according to the current aesthetic taste, and from the late ‘500 it was constantly modified
Therefore, we can positively affirm that the
and enlarged until 1851, when a dome was
debate concerning conservation issues of the
added to the roofing. A few years later,
GDR architectural heritage has always been
bourgeois buildings were demolished in
rooted to political and ideological disputes.
order to preserve the clear sight of the new
Even twenty years after the fall there is still
addition (Sept, 2007: 4).
some controversy in applying a ‘neutral’ and
Left crumbling after the air raids, the ruins
more detached approach.
were set off in 1950 because ‘among other
The fate of the historical Schloßplatz of
things, for the SED the castle was the symbol
Berlin - and the vicissitudes the area has
of the Prussian militarism which directly
been put through – are emblematic of how
led to Hitler and Nazism, according to the
the issues of memory and image have been
socialist interpretation of history‘ (Kossel,
dealt with in the German capital. They also
2006: 213, cited by Sept, 2007: 2). Therefore,
provide a clear insight on the issue of the
the ‘out of sight, out of mind’ policy was
damnatio memoriae of an unwanted past, and
already put in use by the GDR; however,
its recurrence in the German culture.
it was more an imposition of an ideology
Schloßplatz has been the home of the
of their own rather than a condemnation
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
12
Picture 1, 2, 3, 4
The Berlin Stadtschloß from 1891 to 1945. From the left to the right: (1) view from the Rathaus tower; (2) western side of the Berlin Schloßplatz with the Kaiser Wilhelm memorial on the foreground; (3-4) the Berlin Schloß in ruin after the WW II bombings.
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
13
of the Nazi crimes. This proved to be true by the absolute urgency with which the Palast der Republik was started to build. The government considered the new seat of power of the GDR the most important construction project to the extent that all other developments - both residential and representative - were halted for the duration of the works. As a result, the Palast was raised in less than three years (19731976). The aim of the government was to provide East Berlin with a building that could embody the very spirit of Socialism by mixing politics, leisure and culture under the banner of the SED: Since its opening on April 23 1976, the palace became the place of political and cultural expression of the GDR in different ways: a 5.000 seats auditorium, numerous foyers, 13 gastronomic spaces and the Hall of People (Volkskammer). It also featured a theatre and a youth centre which included a dancing hall and a bowling. According to the
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
14
Picture 5
The Palast der Republik in 1977.
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
15
site engineer Heinz Graffunder, the Palace
political buildings of the newly designated
embodied the working class’ right to have a
capital. This stance:
representative building in the veryheart of the first German Socialist state, which had
“[...] has meant that the debate about the
always been a ‘battlefield of the working
building has taken on a symbolic importance
class’, according to the SED.(Sept, 2007: 4)5
well beyond that associated with any other former GDR building. In fact it could be
For a few months after the fall of the
said that the fate of this building has, for
Wall, the Palace was used to hold political
some people, come to represent the fate of the
meetings for the German reunification, but
former GDR itself.” (Halsall, 2000)
its original functions were already waning. Apart from the asbestos contamination
Existence of the above mentioned symbolic
which forced the shutdown on the 9th of
layer is even further highlighted by the
September 1990, the building started losing
decision of renaming the former GDR Marx-
its prominence as a leisure and cultural
Engels-Platz in Schloßplatz.
centre right after the opening of the borders;
The first proposal to tear down the Palace
the Socialist idea of amusement could not
came in 1993, ‘principally on the grounds of
compete with West Berlin – probably due to
the asbestos and the technical and financial
the fact that in the GDR entertainment was
impossibility of removing it’ (Halsall, 2000).
entirely regulated by the Socialist regime. In
A possible interpretation of this choice as
particular, it could not be reasonable for the
an ‘act of triumph’ upon the Communist
government to include the Palast among the
past is sustained by the following decision to rebuild the ancient Hohenzollern castle. According to Halsall (2000) this also implies
5 Author-translated version of the following excerpt: ‘Dall’inaugurazione il 23 aprile 1976 il palazzo divenne il luogo d’espressione politica e culturale della DDR, con funzioni diverse: il grande auditorio di circa 5.000 posti, vari foyer, 13 spazi gastronomici e la sala della Camera del Popolo (Volkskammer). Inoltre, si trovavano un teatro, un centro giovanile con discoteca ed un bowling. Secondo il capo dei lavori Heinz Graffunder il palazzo incarnava il diritto della classe operaia di avere un edificio rappresentativo proprio nel cuore del primo stato tedesco socialista che per la SED era sempre stato un “campo di battaglia della classe operaia” ‘.
‘a rejection of the post-war era in Berlin per se and a return to a former era’6. Controversy arose between those who stood for the
6 Issues concerning the rejection of past in the German culture will be extensively examined later in this chapter (Paragraph 2.2.3 – A ‘hierarchy of the pasts’).
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
16
Picture 6 & 7 From the left to the right: (6) the progress of the demolitions in 2008. On the right, (7) the former brownfield converted to turf in 2009 as temporary land use.
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
17
Picture 8,9,10
Architectural visualizations of the winning design project for the Berlin Schloß, by Franco Stella. The idea features the reconstruction of the volumes designed by Schlüter and Eosander in the 18th century. In regards to the return to the baroque image, the architect himself asserts: ‘In particular, the reconstruction of the three facades facing the city and of the three facing the Schlüter court, has been imposed with a resolution of the German Parliament for political goals’ (Stella, 2008) The two facades the Alexanderplatz, one in the inner court and the other outside, will be entirely new instead. The outer facade will act as a detached building, linked with the ‘baroque’ palace.ce.c
conservation of the Palace, envisioning new
uses which have predominated in the
uses for the modernist building, and the
development of Berlin since 1990, rather
nostalgic of the Prussian image of Berlin.
than a preference for the ideological system
However, for many East Berliners the
with which the building was associated’
ideological level of debate was of marginal
(Halsall, 2000). Eventually, the Federal
relevance compared with more emotional
German
matters. For them, the Palast der Republik
razing of the Palast in 2003. After 3 years of
was primarily a building with a positive
architectural research, calls and petitions
identification, a cultural centre and a
to stop the demolition and of events and
meeting point, rather than ‘a representative
temporary exhibitions held in its ruins, the
symbol of the state which created it’ (Halsall,
razing started in 2006.
2000).
Nowadays, the empty grass lot features a
The
conservationists
distanced
Government
decreed
for
the
and
five-storey temporary exhibition space – the
symbolic level of the debate by using this
Humboldt Box – built as an information
argument in the campaign for the retention
centre about the activity around the
of the building. While some Westerners
construction of the future Humboldt
criticized this position as exploiting a
Forum. The installation also features
‘selective Ostalgie’, the point is that some of
various terraces and a rooftop restaurant
the Eastern people actually felt longing for
with panoramic view on the construction
the social and communal aspects of life that
site.
the Palast embodied. This feeling expressed
Nevertheless, the question is everything
‘a preference for a certain type of use over
but closed and the huge urban void left by
the commercial and state representative
the Palast is still a burning issue for both
themselves
from
the
ideological
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
18
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
19
“IDEALLY THE PAINFUL HERITAGE IS MARGINALIZED, AS NOTHING HAD HAPPENED IN THE MEANWHILE „
planners and citizenship. The architectural competition held in 2007 for the design of the new Schloßplatz was another controversial point of the debate. The contest had a set of rules strictly aimed at a reconstruction of the pre-war baroque image of the Schloß:
that hides “a messy political container” ‘(D’ Alessandro, 2011).
“[...] the reproduction à l’identique of three of the historical facades, including the dome
In the next paragraph we will analyse
and the three internal facades of the large
how the burden of architectural Socialist
court. On the contrary, the side that was
heritage has been dealt with in these 20
in the direction of the Spree and that had
years of reunification.
a view on Alexanderplatz could be freely interpreted, since the baroque building by Schlüter and Eosander itself had redrawn only three facades of the castle of the princes from Brandeburg (D’ Alessandro, 2011).” Considerations on this type of approach will be further developed in this chapter. However it should be noted that the demolition of the ‘Palast’ as a symbol of Socialism was not committed, as Ariane Sept argues (2007: 5) in the ‘absence of better alternatives’. The alternative of the Schloß was the best choice in the eyes of a political class that envisioned the chance to regain a symbol of the ancient Prussian roots, which have been swallowed by the dramatic events of the 20th century. The painful heritage is ideally torn away, hidden and marginalized ‘as if nothing had happened in the meanwhile. It is an image
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
20
2.2 ARCHITECTURE OF THE GDR AFTER THE REUNIFICATION
2.2.1
Socialist architecture as a ‘foreign body’
The reunification of Germany was a culture
transposed on the architectural layer,
shock for Eastern people. The acceptance
translates into a continuous interaction
of the Western values initially brought
between
euphoria in the former GDR population.
architecture 7 for the new urban spaces. This
Yet, leaving out the unmistakable freedom
unity was aimed at creating a magnificent
that GDR citizen achieved, for many of them
image of the Socialist model.
the Mauerfall opened a weakness which
Robert Halsall (2000) describes this concept
threatened their very lifestyle. Communism
as ‘Ganzheitlichkeit’ – literally holism - and
restricted individual freedom and centred
recognizes a two-phase development of
culture and socialization on the worship of
the idea. Between the 50’s and the 60’s
town
planning,
art
and
the ideology; on the other hand, the GDR provided its citizens with an extremely
7 According to Bruno Flierl, this was ‘the claim of shaping the architectural quality of the city, and architecture in the urban dimension of the social, practical and aesthetic space, structured in accordance with the ensemble and commensurable as parts of a whole ‘. FLIERL B., ‘Nachdenken über Städtebau und Architektur in Deutschland Ost und West’ in FLIERL B., 1998, Berlin baut um – Wessen Stadt wird die Stadt? Berlin, 27-34 (32).
efficient welfare, bureaucracy and a sort of financial security through guaranteed jobs and low-priced apartments. It was a sort of a totalitarian utopia model with a specific cultural manifesto, which
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
21
the GDR opted for an ‘autoritäre Zentralität
reflect the Zentralität through the use of
or kommunikative Zentralität rather than
wide open spaces.
the commercial centrality typical of the
Afterwards, the SED approached the social
capitalist city’ (Halsall, 2000), achieved
issue of dwelling. Rather than emphasizing
through the use of huge empty spaces and
the ‘triumph of the socialist idea’ (Halsall,
the raising of visible landmarks. The well-
2000),
famous Fernsehturm is a tangible example of
pragmatic application of it. Under the
the ‘dominant symbol’ (Halsall, 2000) policy,
slogan ‘Wohnungsbau statt Städtebau’8, the
while Schloßplatz itself, Alexanderplatz -
mass production of prefabricated housing
and some boulevards such as the Stalinallee
blocks began and gave life to the best known
the
efforts
moved
towards
(Karl-Marx Allee since 1961) in Berlin and the Straße der Nationen in Chemnitz 8
Literally: housing rather than urbanization.
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
22
a
Picture 11
architectural product of the DDR – the
Karl-Marx Allee in Berlin, from Strausberger Platz. Formerly Stalinallee, the street is one of the most remarkable examples of the Zuckerbäckerstil - or Socialist Classicism - which marked the Eastern architecture of early ‘5os. This style was particularly elaborated, and featured ornamental and decorative materials and elements. However, after the deStalinization process, the Zuckerbäckerstil was dismissed, not only due to ideological reasons. The devastation caused by the war brought millions of people in extremely poor living conditions; the pressing emergency of housing led to industrialization and prefabrication, which were aimed to a fast and economic construction. Of course, such rich and elaborate buildings were nor economically feasible and therefore, neither suitable for mass housing.
Plattenbauten. After die Wende however, the outcomes of this planning policy have shown all their limits by interacting with the life model of the West. As Hans Wolfgang Hoffmann (2000) observes, ‘the overriding aim of reunification was to create the same living conditions for everyone: and the leading area in which this could be implemented was housing’. In the BRD public prefab estates were in fact associated with poor living
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
23
conditions and social trouble spots. Such
buildings and playgrounds brought back
idea connection ended up being projected
2/3 of the former socialist housing stock
on the East, despite the fact that in the GDR
to the western living standards, although
prefabricated panel structures were the
they drastically changed their appearance.
norm. It is reported that up to the Mauerfall,
If we extend the discourse to the urban
nearly one in four GDR citizens – and almost
scale, the communal system was the main
half of East Berlin population - lived in
incompatibility with the western model;
Plattenbauten. The population of the prefab
the absence of a spontaneous market and
estates was also particularly heterogeneous
real private entrepreneurship left Eastern
and well mixed – ‘in the socialist housing
town centres ‘lacking the necessary mixing
complexes [...], shift workers often lived under the same roof
as
state
servants’
(Hoffmann, 2000). The
Plattenbauten
were
indeed a foreign body in the Westernized
Berlin,
‘and
“PREFABIN THEHOUSING BRD, PUBLIC WAS
and
„
not
ASSOCIATED WITH POOR LIVING CONDITIONS AND SOCIAL TROUBLE SPOTS.
of
centralization uses’
2000).
(Halsall, Obviously,
GDR buildings were and
even
designed
planned
to
accommodate a mix
their uniformity and poor aesthetic quality,
of tertiary services and housing, and were
might be held to be a totalitarian distortion
difficult to be suited for any other use.
of a laudable social aim’ (Halsall, 2000).
We can conclude that the progressive
However the real failure of prefabrication
shrinkage of the East German culture was
lay in the low building standard quality
due to the fact that Communism itself
– ‘the huge panels do not insulate from
worked as an ‘isolated system’, where the
cold and heat, are vulnerable to moisture
interactions were possible only among
in some joints and heating the apartments
members of the Warsaw Pact9. Hence, while
is very expensive’ (Burelli, 2002). Several
being the mark of a failed attempt to build
refurbishment attempts have been carried
a utopian society, as Robert Halsall (2000)
out and - especially in Berlin - most of the blocks have been successfully launched
9 For further reading on the subject of the fall of Communism and the issues of ‘real-state Socialism’ see Hobsbawm E., 1994. Age of Extremes. The Short Twentieth Century 1914-1991.
back in the housing market. New thermally insulated skins, broad gardens between
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
24
sustains, those limits are above all a further sign of weakness of the Socialist model, according to us. As for the attempt to achieve the already mentioned Ganzheitlichkeit: [...] in practice, the massive scale and monumentality of the ensembles produced, often dwarfs the human being and could be seen as an allegory of how the state dominated the individual in the GDR. These principal ideological elements of architecture and planning in the GDR, therefore, could be interpreted, in terms of Geschichtsaufarbeitung, as [...] the product of a totalitarian ideology [...] (Halsall, 2000). Therefore, the interpretation of the elements described above helped reinforcing the negative association of the regime with its architecture. The symbolic meaning acquires even more importance in the light of the fact that the examined features are in complete clash with the Western idea of the city.
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
25
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
26
Picture 12,13
New and old. Refurbished and vacant Plattenbauten stock in HalleNeustadt, An der Magistrale
2.2.2
After the fall. Demolition as a solution?
Tearing away the symbols: the Bildersturm
persisted even after independent asbestos experts concluded in mid-1993 that the cost
The case of the Palast der Republik cited in
of removing the material and restoring the
paragraph 2.1 is a meaningful evidence
structure would be half that of demolition
of the approach adopted right after the
and reconstruction. Around the same time,
reunification towards the symbolic heritage
the ICC, a West Berlin concert/sports venue
left by the GDR. As already discussed, the
dating from the 1970s, was also found
building was tainted by dangerous levels of
to contain very high levels of asbestos, primarily in ceiling and wall panels
asbestos. What did surprise many Berliners
throughout the building, a type reportedly
was that other buildings – both Eastern and
posing a greater hazard; but the city never
Western - included asbestos, but were never
contemplated shutting down the ICC even
shut down as the Palace was. In her essay
temporarily.
Growing Pains: From the Opening of the Wall to the Wrapping of the Reichstag, Rogier (1996:
Although
64) provides a significant example for our
justified
by
the
asbestos
contamination and by the non-adaptability
argument:
of a Modernist building for the new image of Berlin, the demolition of the palace had
Indeed, the desperation with which the
a clear programme behind. This manifesto
Palast was for over four years steadfastly
was based on the solely bestowal of a ‘political
rejected by many local and state officials
intention – as a ‘representative’ building of
in the face of both economic and political
the GDR state’ (Halsall, 2000) upon the Palast.
wisdom remains a vivid memory. They
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
27
‘The debate about its removal or retention,
statues, buildings, street names as an
therefore, was seen largely in terms of
expression of a discredited ideology, Eastern
demolition as a ‘symbolic act of revenge’
people did not necessarily associate the
upon the state which built it’ (Halsall, 2000).
spaces which surrounded these monuments
The Palast is just the most notable example
with their political intentions, but they
among the several architectural symbols of
rather assigned them memories from their
GDR public life condemned to demolition.
lived experience. Anja Merbach (2009:
Within the overhauling of Unter den Linden
286) argues that ‘apart from its intended
only, we can include several clearances:
meaning and impact, a monument is still
the Lindencorso, the Hungarian Embassy
open for interpretation. It always underlies
building and the Foreign Ministry, while ‘the former Ministry of Public Instruction and the Ministry of Foreign Commerce
were
provided
with new facades’ (Oswalt, 2006: 67). Other demolitions
“DID NOT EASTERN PEOPLE NECESSARILY ASSOCIATE THE SYMBOLS WITH THEIR POLITICAL MEANING
„
contemporary
influences,
ideas and opinions and is thus characterized by a semantic openness and dynamic in time’. Hence we can read an alteration of the urban continuum
have been completed in Leipziger Straße,
which happened with shocking speed
Fischerinsel and Schloßplatz itself, with
as ‘the socialist heritage became part of
the razing of the Unter den Linden hotel, the
the common German heritage, virtually
Ahornblatt restaurant and the Palast Hotel
overnight’ (Merbach, 2009: 287). Due to the
respectively.
rapidity of this process, building a common
This systematic obliteration of the GDR’s
cultural memory for the East and the West
built memory has initially involved the
turned out to be impossible, and eventually,
‘most immediate images or icons of the
a compromise between the two blocks was
power of the old regime’ (Halsall, 2000),
made even more difficult by the historical
in a Bildersturm fashion – i.e. iconoclasty.
context. This whole ‘tinkering with the
However, such approach received negative
communist-city text’ (Huyssen, 1997: 60)
feedback from the Eastern citizens, as those
was the act of supremacy of Capitalism
landmarks were part of their urban identity.
upon the Socialist model, upon its ideas and
While the Western government identified
marks.
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
28
Picture 14, 15, 16, 17
Notable examples of demolished DDR buildings in East Berlin. From the left to the right: The Ministry for Foreign Affairs, right after the finalization of the works in 1967. The Ahornblatt GroĂ&#x;gaststätte in Fischerinsel in 1973. 1972 photograph of the Lindencorso building in Unter den Linden, demolished and repalced in 1997. A 1987 aerial view of the Marx-Engels Forum, The buildings overlooking the square are the Palast der Republik on the left, the Berliner Dom, in the middle and the Hotel Palast on the right.
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
29
‘It was a strategy of power and humiliation, a final burst of cold war ideology, pursued via a politics of signs’ involving the Eastern population ‘that felt increasingly deprived of its life history and of its memories of four decades of separate development’ (Huyssen, 1997: 61)
Tearing away the city: the Stadtumbau Ost Programme Moving away the debate from the individual buildings to focus on the urban development realized by the GDR, the conservation and heritage issues highlighted so far turned out to be closely related with demographic and social matters instead. It should be observed that most of the settlements built in East Germany by the GDR were established to accommodate workers of the newly created industrial hubs; the new town of Eisenhüttenstadt (Stalinstadt until 1961), for instance, was developed along with the
growing ‘using industrialized construction
expansion of EKO10 iron and steel works.
techniques and standardized, prefabricated
From 1970 to 1990 Eisenhüttenstadt kept
components’ for the new housing projects (Lötscher, Howest and Basten, 2004: 363).
10
Eisenhüttenkombinat Ost.
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
30
Picture 18
Cityscape of Eisenhüttenstadt in 1960, with the kombinat in the background.
The settlement of Wolfen-Nord - now part
mining industries. Halle was involved by
of the Bitterfeld-Wolfen municipality –
the construction of the Chemiearbeiterstadt
was developed by the GDR to exploit the
Halle-Neustadt,
maximum from the pre-war chemical and
the workers of the chemical industries’
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
31
mainly
dedicated
to
(Eckardt, 2006: 59). New established towns
(Lötscher, Howest and Basten, 2004: 363).
and neighbourhoods were seen by the SED
Settlements tied to those plants suffered
as an opportunity to fulfil their ambition of
from low occupancy rate and eventually
building the Socialist city, a settlement that
of outmigration of former inhabitants
could be ‘more than just a place to sleep’
towards the West. Along with other factors
(Eckardt, 2006: 59). Referring to Halle-
to be discussed in Part 2, and the ‘decline in
Neustadt, the Ministerrat in 1963 wrote: ‘the
birth rates since 2003’ (Chaplin and Stara,
new city should provide the best conditions
2009: 105), this dynamics has been cause of
for a socialist community life with regard
the ‘urban shrinkage’ phenomenon which
to cultural activities, commodity, housing,
led to high vacancy rates and neglect of the
sports and leisure’. However, as we will
former GDR settlements in many Eastern
examine in Part 2 with regard to the case
cities.
study of Halle-Neustadt, this vision could
In response of this phenomenon, the
remain valid only within a Socialist model.
German Federal State has tried to address
The collapse of the utopia went hand in
the issue in 2001 with the launch of the
hand with the post-reunification collapse
Stadtumbau Ost programme. This tool was
of the GDR industrial system. Competition
conceived as an agreement between the
and obsolescence led many factories in the
Bund and the Länder under the form of a
East to a reduction in workforce or complete
development plan. The redevelopment
shutdown: for instance ‘In 1989 EKO-Steel
was designed to be applied in East German
had employed 12.000 workers. During
regions affected by ‘deindustrialization and
1990 ARCELOR11 reduced the work force to
rapid population decline, suburbanization
2,700 – a loss of 9,300 jobs within one year’
and erosion of city centres, growth in area and perforation of the urban structure, as well as functional deterioration and the
11 ‘After unification of the two Germanies in 1990 the singular dependence on steel production turned out to be the crucial problem for Eisenhüttenstadt. Economic globalization had immediate consequences as the company EKO-Steel – once the largest steel producer in East Germany – was taken over by ARCELOR, a giant European steel producer which already held ARBED in Luxemburg, USINOR in France and ACERALIA in Spain’ (Lötscher, Howest, Basten, 2004: 363).
infrastructure becoming more expensive‘ (Wallraf, 2009). The budget volume of the programme amounted to 2.56 thousand million Euros, with a financial aid from the Bund of 1.02 thousand million Euros. However the purpose of the Bund was not to
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
32
revitalize the old GDR neighbourhoods. On
between individual and space appears to
the contrary, ‘the Bund-Länder agreement for
be no less preminent in shrinking Eastern
the Programme stated that at least half of the
cities. The urban space is still lived by the
funding had to be used for deconstruction
minority of those who could not emigrate to
or demolition of housing’ (Wallraf, 2009);
the West due to their economic condition or
housing companies were also funded with
social background.
a subsidy amounting up to 60 Euro12 per
In spite of this, the articulation of the
square meter of living area cleared until
Stadtumbau-Ost Programme highlights a
2008. In the light of a 2007 agreement, which stated that ‘the states were to use at least 50 per cent of the government funding provided
for
upgrading
districts’ it can be easily
“OST THEHIGHLIGHTS STADTUMBAUA PREFERENCE FOR A SIMPLISTIC DEMOLITIONRECONSTRUCTION APPROACH
„
figured out how in most
preference for the simplistic ‘demolition-reconstruction’ scheme
rather
than
for
the adoption of a more holistic approach, or the development
individual
strategies for the reuse. Therefore
a
solution
of the involved municipalities the funding
is prefigured, which is centred on the
has been prevailingly used to revitalize
dismissal of the GDR settlements. However
the old districts rather than the former-
this stance has received a fair amount of
Socialist neighbourhoods or saving housing
criticism. A good example is provided by
companies from bankrupt.13
the position of Daniel Libeskind. In an
Once again the issue of the relationship
interview with Anne Wagner (1999), the American-Jewish architect acknowledges the added value of architectural continuity against an architecture imposed from
12 ‘The government guaranteed a subsidy of up to 30 Euro per square meter of living area for deconstruction or demolition of unoccupied housing, which is topped up to the same value by the Länder. The local authorities do not carry any of these costs’ (Wallraf, 2009).
above. This stance is ‘vehemently opposed to the totalitarian mechanism of the master plan. Instead he calls for strategies of transformation and metamorphosis of
13 As a matter of fact, demolitions were strongly encouraged due to the economic conditions of the housing companies. The issue will be extensively discussed in Paragraph 2.3.
existing realities, as he attempts to open up a domain for the creation of unpredictable,
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
33
flexible and hybrid architectures.’ (Leach,
You can call it now no longer the GDR, it is
1999: 6)
now the western, it is Germany. But this has not changed the nature of that space or its experience and you have to work with that
It is not an abstraction, it is not something
space. No one can afford to ideologically just
that you can change by renaming it for
wipe it out of their minds and say, we don’t
example, give it another name. Say it is
like it, we like the old streets of the medieval
not the GDR. It does not matter whether it
Berlin, because this is just wishful thinking.
is GDR or not, you have that space. That is
One has to deal with that space which of
why I think that in order to see architecture
course is also historical space where people
in continuity, not as something which is
have grown up there. (Libeskind, 1999: 131)
disruptive or transversal towards people’s lives, but is a betterment, one has to deal with these conditions. (Libeskind, 1999: 130-
Nevertheless, the above mentioned wiping
131)
of the Socialist architectural memory in the German Federal Republic is unmistakable.
Betterment however is not only added by
An ideologically anachronistic past is
the stratification of the urban fabric. In
being systematically erased in favour of
relation to the GDR planning, the added
an idealized image which traces back to a
value is bestowed by the ‘the pedagogical
Golden Age. As it will be examined later
value in the present of urban traces of the
on in this chapter, the issues of ‘selective
past’ (Jameson, 1999: 71, cited by Halsall,
historical memory’ and ‘historical image’
2000). According to Libeskind, those traces
are deeply rooted in the German culture and
act as a memento of a totalitarian ideology
have seemed to be a constant concern for
and their erasure could lead to the erasure
planners and governments throughout the
of the public memory itself, as ‘[memory]
last century.
is built. Memory is not something which is just there. It is also constructed’ (Libeskind, 1999: 132). However Libeskind sustains the independent architectural nature of the space from the conditions which generated it:
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
34
2.2.3
The aesthetic autonomy approach. A real normality?
In 1995 the Deutsche Nationalkomittee für
of historical monument when dealing with
Denkmalschutz14
document
GDR architecture. The attribution of such
which could be regarded as a turning point
value should be preceded by a significant
in the debate concerning the architectural
amount of researches and should not be
Socialist heritage, and a welcome shift from
influenced by the temporal proximity of the
iconoclastic demolitions towards a more
historical events analysed. The document
critical approach. The document went
also recognizes the existence of new ideas
under the name of Empfehlung zur Erhaltung
about social life, working, and organization
von Architektur und Städtebau der DDR –
of urban space, and the advent of a new
literally ‘Recommendation concerning the
economic system; however, these factors
Preservation of Architecture and Urban
cannot lead to the loss of architectural
Planning of the GDR’, and contained several
quality worthy of protection, historical
remarkable considerations about the topic.
urban structure of the socialist city and loss
In the light of the controversial argument
of authenticity (DNK, 1995).
going on at the time, the DNK acknowledges
This cutting edge declaration is significant
the
Socialist
of how the debate on the existence of the
architectural legacy and the necessity for a
Eastern architecture was moving from
more thoughtful discussion on the status
the simplistic Bildersturm towards a more
published
endangerment
of
a
the
detached approach. Nevertheless, the stance of the Committee could be regarded as the position of a few enlightened minds; the
14 German National Committee for Monument Protection.
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
35
debate was still controversial ‘but more
what you see in London. But we see them
“normal” than in the Bildersturm phase in the
differently because we are seeing them with
sense that this has seen the attempt to apply
all the interests and all the blindness. [...] (Libeskind, 1999: 137)
“normal” aesthetic [...] criteria associated with urban conservation [...]’ (Halsall, 2000).
Nonetheless, we consider this approach
According to the new trend, the focus of the
to be incomplete, since the historical and
debate was now on the quality of the aesthetic
pedagogical values carried by those buildings
expression, the features, the ‘positive and
are completely left out of the debate. If we
negative aspects of the architecture of the
do not protect their cultural value and of
GDR and the relationship between the
the power of the ‘history lesson’ (Halsall,
architecture and the people who live in
2000) we would be operating a partial de-
and around it’ (Halsall, 2000). In substance,
contextualization, equal to draining them
Socialist architecture began to be considered
of their soul – we would be exposing them to
as an architectural expression of the culture
a judgment based solely on the current taste,
of the time, rather than of the culture of the
although aesthetic values are not sufficient
ideology. This stance is clarified by Daniel
to define ‘beauty’.
Libeskind, which in the above mentioned
The dangers coming from an approach
interview with Anne Wagner (1999) also
based
raises a mechanistic issue related to a certain
exclusively
on
an
‘aesthetical
autonomy’ (Halsall, 2000) are once again
social reality:
demonstrated by the case of the Berlin Palast
[...] It is not by coincidence that we have
der Republik. As Anke Kuhrmann (2009)
housing blocks, whether in East Germany
evidences, the Palace of the Republic is also
or in Rotterdam, or in London, or in a
an ‘aesthetically burdened building’. The
totalitarian society like China today, or in a
rejection of the building also issued from
free society like Western Germany—it really
a ‘cultural revolution against post-war
makes no difference, because we are talking
Modernism’, especially against the ‘60s and
about this material fact, that you are to
‘70s style, which was mixed with the ‘Late
get people up and living in a certain place.
Modern’. This architectural vocabulary
[...] These housing blocks are no different from the housing blocks in Rotterdam.
featured
concrete
They are no more ugly or no more nice than
shapes, amber mirrored curtain walls and
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
36
cubic
asymmetric
marble-trimmed facades. Many examples
image of the city.
of this style have been demolished both in
By
Eastern and Western Berlin, in the name of
controversial context of Berlin we can
a city planning aimed at achieving a sort of
however find several examples of a more
connection between the two parts of the city.
neutral aesthetic approach, such as the one
By subverting the structure of the Mitte15 -
adopted for the conservation of the Karl
which was the core of Ost-Berlin under the
Marx monument in Chemnitz (former Karl-
GDR rule - planners are trying to ‘develop
Marx-Stadt) and the surrounding building
a true centre with which all Berliners
complex. In 1994, the Land of Saxony
and, as the new capital, all Germans can
issued a preservation order for the area. The
identify’ (Halsall, 2000). Such goal is being
decision relied on two main factors, closely
achieved through the imposition of an
connected with the ‘aesthetical autonomy’
aesthetics hinting to a pre-war historicity16
argument. First of all, a partial demolition
and a planning based on the original street
or modification of the buildings ensemble –
pattern of the Prussian Berlin. Given that,
or the removal of the Karl Marx monument
the weakness of a mere aesthetical approach
- could alter the spatial and architectural
towards the issues of GDR architectural
values of the whole, therefore it was
heritage conservation is clearly visible. A
excluded. Besides, the complex was primarily
judgment grounded on plain aesthetical
regarded as an expression of the European
consideration is fragmentary, and allows
architecture of the ‘60s and compared with
the building to be sacrificed in the name of
other residential developments of the same
a taste deemed more adequate for the new
period built in Rotterdam or West German
moving
cities.
outside
Therefore
the
the
delicate
and
Karl-Marx-Forum
was considered worthy of preservation 15 The district of Mitte is the most central of Berlin. It encompasses most of the city’s landmarks and places of interests such as the Museum Island, Alexanderplatz with the Fernsehturm, the Unter den Linden boulevard and the Brandeburg Gate, Potsdamer Platz and the Reichstag. It gained the status of borough in 2001 and includes the remaining traces of the Old Berlin.
just like other Western examples of the same architectural style (Halsall, 2000). Nevertheless, the justification for the preservation order issues states that: The assessment of the public interest
16 See par. 2.2.4 – A ‘hierarchy of the past’ for further reading about urban planning in Berlin and the research of a pseudo-historical image of the city.
for conservation is based on the rightful
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
37
relevance assigned to the interpretation of recent German and Saxon history. The Marxist-Leninist model claimed to be the rightful and exclusive representative of the interest of the German people. The meaning of this statement– and how a closed society and a centralist state were intended - are here visible as clearly as nowhere else in Saxony. Furthermore, the almost religious consecration of the founder of this social model - Karl Marx - is rather unique as well.17 We are confronted with a balanced analysis, which also includes the consideration of the ‘negative history lesson’ (Halsall, 2000) value, embodied by the Karl-Marx-Forum complex. In the light of this justification, we believe that, in order to prove effective, the act of monumental preservation could never be completely untied from historical and pedagogical considerations.
17 Author-translated version of the following excerpt: ‘Das öffentliche Erhaltungsinteresse gründet sich auf die hier zutreffende Bedeutung für die Deutung einer Epoche der jüngeren Geschichte Sachsens und Deutschlands insofern, als an keiner Stelle Sachsens so anschaulich wird, was der Alleinvertretungsanspruch des Marxismus-Leninismus als Philosophie- und Gesellschaftsmodell darstellte, wie eine geschlossene Gesellschaft und ein zentralistisch ausgerichteter Staat sich verstanden. Der geradezu sakralen Erhöhung eines der Begründer dieses Gesellschaftmodells Karl Marx, kommt darüber hinaus Singularität zu.’
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
38
Picture 19
The Karl-Marx monument in Chemnitz, marked for historical protection in 1994. The preservation issue acknowledged the monument as a characteristic element of the whole spatial ensemble of the square.
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
39
2.2.4
A ‘hierarchy of the pasts’
So far we have seen how the debate on the
twenty-two
Palast der Republik featured several layers
in stone’ (Huyssen, 1997: 68). ‘Critical
of interpretation. While the purpose itself
Reconstruction’ has been incorporated
of demolishing the building could be
into the city’s planning tools through the
regarded as the will to erase a symbol of a
adoption of the Planwerk Innenstadt in 1999.
discredited ideology, the ideas concerning
The plan for the development of Mitte
the reconstruction of the Stadtschloß opened
wanted by the Senate Building Director
a whole new level of discussion. Opting for
Hans Stimmann and supported by Vittorio
a partly reproduction of the Hohenzollern
Magnago Lampugnani - Director of the
Palace is a significant evidence of how Berlin
German Architecture Museum in Frankfurt
is recurring to images from an idealized past
am Main – met a fair amount of criticism
to build its future (Rogier, 1996: 63) – and, to a
and political opposition. The attempt to
certain extent, the future image of Germany.
impose architectural unity over the freedom
The theory underlying the concept went by
of expression of individual architects
the name of Kritische Rekonstruktion. Such
cost the advocates of the Rekonstruktion
a way of interpreting the urban structure
the accusation of being ‘fascists’ and of
draws from a pre-WWI vernacular language
having ‘architectural intentions similar
consisting in splitting buildings into smaller
to the Nazis’ (Halsall, 2000); the plan also
parcels, ‘city block building, traditional
evidences a strong disrespect of the factual
window façades, a uniform height of
history, expressed by the goal to reinstate
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
40
meters
[...]
and
building
Picture 20
the long-time lost baroque-era street plan
Panorama of Pariser Platz, Berlin. The buildings overlooking the square strictly follow the principles of Critical Reconstruction. The outcomes range from the exact replicas of past buildings (such as the Hotel Adlon, first building on the right) to interpretations of the Rekonstruktion in a contemporary fashion. Notable examples are the glass facades of the Akademie der Künste (first building on the left), and the DZ Bank designed by Frank Gehry (second building on the left).
(Barrows, 2007: 33). All the points of this manifesto highlight the desire for a pre1914 image of Berlin (Huyssen, 1997: 69). This stance not only entails a rejection of the high-tech global corporate architecture18, but also implies the repudiation of the
the architecture of the Nazi period and
architectural heritage from the Bauhaus onwards,
seen
as
a
the architecture of the GDR. Still, Socialist
quintessentially
buildings are not directly attacked although
“American” modernity (Huyssen, 1997: 69),
‘[t]he most common tactic has, so far, been
which the vernacular tradition must be
to simply tear down or completely remodel
defended from. The unwanted historical
them’ (Barrows, 2007: 46). In any case, the
memory is also seen as an accident, produced
Rekonstruktion is endangering the survival
by unforeseen derailments from an else
of the GDR heritage not only to achieve an
unalterable Prussian history. A repressive
image hinting to the pre-war Berlin, yet to
approach has been adopted both towards
give citizenship a secure and comfortable appearance to the urban space by casting off painful history.
18 ‘Lampugnani disapproves of ‘easy pictures ... superficial sensation ... tormented lightness ... wild growth ... nosy new interpretation.’ Stimmann in turn protests that ‘learning from Las Vegas is out of place in a central European city, a programmatic statement as much directed against postmodernism in architecture as it is quite blatantly anti-American in the tradition of conservative German Kulturkritik.’ (Huyssen, 1997: 69)
As Mark Jarzombek reports in his essay Disguised Visibilities (2004), a similar discourse has been led in Dresden. Following the destruction brought by the Allied air raids
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
41
of 1945, the Socialists rebuilt the city by carrying out a political programme of urban renewal. As a first act, the SED built a wide, monumental
boulevard
–
Thälmann
Ernst
“CRITICALTHE RECONSTRUCTION PRINCIPLES OF
HIGHLIGHT A DESIRE FOR A PRE 1914 IMAGE OF GERMANY
„
by the inclusion of commercial
centres
in the former GDR building. The result is a district that simulates a
nineteenth-century
urban
structure.
As
Straße - which bisected the former old city.
for the GDR buildings included into the
Subsequently, in line with the regime’s
touristic district, they have been razed
political intentions, the Kulturpalast was
down in the name of the urban archaeology,
raised to symbolize the allegiance with
to explore the ruins beneath the streets.
the Communist culture. The new Dresden
Once again, the intent was to bring to light
also incorporated housing developments,
an historical layer – the medieval layer
several museums dedicated to the rhetoric
– which, taken alone, is incoherent with
of the party and a Transportation museum.
the historical continuum experienced by
To summarize, Dresden was rebuilt as a
Dresden (Jarzombek, 2004: 69-71).
living manifesto of Socialism (Jarzombek,
Such practice of concealing and casting off
2004: 64-69).
unwanted – or rather, obsolete - heritage
After the Mauerfall, the GDR’s utopic
is deeply rooted in a century and a half of
vision has been drastically overturned.
German history and strongly characterized
The strategy adopted by the new planners
its culture. This attitude affected the identity
was to split the city core into two zones,
of the city itself and led to a ‘tradition of
ideally
heritage
the absence of tradition’ (Oswalt, 2006: 61),
conservation and to commerce. In the
especially in the main cities. In the essay
latter, the Socialist heritage is partially
Berlin_Stadt Ohne Form, Philipp Oswalt
disguised through a Verdichtung19 approach
(2006) delineates with reference to the
given
respectively
to
German capital, how the Bildersturm became 19
chronic in the name of a new iconography,
Densification.
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
42
Picture 21
2005 aerial view of the Neumarkt in Dresden. Though the Kulturpalast has been retained, is it possible to notice the beginning of several medieval archeological digs where GDR buildings once stood.
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
43
as the governments came one after another.
the symbols of the Communist Berlin.
Oswalt traces the beginning of this denial of
The
architectural tradition back to the beginning
and the Scheunenviertel district were razed
of the XIX century, when the Prussian
down but not rebuilt upon, as it occurred
kings started replacing and transforming
in the Kaiser age. Subsequently, the works
the baroque heritage into neoclassical
for the Welthauptstadt Germania masterplan
buildings, especially in residential areas
conceived by Albert Speer began to open
such as Pariser Platz and Unter den Linden.
a kilometre wide gap going across Berlin,
Nevertheless, until 1871 the plan had been
for the realization of a North-South axis
left untouched. However, with the industrial
boulevard. As a result, the neoclassical
revolution and the designation of Berlin as
district of Alsen was razed down; similar
the new capital of the Prussian Empire, the
plans were designed for an East-West
urban scale widened and several medieval
axis and for the area surrounding the
districts were razed down and replaced with
Museumsinsel, but never enacted due to
large-scale buildings – such as warehouses
the turn of the war events and the Allied
and hotels – and new roads in order to
bombings (Oswalt, 2006: 64-65).
reduce traffic. Behind the reorganization
After the occupation of Berlin, the Allied
there was also the desire to dispose of
forces themselves, both in the East and the
the preindustrial, small-town image of
West, added to the ruin brought by the
Berlin, which was deemed inappropriate
bombs the erasure of the most significant
to represent the Empire in comparison
buildings of the Nazi rule. Heritage
with other European capital cities. Kaiser
from the past century was included in
Wilhelm II ordered the construction of huge,
the demolitions in several occasions, due
monumental buildings which replaced
to their association – whether direct or
most of the architectural heritage in Berlin,
indirect – with the old regime. For instance,
as it happened to the Dom altered by Karl
Friedrich Schinkel’s Prinz-Albrecht Palais,
Friedrich Schinkel just a decade before
which housed Gestapo and SS’ headquarters,
(Oswalt, 2006: 61-63).
was among the first buildings to be razed.
Yet, it is with the rise of Nazism that
Franz
demolition becomes an end in itself, a pure
Banhof, Schinkel’s Bauakademie, the baroque
political gesture initially directed against
Jerusalemkirche, the Petrikirche, and the Berlin
Liebknecht-Luxemburg
Heinrich
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
44
monument
Schwetchen’s
Anhalter
Sportspalast – which was a popular venue
break in a 19th century façade alludes to ‘[...]
for party events and important speeches
an interruption, a fundamental dislocation’
- along with many buildings designed by
and ‘creates a question mark about the
Speer, shared the same fate. West German
continuity of history and what it means’ in
city planners also devised demolition as the
Dresden’s historical continuum:
best solution for urban renewal. To achieve the desired density, 430.000 houses were
The new architectural feature penetrates
declared obsolete and entire districts were
the historical arsenal and creates a new accent on the front. It creates a 21st century
knocked down in Wedding, Schoneberg and
reading of the complex. It is something like
Kreuzberg. In East Berlin, the demolition
a lantern, a signal, a beacon that evokes
of the Fischerviertel quarter erased the last
the city itself. After you ascend through the
remaining heritage from the Middle Ages
historical collections inside the building,
(Oswalt, 2006: 65-67).
you arrive at a new view of Dresden. It is
It is worth to note that until the Mauerfall, in
the best-possible canvas of the history which
most cases German governments resorted to
you saw in the museum. [...] The triangular
an array of architectural styles which aimed
structure on the front of the arsenal points
to create an idealized image of the future by
to the direction from which Dresden was bombed (Libeskind, 2010).
building on the ruins of past history. On the contrary, the theory of Kritische Rekonstruktion
Rather than the GDR rule, the breakpoint
recurs to current technology to evoke images
is Germany’s Nazi period and the Allied
of an idealized past. In our vision, it is the very
destruction of the city in 1945. Still, the
act of looking backwards with an uncritical and
nostalgic
attitude
that
concept behind Libeskind’s design can be
triggered
read as a general critic to the impetus of
controversy, debates and the scepticism of
bringing back history by concealing the
many critics and militant architect, such as
crucial alterations that Dresden suffered
the already mentioned Daniel Libeskind.
during the last 60 years. Libeskind also
In an interview with Charles Hawley (2010)
sustains that the efforts to rebuild the
for Der Spiegel Online, the American architect
city as it was before the air raids are
explains the connection between his project
understandable, although ‘the events from
for the German Military Museum in Dresden
the past are not just a footnote, they are
and the history of the city. A sharp glazing
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
45
central to the transformation of the city’
Heimat20 acted as a self defence mechanism
(Libeskind, 2010), and therefore they are to
not only against the extrinsic elements
be confronted with a critical and reasoned
introduced by the WWII and post-war era,
approach. Turning to Berlin, in his collection
but also against speculation, investors and
of writings on architecture Kein Ort an seiner
corporate architecture (James, 2009: 23-24).
Stelle, Libeskind defends the uniqueness of
These dynamics analysed by James with
the history of the city against the attempt
regards to a small town like Eisenach, are
to create a ‘hierarchy of pasts’ (Halsall,
the very same principles behind the theory
2000) based on a nostalgic feeling arisen
of Critical Reconstruction in Berlin. It is the
after the Mauerfall. The outcome of this
popular feeling itself that goes towards a
hierarchization would be the consideration
re-appropriation of a national architectural
of the GDR architecture as an anomaly
identity whenever possible, as pointed out
‘[…] and thus not worthy of preservation.
by the wide participation of the citizenship
Libeskind advocates the recognition of the
in the writing of the manifesto for the
validity of all the pasts which exist in Berlin,
reconstruction of Dresden. The points for
including the GDR‘ (Halsall, 2000).
the reconstruction of the Frauenkirche and
Nevertheless, hierarchization is the most
the Neumarkt21 envisage the restoration of
natural and popular response against the ‘foreign bodies’ introduced in the urban
20 The idea of Heimat is a strictly German concept. Though the word has no exact English translation, Heimat could be regarded as the attachment to the homeland, to the particular social and spatial context and traditions from one’s own lineage, acting as a safeguard against external alienating elements.
structures. The sociologist Jason James (2009) describes the focus of the already mentioned post-Wende longing as a sense of nostalgia towards a cultural heritage which suffered
21 For further reading on the reconstruction of the Frauenkirche and of the Neumarkt see Pretelli M., Germania anno zero tra ricostruzione postbellica e riunificazione della nazione. In: Casiello S. ed., 2011. I ruderi e la guerra. Memoria, ricostruzioni, restauri. Piacenza: Nardini Editore, pp. 11-32 and Jarzombek M., Disguised Visibilities. Dresden/”Dresden”. In Bastèi E. ed., 2004. Memory and Architecture. University of New Mexico Press, pp. 49-59.
stigmatization ‘at the hands of the other’. In this vision, the Nazi and the SED regimes are seen as something that was inflicted upon German culture and heritage and their legacy is therefore externalized. The forces driving such re-appropriation of the
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
46
Picture 22
Facade of the Germany Military Museum, Dresden. Libeskind uses a sharp, ultra-modern language to vehemently affirm the validity of the historical continuum of the city, in spite of concealment and alterations of the urban structure.
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
47
conditions existing prior to the bombings,
Nevertheless, this search for a stabilized
and a rebuilding based on scientific and
image brings up numerous questions on the
historical studies on each culturally and
future of the GDR architectural legacy. The
artistically significant fabric. Additionally,
rejection of the above mentioned external
new buildings have to be designed according
forces tainting the victimized heritage is a
to the principles of vernacular architecture,
threat to those buildings ‘outside’ the image
with simple plaster facades and wooden
of an unspoiled Heimat and already found
floors (Pretelli, 2011: 23).
its drastic outcomes in the demolition of the
That being so, Daniel Libeskind’s stance
most representative post-war fabrics.
(Libeskind, 1999: 235), which ‘[calls] for the non-identity of Germany’, while seeming a first glance rather extreme and perhaps somewhat utopic and elitist, can be regarded as a provocation against an idealized concept of national architecture: I would say why would you want an identity. You should develop the non-identity of Germany. In other words its blurred structure which is here as well. I have never thought that nations and national architecture is of relevance (Libeskind, 1999: 235)
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
48
2.3 DEALING WITH A FINANCIAL BURDEN
2.3.1
Creation and relieving of debts
The debate around demolition of the GDR
construction of flats in the GDR was financed
settlements cannot be exclusively lead on
by the state bank under the form of loans. At
an ideological level. On the contrary, in our
the time of the reunification, the debts of
case study, pragmatic aspects tied to the
housing companies were equal to 72 billion
economic and financial management of
marks. A 14.6 billion Euro equivalent debt
this heritage are fundamental to define a
was created and redistributed among the
complete picture of the situation in Eastern
newly founded enterprises, when the GDR
Germany.
State Bank was taken by Western banks.
As we have seen in Paragraph 2.2, demolition
However, cheap rents subsidized by the
is subsidized by both Bund and L채nder. The
GDR state were the concrete economic issue,
financing was conceived to deal with the
as they could not finance the repayment of
housing industry and urban development
those old debts.
crisis in East Germany, which had its origins
The growth of the debts forced the Bundestag
in the shift from the Socialist model to a
to pass in 1993 the Old Debt Assistance Law. The
capitalistic economy. Rochus Wiedemer
agreement, which involved both the federal
provides a clear insight on the matter in
government and the housing companies,
the first research volume published by the
provided up to 78 Euros per square meter
Shrinking Cities (2006) project. First of all, the
to cover part of the old debts. In return, the
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
49
enterprises committed to privatize 15% of
to sell the renovated apartments. Instead, as
their holdings before 2003, with the use of
Wiedemer (2006) reports, ‘the vacancy level
their own capitals. In substance, ‘the Old Debt
in communally and cooperatively owned
Assistance Law was a housing policy tool for
flats grew to an average of 14% in 2000’. The
reducing the percentage of communally and
risk for the housing company was therefore
cooperatively owned flats and for increasing
insolvency, which meant loss of credit for
the share of private ownership’ (Wiedemer,
the loaning banks.
2006). However, flats had to be made more
In the light of this, the aforementioned
attractive to compete with new housing
Stadtumbau Ost programme was conceived as
development in the surroundings, and a
an instrument to reduce the surplus of flats
great deal of units had to be renovated due to neglect lack
of
maintenance.
These
conditions
forced
the companies to take out more loans to be eligible for subsidies, creating a new
“OST THE WAS STADTUMBAU ALSO CONCEIVED TO REDUCE THE SURPLUS OF FLATS IN EAST GERMANY
„
on the market and stabilize their rents and values. On the other hand, the debts of the housing companies could be partially paid off through
the
demolition
subsidies we described in
chunk of debts.
Paragraph 2.2.2.2.
Nevertheless, the first signs of a long-term
A further boost to the one-sided razing of
shrinkage were already starting to show.
ex-GDR buildings was given by the synergy
As a study of the SHRINK SMART project
between the Stadtumbau Ost and the Old
reports about the case of Halle (Rink,
Debt Assistance decree of 2000, which waived
Haase, Bernt, Arndt, and Ludwig, 2011),
the
job-related out-migration was particularly
to demolished buildings if the owning
evident, especially in the so-called mobile
company had a vacancy rate higher than 15%
population segment – i.e. young families
(Wiedemer, 2006).
pre-reunification
and singles – which moved due to lack of jobs and unemployment. This phenomenon was particularly evident until the mid-1990s, when suburbanization started to manifest. As a result of this, housing companies failed
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
50
debts
connected
Limits of the Stadtumbau Ost programme
2.3.2 Stadtumbau
Ost
also
Instead of conceiving an organic plan of
provided a boost to urban development.
action, it is opted to demolish the buildings
Town councils had to devise an urban
with the highest vacancy rates. Such choice
development concept with the aid of the
also poses serious issues to the maintenance
housing enterprises. The concept also had
and functioning of social infrastructure.
to deal with the low-occupancy issue, by
Districts are only partially razed, and they
formulating
long-term
would therefore still need facilities such
solutions. If those conditions were met, the
as schools or medical centres. Moreover,
municipality was eligible for the allocation
the creation of wide open spaces from
of additional subsidies. The programme
demolitions only increases segregation
allotted 1500 million euros for urban
within the housing estate, increasing the
improvements; a third of the sum was to
‘spiral of low occupancy levels’ and the
be raised by the municipalities themselves
number of empty flats. It is also worth to
(Wiedemer, 2006).
note that, in many cases, most of the funds
In many cases, however, the planning
allotted for improvements are used for
strategy is strongly influenced by the
partial demolition, as the municipalities are
financial
not able to raise their own share of money
The
programme
previsions
situation
of
and
the
housing
companies. Concepts had to prioritize
(Wiedemer, 2006).
economic development and survival of the
These conditions led in 2006 to think that
enterprises through partial demolition
the demolitions would continue even after
rather than actual urban improvement.
2010 in the absence of a perspective of urban
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
51
development, as the number of empty flats
of vacant flats in East Germany could rise to
was steadily rising. Investigations led few
1.42 million by 2020’.
years before (Wiedemer, 2006) were already
The Stadtumbau Ost programme was
showing this trend. Given that the goal
eventually prolonged until 2016. However
for 2010 was the demolition of 350.000
its outcomes in 2009 and the demographic
flats in East Germany (500.000 would still
trends, point out that the programme is
remain vacant), GdW (Head Federation of
no longer a sustainable solution to face
Housing Companies) figures from 2003
shrinkage in Eastern Germany. Demolition
showed that only 70.000 flats had been so
might still be a useful tool to improve
far demolished, and 1.3 million22 were still
urban spaces. However, the socio-economic
vacant. In 2007, as (Martinez-Fernandez,
framework we described resolves into an
Kubo, Noya and Weyman, 2012) report,
unsustainable approach, which sees former
‘the first evaluation of the programme […]
GDR housing as a financial burden. In our
showed, amongst other things, that it is
vision, the Stadtumbau Ost programme
necessary to continue tearing down vacant
while having the best of intentions, is
residential buildings. Otherwise, because of
limited by the consideration of Socialist
the ongoing population decline, the number
architectural heritage as a mere urban issue. Their cultural value is not taken into account, and Germany rebuilds once again
22 The Federal Ministry of Transport, Building and Housing figures shown instead a 1 million flat surplus.
on the ruins of its history.
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
52
2.4 A MODERN URBAN HERITAGE
2.4.1
The cultural value of urban modernity
So far we have seen how the debate on the
As
Giovanni
Carbonara
and
Simona
destiny of the GDR architecture has been
Salvo (2006) argue, the concentration of
strongly influenced by economic factors,
symbolical values and practical needs is
ideological matters and by the current
a common burden to the conservation of
aesthetic taste. The historical value of these
all contemporary architecture, although
buildings is often neglected and appears of
with different meanings and purposes.
marginal importance when compared with
The short temporal gap elapsed between
the aforementioned elements.
the construction of modern buildings and the present time often led to the oversight
“HOW INCANTHE THELIGHT FIELD OF THIS, OF
on their status of cultural heritage. As a result, the approach to the conservation of contemporary architecture is still the
ARCHITECTURAL RESTORATION HELP FINDING A COMPROMISE AND PRESERVING GERMAN HISTORICAL MEMORY AS A CONTINUUM?
expression of several circumstantial needs: economic issues, socio-political matters, aesthetic taste and ideological positions.
„
In this confused framework, we believe that the architect-restorer should still have
the
crucial
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
53
duty
of
identifying
connotations of historical evidence through
time is required for a monument to acquire
his sensitivity and critical thinking. The
cultural relevance.
goal of conservation is indeed to safeguard
According to Olimpia Niglio (2008), for a
cultural assets ‘[…] no less as works of art
successful conservation it is crucial a careful
than as historical evidence’ as stated by the
decryption, selection and comprehension
Venice Charter (1964: art. 3). Therefore, it is
of those values. Such attention certainly
possible to realize how the application of the
requires
current theories underlying architectural
active interaction with the surrounding
restoration might be the most appropriate
environment.
instrument to retrieve the neglected values.
Petrarola (2006) also sustain that the
Modern architecture is certainly included in
motivations of the restoration activity are
this discourse, as the concept of monument
dominated by the necessity of retrieve both
embraces settings in which:
an individual and collective identity. The
a
receptive
context
Carbonara
and
(2006)
an and
acknowledgement of values through critical [...] is found the evidence of a particular
judgement means indeed recognizing what
civilization, a significant development or a
could be deemed as ‘identity’ and standing
historic event’. This applies not only to great
surety for its transmission to future
works of art but also to more modest works
generations.
of the past which have acquired cultural
Such stance (Carbonara and Salvo, 2009:
significance with the passing of time (The
101) nullifies the ideas of those who assume
Venice Charter, 1964: art.1)23
for modern buildings the preponderance Even in presence of a legislation regarding
of aesthetic values upon historical values.
the minimum age of a building - or of an
With reference to our case study however,
urban environment - for issuing protection
founding the recognition of values upon
orders, the ‘passing of time’ mentioned in the
the need for a collective identity could lead
Charter is not tied to specific prescriptions.
to an apparently irreconcilable conflict; as
It rather suggests that a certain lapse of
pointed out in paragraph 2.2.4, ‘A Hierarchy of Pasts’, the popular feeling goes in fact towards the rediscovery of an unspoiled
23 The reported translation of the Venice Charter is edited by the ICOMOS and it is available at the web address http://www.icomos.org/charters/venice_e. pdf.
identity, by sacrificing historical layers in favour of others deemed more appropriate.
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
54
In our vision, the ambiguity could be solved
ideological foundations behind a certain
by considering the heritage of the GDR as
architectural model. Products of such ideas
part of an identity belonging not only to
are rather to be regarded as the evidence of
German people, but to the whole Western
a cultural framework featuring peculiar
civilization as well. The events of the Cold
elements, and rooted to a specific historical
War have undoubtedly influenced the lives
period.
of an entire generation and shaped the
In the architectural heritage left by the
world as we know it. Under this perspective,
GDR, those characteristics are however
Socialist architectural heritage is not only an evidence of the policies adopted during this unique historical moment, but also the legacy of an obsolete cultural model, to be preserved as collective memory. Our opinion is corroborated by the position of Pietro Petrarola (2006:
“A R CSHOI TCECI ATLUIRSA TL
HERITAGE IS THE LEGACY OF A MODEL TO BE PRESERVED AS A COLLECTIVE MEMORY.
„
29). In his view, the process of
often
expressed
at the urban scale, and take the shape of new cities and neighbourhoods. As we have discussed in Paragraph 2.2.1, urban spaces initially had a central role in
acknowledging the status of ‘cultural asset’
the expression of political power, followed
is basically founded on keeping memory
by the aforementioned mass production of
and history alive, as the Article 1 of the
housing blocks. Although single relevant
Venice Charter reminds us. Furthermore,
buildings still had an important role in
as we cannot identify the cultural value of
East German architecture, the shaping of
buildings in their technological advances,
a real Socialist community was devolved
design and usage features, we also believe
upon the housing policy. The construction
that our judgment should not be clouded by
of cities and neighbourhoods also had the
our opinion on the principles inspiring the
task of accommodating workers for the
project – in this case those of Real Socialism
nascent industry, as demonstrated by the
– and of its intentions.
According
cases of Rostock, Bitterfeld-Wolfen, Halle-
to our vision, the critical thought of the
Neustadt and Eisenhüttenstadt, to mention
architect-restorer should always be detached
some. In the light of this, preserving urban
from personal taste and opinions of the
scale heritage becomes of the utmost
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
55
importance not only for historical purposes,
former is the pure contemplation, the latter
but also to promote a new quality of life in
requires to be preserved for practical ends.
Western civilization. In fact, the rigorous
Therefore, architectural literature is not
conservation and usage of built heritage fits
inferior to poetry; a local identity is indeed
in the objective of saving goods, resources
built through the stratification of the urban
and buildings, and prevents their waste
environment rather than through single
(Fiengo, 1990). Once again, the field of
monuments (Fiengo, 1990).
architectural
acknowledged
Roberto Pane’s studies were eventually
those ideas in the Venice Charter, where the
acknowledged by the Venice Charter,
very need of preserving urban structures
starting from art.1: ‘The concept of a historic
and more complex environmental systems
monument embraces not only the single
is one of the founding principles.
architectural work but also the urban or
The cultural background leading to the
rural setting [...]’ (The Venice Charter, 1964).
recognition of their status of ‘cultural
The most noticeable evolution from the
asset’ is cleverly described by Giuseppe
past was regarding the ‘setting’ as a ‘cultural
Fiengo (1990) in the essay La conservazione
asset’ by itself, rather than just a mere frame
dei beni ambientali e le Carte del Restauro.
to single masterpieces.
Destruction brought by World War II and
While still remaining a benchmark for
the
reconstruction
the restoration activity, the purpose of the
stimulated a more critical thought on the
Venice Charter was the conservation of the
conservation of traditional architecture.
ancient urban or environmental setting. The
In 1948, Roberto Pane gave a significant
question of the ‘modern’, and its significance
contribution to the debate by applying
as an in-becoming historical layer was
Benedetto Croce’s aesthetics to architecture.
substantially left out. Nevertheless, we
Pane’s theory was based on the distinction
consider that such operative limit should
between ‘architectural poetry’ – regarded
not detract from the effectiveness of the
as the single monument - and ‘architectural
Charter. As we will demonstrate in the next
literature’, which is the historical urban
paragraph, the principles stated in 1964
structure formed by the single buildings.
still remain a fundamental guideline for the
These two categories have completely
restoration of the modern.
different purposes. While the subject of the
Advances on the topic are made with the
restoration
subsequent
chaotic
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
56
Declaration of Amsterdam (1975), which defines contemporary architecture as ‘the
monuments: all buildings and structures
heritage of tomorrow’. Therefore ‘every effort
of conspicuous historical, archaeological, artistic, scientific, social or technical interest,
must be made to ensure that contemporary
including their fixtures and fittings;
architecture is of a high quality’. Protection of the architectural settings is also set
groups of buildings: homogeneous groups
in a wider perspective by ‘embracing all
of urban or rural buildings conspicuous
buildings of cultural value, from the greatest
for their historical, archaeological, artistic,
to the humblest - not forgetting those of our
scientific, social or technical interest
own day together with their surrounding’
which are sufficiently coherent to form
(Declaration of Amsterdam, 1975). This
topographically definable units;
awareness of contemporary architecture as
sites: the combined works of man and
potential heritage was certainly a far-sighted
nature, being areas which are partially
position. However, this stance ended up to
built upon and sufficiently distinctive
be an isolated case, as the charters published
and homogeneous to be topographically
the following years omitted discussion on
definable and are of conspicuous historical,
the topic.
archaeological, artistic, scientific, social or
Besides this, the subsequent international
technical interest.
statutes – namely the 1985 Granada Convention and the 1987 Washington
The use of the adjective ‘conspicuous’
Charter - marked an involution in the process
suggests that conservative actions should
of acknowledging the status of heritage. As
follow a selection of the assets to be protected,
Giuseppe Fiengo (1990) points out, both
exposing heritage to circumstantial needs
charters are burdened by conceptual limits
and evaluation influenced by external
which do not allow protection of relevant
interests. The same ambiguity is present in
evidence from the past as a whole. In fact, only
the Washington Charter (1987). In Article
those expressions which are more ‘relevant’
5 it is entrusted to the conservation plan
to the eye of the restorer are deemed worthy
determining which buildings must be
of conservation. For instance, Article 1 of the
preserved, which should be preserved under
Granada Convention defines architectural
certain circumstances and which, under
heritage as it follows:
quite exceptional circumstances, might be
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
57
expendable (Fiengo, 1990).
artefacts, are the result of an identification
A significant evolution, instead, is seen with
with
the Krakow Charter (2000). Based on ‘the
history and social-cultural contexts. The
spirit of the Venice Charter’, the document
conservation of this heritage is our aim’.
asserts that ‘each community, by means of
Most importantly, the document makes a
its collective memory and consciousness of
clear statement, by integrating in Article 1
its past, is responsible for the identification
the consciousness shown by the Declaration
as well as the management of its heritage’.
of
Furthermore, it is shown an unprecedented
stratifications: ‘[a]ny intervention implies
consciousness about the relativity of values,
decisions, selections and responsibilities
their pluralism and mutability in time and
related to the complete heritage, also to
of the impossibility to define heritage in a fixed way.24 In line with our vision, the Charter expands the social and cultural nature of the heritage, and acknowledges the effort of
various
associated
Amsterdam
towards
“THOSE WE ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR STRATIFICATIONS THAT MIGHT HAVE MEANING IN THE FUTURE „
moments
in
contemporary
those
parts
that may not have a specific meaning today, but
might
have one in the
preserving urban and environmental assets.
future’.
As it is stated in Article 1: ‘[t]he architectural,
As a consequence of this view, the short
urban and landscape heritage, as well as
temporal gap should not encourage the modification
of
the
values
embodied
by a cultural model recognised as such. Therefore, while being more evident with
24 From the Preamble to the Krakow Charter: ‘Individual elements of this heritage are bearers of many values, which may change in time. The various specific values in the elements characterise the specificity of each heritage. From this process of change, each community develops an awareness and consciousness of a need to look after their own common heritage values. This heritage cannot be defined in a fixed way. One can only define the way in which the heritage may be identified. Plurality in society entails a great diversity in heritage concepts as conceived by the entire community; therefore the tools and methods developed for appropriate preservation should be adapted to the evolving situations, which are subject to a process of continual change’.
the GDR urban policy, there is a potential socio-cultural value even in other ‘60s and ‘70s European housing estates, which are nowadays so criticized. Those ideas are identified by a development model belonging to a certain idea of living social relations and the city. According to the principles of the Krakow Charter then,
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
58
those housing projects, characteristics of our urban suburbs, ought to be preserved as the evidence of a particular socio-cultural context. Their restoration project ‘should anticipate the management of change, in addition to verifying the sustainability of selected options, linking heritage issues with social and economic aspects’ (The Krakow Charter, 2000: art.8). In spite of these recommendations, the efforts for the conservation of ‘modern heritage’ are still limited. Acknowledgment of its cultural value is pushed into the background
by
several
circumstantial
interests and factors which are often considered more relevant. For this reason, we believe that the figure of the architectrestorer should gain more relevance in the urban renewal process, by encouraging a more careful thought on the in-becoming heritage in our cities.
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
59
2.4.2
The operative framework
Before hoping a more prominent role for
the contemporary’, ‘of the 20th century’.
the architect-restorer in the conservation of
In the article L’intervento sul contemporaneo:
urban spaces, we should open a discussion
esperienze e tendenze, Giovanni Carbonara and
on the topic of the approach towards the
Simona Salvo (2009) consider this lexical
‘modern’ and put order into a confused
confusion as the symptom of ‘an insecure
framework. In fact, as Pietro Petraiola (2006)
and disjointed development’ of the topic,
asserts, 20th century heritage is perceived as
and most importantly, it evidences the
a turning point in the field of architectural
aforementioned desire for a stand-alone
restoration, to such an extent that a
approach, whose methodology lies outside
widespread demand for a new management
the ‘classical’ standards of architectural
and understanding methodology arose.
restoration.
The approach of the discipline towards this
Such confusion often resulted in the
issue is still an open topic of discussion,
return to an idealized original image of the
and the appellation of ‘restoration of the
building rather than the conservation of its
modern’ itself is deemed (Carbonara and
material condition, marking a throwback in
Salvo, 2009: 97-98; Crippa, 2003: 16) rather
the application of the restoration principles.
ambiguous. In fact, the expression is usually
The advocates of this position ascribe
extended to include buildings which do
the inability of preserving the material
not belong to the standards of the Modern
condition of 20th century architecture to
Movement, and can be also substituted by
the following reasons. Firstly, it is argued
the utterances ‘restoration of the new’, ‘of
that the experimental building materials
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
60
“RESTORERTHE
employed are difficult, if not impossible
perfection 25 .
to be preserved (Galliani, 2007: 132).
Our
Especially in the realization of structures
is
and facades, the use of reinforced-concrete
indicated
poses several durability issues. However,
stance
the inherent resistance of these materials
far
from
to conservative actions and their proneness
the
actual
to a steady degradation cannot justify the
architectural
return to an unspoiled appearance of the
restoration field, and aims at preserving the
building. Otherwise, this act would identify
iconic value of the building rather than its
their natural decay as a ‘negative value to
value of ‘cultural asset’.
rectify rather than a fundamental sign of
The understanding and the decryption
meaningfulness and creativeness to be
of those cultural qualities are the key to
wittingly preserved’ (Carbonara and Salvo,
bring back the ‘restoration of the modern’
2009: 100). Thereby, rather than leading
as part of a unified method. In our vision
to the independence of the ‘restoration
then, the argument should move away
of the modern’, this condition should be
from the research of a differentiated
tackled by the architect-restorer through
approach based on alleged limits in the
the acquisition of additional knowledge
field of architectural restoration. Instead,
concerning ‘characteristics, deterioration
we should focus our efforts on overcoming
of materials and intervention techniques as
the substantial difficulty in recognizing
well’, as Raffaella Telese (2004) asserts.
architectural values of the modern caused
opinion that
the is
ARCHITECT SHOULD ACQUIRE ADDITIONAL TECHNICAL KNOWLEDGE TO INTERVENE ON THE ‘MODERN’
„
Besides this argument, Carbonara and Salvo (2009) report a further stance, which sustains 25 This objection directly concerns the architecture of the Modern Movement. Raffaella Telese (2004) sustains that colours and thicknesses adopted by Modernists only add to the difficulty of preserving the original figurative values of the building, especially when integrating missing parts. In these circumstances, the restoration project should not alter the perception of the whole by carefully intervening on the blanks.
that the figurative language of modern architecture cannot be handed down to new generations if deprived of integrity and
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
61
by the ‘lack of an adequate chronological
However, as far as building obsolescence
gap and by an undeveloped architectural
is concerned, we are not able to apply the
historiography’
Salvo,
same construction to the architecture of the
2009: 98). For this purpose, the discipline
GDR. The East German housing policy was
calls for ‘original studies and analysis’,
above all a demagogic political programme
‘operations
requiring
meant to build a socialist community.
specific and unaccustomed instruments
Despite the heavy prefabrication which
and technologies that could be efficiently
could hint to an avant-garde idea of total
applied to new architectural techniques
reversibility, there were no architectural
and materials’ (Petraiola, 2006: 29). Yet, the
statements behind this choice, but mere
aforementioned proneness to degradation
economic reasons. Obsolescence was not
of the materials used by the Modern was
even taken into account. As the housing
an intended side effect and was an integral
programme in Honecker era (1971-1990)
part of those buildings’ life cycle. Hence,
clearly demonstrates, the goal of the SED
the use of perishable building materials is a
was to upgrade buildings and raising living
statement posing an additional ethical issue
standards and conditions (Hannemann,
to the architect-restorer. Which is the stance
2004). However, after the reunification the
to be taken towards the programmatic
whole Socialist urban planning system itself
ageing and physiological substitution of the
suffered from obsolescence, as a result of
buildings? On this point the position seems
historical circumstances triggered by the
to be rather unitary. Given that ‘the desire
failure of Real Socialism.
of preserving and handing down historical
All the more so, the conservation of urban
documents is not bound to the prerogatives
spaces developed by the GDR is fundamental
and purposes behind their creation’ (Telese,
for ‘cultural, historical and more generally
2004: 278), we indeed preserve Modernist
scientific reasons’ (Carbonara 2006: 21),
buildings in spite of their ‘natural and
as they are the extraordinary heritage of a
arranged
is
specific cultural model and of an extremely
enacted due to historical reasons, or rather
significant historical period. These are
to protect the heritage of past civilizations
the very reasons behind the activity
for the future generations, as Olimpia Niglio
of restoration. On the other hand, the
(2008) asserts.
conservation of urban developments requires
and
(Carbonara
researches
obsolescence’.
and
Restoration
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
62
additional efforts and care. Once dealt with
cycle yet and that it is still part of an on-
their crucial acknowledgment as ‘cultural
going creative process. In the light of this,
assets’, we realise the inability of applying
it is argued that the only feasible approach
a standard method, and the importance
consists
of a case by case action. With reference to
buildings. Such position is rather simplistic
our study subject, the task of the architect-
and issues from common misconceptions
restorer is made even more difficult by the
about
nature of former-GDR urban structures. We
most frequent prejudice lies in regarding
are indeed in the presence of organisms which still
are living,
breathing
in
architectural
“SOCIALIST WITH REFERENCE TO THE FORMER CITIES, HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL VALUES ARE ACCOMPAINED BY ECONOMICAL AND USAGE EMERGENCIES
„
and dynamic;
‘redesigning’
the
existing
restoration.
The
restoration as the act of crystalizing a building in time.
Nevertheless,
this
opinion denotes a substantial ignorance about the actual principles and of the real goals of restoration as stated
however they have to face the consequences
by the Venice Charter.
of being child to a failed vision – i.e.
First of all, the Charter describes the process
abandonment, shrinkage, and negative
of restoration as:
demographic trends - in addition to the issues which plague new millennium cities. Hence,
[...] a highly specialized operation. Its aim
the above mentioned historical, cultural and
is to preserve and reveal the aesthetic and historic value of the monument [...] (The
scientific grounds belonging to restoration
Venice Charter, 1964: art. 9).
and conservation, are accompanied by economical
and
usage
reasons
which
As we can see, cultural and historical
concern the field of architectural renovation
instances are closely related with the
(Carbonara, 2006: 21).
aesthetic values of the monument, and
These two instances might apparently seem
strongly emphasized. Hence, the ‘redesign’
conflicting. In fact, as Raffaella Telese reports
approach endangers the whole set of values
(2004: 388-389), numerous architect and
of the fabric, by claiming the right to alter
planners have argued that contemporary
spatial qualities of the buildings in the
heritage has not finished its historical
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
63
name of their temporal contiguity with
cultural values with the practical utilisation
the present. Moreover, the aforementioned
of the building, which is accountable to
crystallization is seldom, if ever, the right
political, social and economic requirements
solution for a successful conservation,
(Carbonara, 2006: 21). This shift from the old
which:
to the new destination should come after the previously mentioned research of references
[...] is always facilitated by making use
and sources and after an in-depth study of
of them for some socially useful purpose.
the historical and architectural context of
Such use is therefore desirable but it must
the monument. Afterwards, the interventive
not change the layout or decoration of the
restoration should be carried out according
building. It is within these limits only that
to the familiar criteria of authenticity,
modifications demanded by a change of
compatibility, distinguishability, minimal
function should be envisaged and may be permitted.
intervention
and
reversibility
and,
(The Venice Charter, 1964: art. 5)
subsequently, could be articulated into different operations, ranging from the
This crucial statement further highlights the fallacy of considering the
‘restoration
of
the
modern’ as a stand-alone branch of the discipline. As Pierfranco argues,
Galliani
the
(2007)
purpose
of
restoring the ‘modern’ is not
“HISTORICAL WE
simple upgrade of the materials to the
SHOULD BALANCE VALUES WITH THE PRACTICAL UTILISATION OF THE BUILDINGS, THROUGH THE FAMILIAR CRITERIA OF ARCHITECTURAL RESTORATION
„
a ‘complacent preservation of the building, led without planning a specific and suitable destiny for its future’. We should instead develop a project which joins together several requirements through the professionalism of the architect restorer. In other words, we should manage to balance the historical and
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
64
modification of inner spaces, or, if necessary the addition of new
volumes
(Galliani, 2007: 130-132).
Yet, even with clarity of goals and method,
system. Our goal is to design a suitable and
the restoration of the ‘contemporary’ - and in
sustainable planning approach by following
particular of the GDR architectural heritage
the methodology explained above. To this
- still poses several thorny issues. First and
end, the next part of this dissertation will
foremost, restorers are often in conflict with
feature an extensive study on the programme
their political counterpart whose goals are
behind the construction of Halle-Neustadt,
often far from the preservation of cultural
the goals and outcomes of the urban design
values. As we have seen in this chapter,
project and on the socio-economic issues
such debate is even more controversial in
currently affecting the district.
Germany, where the attitude towards the cultural values associated with the GDR age is still rather hostile. Of equal importance is the issue of preserving
and
acknowledging
former
Socialist urban systems as cultural assets. However, the challenge we are dealing with is rather complex. In several cases we are indeed faced with the issue of integrating the conservation of cultural values into a context that desperately needs to be revitalized. On the other hand, we have economic interests which usually do not profit from its conservation, and opt for demolition in order to relief their debts, thanks to the previously mentioned subsidies. For the purpose of our study, we have identified a suitable case in the district of Halle-Neustadt in Halle (Saale). In HalleNeustadt, the aforementioned issues are still strongly relevant, including dismissal and demolition of the former GDR urban
PART I OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
65
PART TWO
T D A T S U E N E L L HA
The city of the chemical workers
Picture 23
Geographical context of Halle-Neustadt. Halle-Neustadt is a district of Halle (Saale), which is the most populous city of Saxony-Anhalt. Through the centuries, Halle acquired the status of important education center. At the present days, the city houses the Martin Luter University of Halle-Wittenberg, the biggest university in Saxony-Anhalt.
NETHERLANDS
BELGIUM
FRANCE
SAXONY-
GERMANY
-ANHALT
BERLIN
POLAND
FORMER EAST GERMANY
HALLE
CZECH REPUBLIC HALLE
SLOVAKIA HALLE-NEUSTADT AUSTRIA
HUNGARY
3.1 ASPIRATIONS OF A SOCIALIST COMMUNITY
3.1.1
A role model town
Halle-Neustadt was the fourth of several
remarked in Part I.
new towns and communities built under
the Central Committee of the SED held a
the GDR rule. Following the planning
conference in the chemical plants of Leuna
experiences of Eisenhüttenstadt, Schwedt
about the chemistry programme of the
and Hoyerswerda, the development of Haneu
DDR. The committee passed an investment
– as the new settlement was nicknamed
programme which scheduled the doubling
by dwellers – went hand-in-hand with
of the current chemistry production, and
the strengthening of the Eastern German
further development of the Buna and Leuna
industrial apparatus,26 as we have already
plants.
Moreover,
conference
also
In November 1958,
the passed
aforementioned a
resolution
concerning the recruitment of labour for 26 The first notable examples of the socialist new town were Nowa Huta in Poland and Magnitogorsk in the Soviet Union. Those cities were built alongside new state kombinat – groups of industries from the same branch - to accommodate workers. The first East German “socialist city”, Stalinstadt, began being built in August 1950 alongside the erection of a new steel mill. Nine years later the town further expanded, with the inclusion of the neighbouring settlement of Fürstenberg. In that occasion, due to the ongoing Destalinization process, Stalinstadt was renamed to
Eisenhüttenstadt. On the other hand, HoyerswerdaNeustadt was built to accommodate the rising numbers of workers employed in the Schwarze Pumpe lignite processing factories. The city kept growing in four distinct development phases until the mid-80s. However the first Plattenbau already started to rise from 1957, due to the large demographic increase and request for accommodation.
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
70
Picture 24
A 1964 map indicating the construction site of Halle-West. At first, the choice fell on a relatively small area south west of Nietleben. Successively, the new settlement ended up annexing, and eventually building over the village of Passendorf.
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
71
Picture 25
front page of Architektur der DDR, issue 6/1974. A monographic issue on HalleNeustadt was published in occasion of the ten-year anniversary of the city.
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
72
Picture 26
Commemorative bronze medal for the 25-year anniversary of HalleNeustadt, portraying the Architect Richard Paulick on the top side.
Picture 27
Commemorative stamp for the 20-year anniversary of the GDR celebrating Halle-Neustadt.
Picture 29
Picture 28
Guests of honour in Halle-Neustadt: Erich Honecker, General Secretary of the SED and Fidel Castro, General Secretary of the Cuban Communist party.
Horst Sindermann lays the first stone for the construction of Halle-West during the groundbreaking ceremony.
Picture 30
Postcards depicting the most prominent landmarks and sights of Halle-Neustadt.
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
73
the chemicals industry and the construction
development of socialist coexistence in
of a new settlement in proximity of the
terms of cultural activities, the supply of
two chemical sites. The first tests carried
housing, sport and recreation’ (Pasternack,
out by the Politburo in 1959 identified the
2012: 9). Functional aspects were not only
area between the old Halle, Nietleben and
related to the site choice – which was of
Passendorf as a suitable site for the new
course strategically located near the Buna
development. The following year,
the
leadership
SED
district
approved
the
site, and eventually, the first earth moving operations began in December 1963.
“REGARDED HALLE-NEUSTADT WAS AS AN UNIQUE OCCASION TO BUILD THE PARADIGM OF A SOCIALIST COMMUNITY
„
Since that moment already,
and Leuna plants - but they were as well understood in a broader, socialist and
communitarian
sense (Pasternack, 2012: 10). ‘Thousands of these chemical
workers
live,
Halle-Neustadt was being regarded as an
in some cases, in villages distant hundreds
unique and exceptional occasion to set up
of kilometres from production. Hours of
new milestones in urban planning. The
transport in crowded vehicles, which take
latest development in social sciences, urban
free time away from them’ (Müller / Schlör /
planning and construction engineering
Bachmann 1968: 6, cited by Pasternack, 2012:
could be applied to build the paradigm of
10). However, as Schulze (2010) observes, the
Socialist way of living, a sort of visiting card
aspect of workers’ leisure time was not only
and national pride outside the GDR, aiming
dictated by the needs of social welfare, but
to build the Socialist community of the
it also underlay a merely pragmatic aspect.
future (Sonntag, 1967). The Ministerrat (1963)
By supplying attractive new apartments,
itself, from the pages of Deutsche Architektur,
the SED directive wanted to attract young
enthusiastically claimed that Halle-Neustadt
and more productive, efficient workforce.
should mark the beginning of a new
Furthermore, the concept of the new city, its
phase for urban planning, characterized
shape and planning was conceived to achieve
by four aspects: ‘the unity of economics,
a demographic increase – by facilitating
high technology, great convenience and
sexual reproduction of the individual. Such
a high level of artistic expression’, aimed
goal had indeed to be achieved through the
at ‘creat[ing] the best conditions for the
increase of individual leisure time and the
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
74
In substance, Halle-
selective allotment of the new apartments.
capitalistic housing.
First of all, marital status played a role,
Neustadt was the embodiment of what the
and married young couples with different
GDR was ideally meant to be, a small-scale
occupations had priority on the allocation.
prototype of a perfect socialist community:
Planners recognized that the disposable
socially,
time budget between individual time –
dedifferentiated, powerfully
dictated by the work shifts – and biologically
the optimism in the GDR education
determined reproduction time did increase
with a functional planning, and timely
only by shortening commute times.
implementing
Apart from mechanistic needs, we can
advances, at least as far as resources could be
still point out, as Schmidt (1994: 21, cited
mobilized. (Pasternack, 2012: 49).
by Pasternack, 2012) remarks, how these
Concerning the aforementioned rupture
positions further denote the intention of
with the past, although many settlements
creating an urban concept which could be
were indeed built as planned developments
an alternative both to capitalistic planning
-
and a rupture with planning of the past.
Lichtenhagen, Grünau, Jena Neulobeda, Suhl-
Halle-Neustadt was considered an ideal
North, Dresden-Prohlis, Berlin-Marzahn and
and eloquent ‘socialist reshape’ of the old
Berlin-Hohenschoenhausen, to name a few
city structure, which still bore capitalistic
– they had not the ideological meaning
elements of social iniquity. ‘Specifically,
that was instead ascribed to the planning
it was criticized the social segregation of
of Halle-Neustadt, or any other new town.
residential which
areas
the
[…],
in
low-income
classes were housed in small, under
dark poor
conditions’
apartments hygienic (Schulze,
politically
SOCIALLY, POLITICALLY, AND ECONOMICALLY DEDIFFERENTIATED
„
2010). The new city was
technical
Magdeburg-New
“BE ATHE“SMALL-SCALE NEW CITY HAD TO GDR”,
and
economically embodying
and
Olvenstedt,
Those
design
Rostock-
prefabricated
housing blocks served the only purpose of solving the
pressing
post-war
issue
housing
of
stock
in East Germany. On the other hand, the already
therefore the perfect chance to put the
mentioned experiences of Eisenhüttenstadt,
ideals of ‘socialist living’ in practice from
Hoyerswerda and Schwedt had their limits,
scratch, without the pre-war remnant of
and in the 60s were already deemed obsolete
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
75
Picture 31
Coat of arms of Halle-Neustadt. The coat was introduced in 1984, for the 20th anniversary of the groundbreaking ceremony.
(Pasternack, 2012: 9). ‘Eisenhüttenstadt,
Hoyerswerda,
Schwedt [...] yielded a rich treasure of experience. [...] In these settlements, new principles of organization of the urban living environment have been gradually developed. But they also have shown the brittleness, the schematism and monotony of new industrial construction design. Those buildings were also hampered by the realization of incomplete functional solutions and insufficient attention to longterm development opportunities’ (Schlesier
‘The gold of the key represents [...] the ten
et al. 1972: 43, cited by Pasternack, 2012:9).
thousand keys handed over [...] which paved the way for family happiness and joyful
Halle-Neustadt
gained
the
status
of
laughter of children, for social facilities
independent city in 1967 and its new
accessible to all. To illustrate the function
name27. This decision prevented confusion
Halle-Neustadt as chemical workers city, the
with investment funds, as the old Halle had
benzene ring was used as a graphical symbol in the coat of arms. The emblem symbolizes
completely different issues, and ensured
the close relationship between the district
that local interests would not hinder the
town of Halle and Halle-Neustadt with the
new development (Pasternack, 2012: 18).
inclusion of a [...] six-pointed star edged out
The coat of arms of the new city was highly
of the crest of the city hall. A key feature is
significant of the optimism and enthusiasm
the colour. The red background has been
going around the project:
deliberately chosen in order to document that it has always been the desire and the struggle of the working class to create the living conditions which, today, are the objective in Halle-Neustadt‘ (Town of Halle information centre, 1989: 2f, cited in Pasternack, 2012: 49).
27 Until 1967, the development had been referred to as Halle-West.
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
76
3.1.2
Education, participation and equality: shaping the socialist man
Being the paradigm of the perfect Socialist
Halle-Neustadt.
community, Halle-Neustadt ideally had
In the light of these considerations, and
to form role-model citizens. Pasternack
from the analysis of our case study, we have
(2012: 16) sharply points out that the task
identified two main aims of the educational
of breeding well-schooled individuals was a
system of Halle-Neustadt.
main priority, due to the expected youth of
Firstly, the proximity of the Buna and Leuna
population which would settle. As we have
chemical plants pushed the urge for the
seen, young couples had to be the social norm
creation of a highly specialized scientific and
in Halle-Neustadt; they had priority on the
technological hub. In the new town, future
allocation of new apartments which were
workers had to be formed and put in the
indeed planned for one or two-child families
conditions to keep up to date with the latest
(Pasternack, 2012). It is worth to note that
advances in the field of chemical industry
‘ in 1972, the average age of the adults was
(Pasternack, 2012). Beside the extension
24.4 years. While accounting citizens over
of the Buna-Werke Polythecnic, many other
65 for only 2.6 per cent of the population,
facilities were built until 1989: a section of
the proportion of children was 32.9 per cent‘
the Economics Faculty of the Martin-Luther
(Hafner 2006: 131f, cited by Pasternack,
Universität Halle-Wittemberg, a branch of the
2012). The educational system had therefore
Akademie der Pädagogischen Wissenschaften, the
to be particularly well-developed. The table
Advanced ‘Karl Marx’ high school, and three
on the right gives an idea of the extensive
vocational schools, to mention a few. It was
coverage and distribution of the facilities in
no coincidence that the groundbreaking
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
77
Table 1
Equipment of residential areas with social facilities: chosen values of the “complex policy for urban planning and design of residential areas” - 1986-1990
Facility
Design indications for 1000 units of population
Maximum walking distance
Polytechnic High School
150/180 places
1000 m
Nursery
30 places
600 m
Kindergarten
50 places
600 m
Youth Club
18 places
1250 m
Other Clubs
35 places
1250 m
Bookstores
7/8 sqm for the main function areas
1250 m
Library (children/adults)
1650 inventory units
1250 m
Source: Liebmann (2004: 53) in MfB (1985: 21ff.) in Pasternack (2012: 16)
ceremony for the new city was held at the
lifestyle. The educational policy, therefore,
site of the new Polytechnischen Oberschule
was also aimed to create a socialist life-long
(POS); it was a programmatic statement
learning experience, strong of the optimistic
which involved not only children and
idea of educating people through tangible
young people, but the whole East German
conditions (Pasternack, 2012). This program
population in the path towards an educated
also involved fine arts, as in Halle-Neustadt
nation
Apparently,
we could record the installation of over 180
this long-term goal had been successfully
works. The pieces had both a pragmatic –
achieved, as it is certified by a study of the
decoration of space – and programmatic
90s (Hafner, 2006: 132 in Schulze, 2010)
function, as they illustrate Socialist ideology
that the population in Halle-Neustadt had an
and way of life (Pasternack, 2012).
above-average level of education.
Awareness on those tangible conditions
On the other hand, by focusing on cultural
was further on increased by the constant
and spiritual education while increasing
involvement of the population in the
spare time, the SED hoped to ‘steer the
planning process. ‘Although in the typical
leisure interests’ (Walter, 1968: 86 cited in
limits of paternalistic socialist participation
Pasternack, 2012: 16) towards a socialist
patterns’
(Pasternack,
2012).
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
78
(Pasternack,
2012:
12),
the
Picture 32
Unity of the working class and foundation of the GDR, Josep Renau Berenguer, 1970-1974. Ceramic mosaic decorating the exterior of a Plattenbau in Am Stadion. Pasternack (2012: 32) reports that HalleNeustadt was a real open air gallery, featuring ‘a total of 184 works of fine and applied art’.
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
79
participative model formula gave citizenship
architectural typology featured a smaller
the idea of being part of a collective project,
living space and custom-made furniture,
thus increasing the sense of solidarity,
purposely designed for the new type. The P
community and of belonging towards
2.12, which had to set a new living standard
the future city. The involvement process
in the GDR, was particularly appreciated by
started at a very early stage of the design,
younger people, while older couples were
with a 1961 exhibition which introduced
quite disappointed by the new apartments,
the planning concept to the population of
especially by reason of their small size29
Halle; in the same occasion, 10.000 leaflets
(Pasternack, 2012: 12). Due to their reduced
about key aspects and questions on urban
dimensions, new apartments were sensibly
planning in Halle-West were distributed to
cheaper to reproduce; moreover it was
catch the interest of professionals from design offices. The initiative was rather successful, with the organizing committee receiving over 400 responses. (Pasternack, 2012: 11). Subsequently, two other exhibitions followed, along with six main public discussion forums.
“AND EARLY EDUCATION INVOLVEMENT IN
THE PLANNING PROCESS WERE THE INSTRUMENTS TO SHAPE THE SOCIALIST COMMUNITY
„
easier
to
arrange
blocks so that no cell had more than one room exposed to north and all of them had view on a green space. The
prefabricated
Even the jury for the 1964 urban design
type could also be easily justified on an
competition included chemical workers
ideological level. If the new city was to
from the Leuna and Buna plants besides
be a role model for the spatial and urban
members of the Bauakademie and public
transposition of Socialism, equality had
officers.
to be lived by the citizenship firsthand.
1964 was also the year of the exhibition held
Equality had to permeate all aspects of life,
at the Volkspark in Halle, which presented the new P 2.1228 prefab-apartment type. The new 29 Pasternack (2012: 12) reports some opinion of the future residents, gathered during an interview at the Buna plant: ‘I would once like to see the homes of the architects who designed this apartment type!’ ‘It is ridiculous to expect that a married couple with two children would live in this dollhouse!’
28 See paragraph 3.2.2 for a more detailed description of the architectural typology conceived for the new apartments in Halle-Neustadt.
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
80
starting from the share of natural resources available, leisure and, eventually, of living space. The Platte system allowed the creation an architectural language for equality - through homogenization of element and the enactment of a real alternative to capitalism, by – at least apparently - erasing the existing social differences: ‘The
residential
complex
of
a
city
under Socialism is not characterized by differentiation based on income groups, professions or other differences. [...] There is no precedence when assigning the location within a residential building. Everyone lives under the same conditions in the same housing: here, the General Director lives in the same house as the operator from the large chemical plant, the mayor on the same block with the switch attendant from the heat supply centre and the town planner’ (Schlesier and Autorenkollektiv (1972: 85), cited by Schulze, 2010).
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
81
3.1.3
Limits of a cybernetic dwelling machine
The considerations we have described so
transfer behavior patterns to its residents
far denote an almost boundless optimism
through its morphology and institutions
and a blind trust in social sciences and
(Pasternack, 2012: 14-15, 53). Predictability
masterplan. Modern sciences were the basis
of human behaviour was also facilitated by
of the assumption that the new city could
the functional zoning of the city in areas of
be regarded as a controllable mechanistic
housing, employment, leisure and transport,
system, with self-regulating subsystems
and the transposition of the social role of
which allowed the unhindered development
the individuals into spatial organization.
of the socialist life and ambitions. At the same
Therefore, the idea of functionality also
time, the ‘algorithmic’ implementation in
extended to the ‘new socialist man’, who was
the image of the city – and its processes – of
to be formed in Halle-Neustadt and shaped so
ideological and political content, allowed
that he contributed to the collective good
to minimize intromissions from the GDR
(Pasternack, 2012: 53-54).
parent system. Those features implied
Yet, the 1972 volume Plan und Bau der
the application of an almost cybernetic
Chemiearbeiterstadt
way of intending the city. On one hand,
evidences how the scientific rigor needed for
people were thought to move in the urban
the management of the new city had been,
space by following predefined loops and
in his view, underestimated. Although being
patterns dictated by shift times in Buna
a carefully moved constructive criticism,
and Leuna, free days and school hours; on
which encouraged ‘not to resign over the
the other hand the city was supposed to
dynamics and the size of the tasks ahead’,
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
82
edited
by
Schlesier,
the study – addressed to an international audience through summaries numerous
multilingual -
reports technical
deficiencies affecting the
“PROJECT THE UTOPIC ASPECT OF THE WAS THE BOUNDLESS
TRUST IN THE MASTERPLAN AS THE INSTRUMENT TO REGULATE URBAN DYNAMICS
„
design of Halle-Neustadt.
Bloc, as the idea of controlling processes
social through
urban planning and architecture
was
indeed a mainstream tendency in the 70s.
The defects list embraces urban scale and
However, in Halle-Neustadt this approach was
the detail scale alike, ranging from the
devised as an applied critique of capitalism,
impression of monotony and schematism
and an attempt to balance the iniquities
of the facades, low quality and durability
in its cities:
of materials used, lack of soundproofing
and workplaces’, ‘imbalances in the goods
in apartments. While conceptual issues
supplying system and cultural care of
are not mentioned, underestimating ‘the
the population’ and the ‘irregular and
complexity and the intricacy of building
anarchic growth of the city structure and its
a city of this size’ seems to be, according
transport system’ (Koenen 1962: 133 cited
to Schlesier, the cause of the technical
by Pasternack, 2012: 15).
deficiencies (Pasternack, 2012: 22-23)
It should not be surprising then, that most
Nevertheless, the technocratic belief in
of the criticism moved to the outcomes of
the predictability of urban life was not a
the Neustadt design project shares many
peculiar feature of the DDR or the Eastern
similarities with negative censure against
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
83
the ‘bad neighbourhoods
other European urban developments of the
need for a more ordered architecture. In this
70s. As Pasternack (2012: 25-26) reports, the
case, the sought ‘order’ is to be intended as
physical separation of urban functions was,
‘clarity’ and ‘readability’ of the city.According
for instance, criticized by Kühne (1986) in
to Pasternack (2012: 26) Halle-Neustadt failed
relation to the whole GDR prefabricated
to achieve a clear structure not because it was
housing system. Segregation, along with the
not conceived by planners, rather because
monotonous space and the undifferentiated
of its unimaginative, uniform and dull
architectural forms prevented urban life
architecture, incapable of psychologically
from expressing itself with vibrant intensity,
engage the user. This condition reflected a
thus denying the original intentions of
problem of the image of the city, and a lack
the masterplan (Bach, 1966: 7 cited by
of sense of place and belonging; a 1985 study
Pasternack, 2012). Another point emerged
on the original planning goals (Staufenbiel
in a 1980 (Weber & Zimmermann, cited
& al., 1985) evidenced how ‘only half of the
by Pasternack, 2012) experimental survey
interviewees felt at home in Halle-Neustadt,
about the ‘effects of the urban form’, and
and about a third would have preferred to
their relation with the processes of social
live in a different place (Pasternack, 2012:
appropriation. Although the structure of
26).
the city was quite simple, one of the most significant outcomes of the research was the
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
84
3.2 THE FORM OF THE NEW CITY
3.2.1
Construction and planning of Halle-Neustadt
As it has been reported in the previous
site offered the possibility to build a quick
paragraph, the new settlement was to
railway connection to the chemical plants
be established between Passendorf and
and allowed the partial use of the existing
Nietleben, on the west bank of the river
railroad (Paulick, 1967: 203).
Saale, opposite the old town. Richard
The guidelines of the masterplan for
Paulick (1967: 203) describes from the pages
Halle-Neustadt were eventually defined
of Deutsche Architektur how the site choice
through a 1962 architectural competition:
was influenced by several factors, such as
the requirements were the division in
its ‘bioclimatic suitability, the possibility
Wohnekomplexe
of rapid transportation’ and even ‘the
population of 12.000 inhabitants and the
recreational opportunities in the area’. While
inclusion of a central square equipped
meeting the requirement of proximity to
with a community centre. Moreover, the
the chemical plants, the chosen location was
guidelines assigned a particular relevance to
also found to be favourable in terms of wind
the road infrastructure: a new highway had
direction, so that the fume plumes of the
to be the backbone of the district, while also
industries would not disperse upon the new
providing the link to the Old Halle by the
city (Hermann, 2000: 27). Besides that, the
construction of a bridge upon the Saale. In
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
85
with
an
approximate
parallel with the competition, Ernst Proske
appointed chief architect and head of the
and Gerard Kroeber led a preparatory urban
Urban Development Collective for Halle-
planning phase and a preliminary design
West. These conditions could explain both
for the development of WK I30 from 1960 to
the decision of reserving land for the future
1963 (Hermann, 2000: 27, 31).
expansion of the town – with the increase
However, given the growing importance
of the planned size of five apartment
that the SED assigned to the development
complexes to seven with the addition of two
of the chemical industry, the design process
more residential areas by the end of the 70s
underwent a sudden acceleration. The
- and the ‘overlapping of construction and
project also began being modified more
planning’ (Hermann, 2000: 31). Especially
and more frequently, in favour of higher
in Wohnekomplexe I to III, it is interesting to
population density: Daniel Hermann (2000:
note how the aforementioned overlapping
28) reports that, until 1964, the planning
resulted into experimental and trial-by-
history of the district is characterized
error processes, involving the form of the
by numerous revisions which led to the
complexes and the interaction between the
‘transition from the four-story blocks to
urban-architectural and artistic concept.
the construction of eight and twelve-storey
WK I, for instance, although still suffering
elongated residential blocks’. Eventually,
from ‘relatively uniform urban spaces’
the urgency caused by the industrial
(Siegel, 1967) dictated by the path of the
growth led to the immediate beginning of
cranes track, already shows the first signs
the construction works, which officially
of the Kunst am Bau unity, with landscaping
started on September 17th 1963.
During
experimentations and use of ornamental
the ground breaking ceremony held on July
and decorative elements. While in WK I art
15th 1964, Paulick – who had worked with
and landscaping were implemented only
Gropius before being an exile in China,
in the executive phase of the project, in
and had a Bauhaus background31 - was
WK II this interaction is improved through the cooperation with a collective of artists and landscape designers since the early
30
Abbreviation of Wohnkomplex.
31 The intentions behind the project and its final outcomes project have indeed strong ties with the ideals of the Modern Movement. See Paragraph 3.2.2
for an in-depth analysis on the Bauhaus influence upon the planning of Halle-Neustadt.
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
86
Legend Urban area / Halle Old town centre / Halle Residential complexes / Halle-West Residential complexes centres / Halle-West Supply area Areas reserved for expansion
Picture 33
The plan above defines the main functional areas of the new district, including service centres for each Wohnekomplexe and space allocated for future expansion.
Picture 34
On the left, a large-scale study drawing defines the connections with Buna and Leuna, featuring a calculation of the commute times from Halle-West. PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
87
planning stage. The planned shape for the complex still had experimental traits, but featured the first ‘angular construction groups’
(Siegel,
1967),
and
presented
‘greater height contrasts with duplex floors and roof gardens’ (Paulick, 1967). In WK III all the urban, architectural and artistic achievements obtained in WK I and II found their best application, and prefigured the residential complex as a turning point and a model for future urban planning in Halle-Neustadt. The artists and landscapers collective participated since the urban planning phase, to define the appropriate focus of the design project and create a balance contrast of more intimate and larger social spaces. Besides the interaction between art and architecture, the goal of WK III was to define a workflow, and generally valid solutions for the design of building corner solutions and better exploitation of the crane track (Paulick, 1967; Siegel, 1967). The residential complexes in Halle-Neustadt also feature the experimental introduction of the P 2.12 apartment type mentioned in the
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
88
Picture 35
Richard Paulick commenting on a scale model of Halle-Neustadt with Zaglmeier, Siegel and Bach.
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
89
previous paragraph. According to Hermann
is the Block 10, a 10-storey, 380-metres long
(2000: 44), the P 2.12 type was conceived
building whose central parts were designed
as a 60 m2 (balcony excluded) three-room
on the P 2 module. The design experiments
apartment with a fixed layout. A 5.99 m2
carried in WK II and III, on the other hand
corridor led to a 20.72 m2 living room on the
were focused on solving the corner solution
left; the room was equipped with a service
and connection issues for the new module;
hatch connecting the 4.97 m2 kitchen with
the outcomes ranged from the opening of
entrance through the hallway. The master
free passages on the ground floor, to the
bedroom (11.05 m2) and the kids’ bedroom
creation of terrace roofs and eventually, the
(9,83 m2), along with the 3.52 m2 bathroom,
design of duplex apartments at the top floor
were located on the right of the hallway.
(Fraustadt, 1967).
Such layout allowed the use of 6 m outer wall
In regard to their general character, the
prefab plates, and the creation of continuous
Wohnekomplexe were literally functionally
balconies and loggias. Initially, the P 2.12
independent
type was featured in the experimental
initially planned to accommodate 10.000
housing project of WK I, especially in the
– 11-000 units. However, the urge to
longer blocks due to the versatility of the
rationalize the maintenance costs of the city,
6-metres module. Particularly interesting
led the planners to increase the number of
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
90
residential
developments,
Picture 36
Schematic type plan for a residential complex centre in Wohnkomplex III.
Picture 37
Conceptual perspective sketch of the entrance to Halle-Neustadt from old Halle, with the GimritzerDamm complex on the sides.
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
91
inhabitants to 15.000 – 20.000. Paulick itself (1967: 204) explains how smaller sizes were found to be economically unfavourable, due to the fact that lower densities led to the creation of garden-like cities, with ‘small decentralised and unprofitable utilities and relatively large green spaces, which [were expensive] and labour-intensive to maintain’. In this regard, Halle-Neustadt marks a significant progress in Socialist urban planning, since residential complexes of the 50s used to contain a population from 4500 to 5500 inhabitants. Every residential complex was equipped with autonomous energy supply, recreation and education facilities, located within walking distance from the blocks. Stores and leisure activities were an integral part of planning, included into a single low-rise building equipped with several independent, flexible and easily modifiable spaces. The center was designed to cater for a ‘population density of over 300 inhabitants / ha’ (Paulick, 1967: 205) and comprised of a department store, a post office, a restaurant,
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
92
Picture 38
Sketch of the residential complex centre area in Wohnkomplex III
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
93
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
94
Picture 39
(above) South-eastern skyline of Wohnkomplex I in 1974
Picture 40
Perspective sketches of Wohnkomplex III.
club rooms and healthcare facilities. Larger spaces between apartment blocks were usually allocated for the combination of nurseries and day-care centres and schools with gyms and other sport facilities. To concentrate functions, facilities for children were also built right next to schools (Hermann, 2000: 37). Smaller gaps between buildings were instead intended as collective spaces for recreation, and often designed as parks or playgrounds, while the use of statues and sculptures further helped developing the quality of Wohnkomplexparks (Hermann, 2000: 28). The eleven-storey elongated blocks running parallel to the path of the planned highway – the so called An der Magistrale, formed a sort of boundary PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
95
Picture 41
Isometric sketch of the commercial area. The volume of the 18 floor blocks of student apartments dominates the whole composition.
Picture 42,43
Perspective sketches of the city centre, facing respectively the central square (42) and WK III (43)
Picture 44
1974 plan of the stores area in the newly built city centre. The project included three Zwischenbauten, stores on two separately accessible levels.
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
96
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
97
for the residential complexes. The road
The two far end of the Neustädter Passage had
network plan itself had strong ties with the
different heights, with the western central
construction schedule, and was conceived to
square at 4.20 m – the height of a storey.
prevent vehicular traffic through the blocks.
Such height difference allowed the planners
Cul-de-sacs were designed for the smaller
to design the Passage on two floors, with
streets ends and, the rest of the network
an elevated pedestrian platform. Besides
was planned in order to bind commuters
receiving pedestrians from WK IV, the bridge
to peripheral routes, if taken, to prevent
also made possible to develop shops and
further car crossing (Hermann, 2000).
recreational facilities on two independent
An exception to this planning scheme
floors, by placing them adjacent to the
was made by the WK IV, which received no
platform. The eastern end of the street
independent facilities in order to densify the
featured a marketplace and a department
city centre. The complex was planned north
store, to preserve the character of a shopping
of the Neustädter Passage and designed in
street (Khurana, 1974). As described above,
order to create a continuous pedestrian area
the western end of the Passage featured the
to link blocks, city centre and the Bruchsee
central square, with underground access
city park to the west. The pedestrian flow is
to the railway station, and the town hall on
canalized towards the five 16-storey towers
the eastern side. The square, as Hermann
which dominate the composition of the
(2000: 40) describes, had been a brownfield
city centre and lead to the Passage (Khurana,
site until the construction of a cinema in the
1974; Hermann, 2000). This area had an
early 80s. The original concept for the area
east-west elongated extension, featuring
also featured an educational and cultural
shops and health facilities, various services,
centre, which had been never implemented
and restaurants of municipal relevance.
due to economic factors.
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
98
3.2.2
Rational-socialism
Besides having been a significant advance
architectural legacy because it claims that
in the field of urban studies and building
ideas cannot be given architectural form
technology under Socialism, the experience
and that, in architecture, form, function, and construction take precedence’ (Thöner,
of Halle-Neustadt also marked an important
2005: 122).
phase in the reception of the architectural language inherited by the modernism. In
Contextualized into the historic framework
particular, the Bauhaus aesthetics - which
of the Cold War, the rejection of the Bauhaus
was the most prominent representative of
is connected to the concept of International
the Modern Movement in Germany – until
Style, coined in 1932 by Henry-Russell
the mid of the 60s was still deemed an ‘affront
Hitchcock e Philip Johnson. According to
to national traditions’ (Thöner, 2005: 120)
the 1948 volume entitled In USA erbaut, 1932–
by the SED. The main topic of criticism were
1944, published in Western Germany – the
formalism and functionalism, considered
International Style had American origins
incapable of elevating ‘the construction to
but deep roots in the European modernist
a work of art’ (Thöner, 2005: 122) ; Walter
culture. Therefore, modernist aesthetics was
Ulbricht, first state secretary of the SED and
unsuitable for Eastern culture, since it was
prime minister of the GDR described the
regarded as a ‘genuinely American’ (Thöner,
Bauhaus style as:
2005: 121) product, deprived of beauty and distant from the national architectural
‘an alien hostile phenomenon because it denied “the necessity of the creative use
legacy and context.
of progressive elements of the national
However,
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
99
the
Destalinization
process
actuated by Nikita Khruscev, and the first
argument raised – first against and then in
signs of a long term economic crisis, also
favour of the Modern. Wolfgang Thöner
affected the current architectural tastes,
(2005: 123) reports that in 1951 Paulick had
as in December 1954 the new Communist
to adapt his idea for the Sports Centre on
Party secretary ‘called for the loosening of
the Stalinallee in Berlin to the new national
Stalinist doctrines in architecture and for the
aesthetics, by designing a frieze and a
industrialization of construction’ (Thöner,
colonnade for the entryway. The original
2005:
decorative
plan ‘drew upon modernist theatre designs
formalism of the ‘national tradition’ that
from the early 1930s, in which one could
marked the first decade of the GDR’s
see all the characteristics of Philip Johnson
architectural history started giving way
and Henry-Russell Hitchcock’s definition of
to the design of buildings that were both
International Style’. Given Paulick’s forced
functional and economic, mainly aimed at
self-distancing from the Bauhaus ideas, his
solving the housing problem and the issue of
attempt to reintroduce modernist ideas in
reconstruction32. Rehabilitation of Bauhaus
the plan of Halle-Neustadt should not be
was also favoured by the application of
surprising. The concept for the new city
the latest technological and scientific
may have not been admittedly modernist,
achievements to the building industry,
and it was certainly tolerable, as in those
which allowed more efficient prefabrication
years the debate around the architectural
and construction speed.
language of the GDR was shifting in favour
As a former pupil of Walter Gropius,
of the Bauhaus tradition. But whilst Halle-
Bauhaus
Paulick
Neustadt was ‘hardly viewed in connection
experienced in first person the effects of the
with the Bauhaus [and more in general, the
125).
The
architect
grandiose
Richard
modern movement] even in East Germany’ (Thöner, 2005: 128), the project was included
32 As we have noted in Part I, Paragraph 2.2.1, the hasty solution of housing and reconstruction issues were among the main propaganda topics in the newly found GDR. As Hüter, (cited by Thöner, 2005: 125) asserts: ‘It was the pressure to increase productivity which pushed aside the officially decreed decorative style; despite, or rather because of the unreflective turn from a narrow-minded historicism to an equally narrow-minded technology of construction from large pre-fabricated forms, the steady diet of forced overideologization remained unchanged’.
by Aldo Rossi in the XV Triennale di Milano catalogue entitled Architettura Razionale. Angelika Schnell (2010: 51) stresses out the importance of this inclusion: ‘the project […] is […] to be considered a contemporary Rationalist project of the same value as those
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
100
Picture 49
Cover of the catalogue of the XV Triennale di Milano, with the introduction to the winning design project for Halle-Neustadt.
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
101
by Ungers, Krier, Eisenman, or Stirling; it is the only project singled out in Rossi’s introduction’. Specifically, it was praised for the collective planning approach which was, in Aldo Rossi’s opinion, a concrete way for architecture to successfully engage society and the modern world. Under this light, rationalist architecture was considered ‘socialist architecture’, and the approach adopted for Halle-Neustadt was commended independently from its outcomes (Schnell, 2010: 59). However, this stance was not universally shared. By way of example, Joseph Rykwert criticized the work method as it led to mass standardization through the use of small prefabricated forms. On the other hand, the ‘new generation of architects in the West criticized architectural and urban planning concepts like those of the CIAM, which were also the basis for HalleNeustadt’ (Thöner, 2005: 128). As a matter of fact, a number of architectural and planning solutions
designed
for
Halle-Neustadt
remind us of Le Corbusier’s theories. For
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
102
Picture 50
View of Block 10, and the Buratino kindergarten, on the left. in WK I. This 380 m long building is perhaps the most significant symbol of the socialist utopic plans for Halle-Neustadt.
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
103
instance, the use of the Magistrale as an east-
pillars should have been left empty to create
west backbone for the whole district can
supply areas on two levels. As previously
be compared to network system designed
described, Block 10 featured the use of
in Brasilia, which features a main pipeline
the standardized P 2.12 module: another
route as well. The Wohnekomplexe also
reference to the concept of the ‘living cell’,
show a few solutions resembling the ideas
presented in 1925 by Le Corbusier in his
presented in the urban concepts of Plan Voisin
pavilion ‘De l’ Esprit Nouveau’ (Hermann,
and Ville Radieuse. In WK 3, the meandering
2000: 36-42).
shape of the residential buildings reminds
To conclude this section, through the analysis
of the lower gradation planned for the
conducted so far it is possible to deduce how
outer rings of Ville Radieuse. On the other
our case study makes a significant example
hand, some of the experimental blocks carry
of architectural heritage of the modern. The
on the idea of the Unitè d’ Habitation: the
ideas of dwelling machine and cybernetic
original plan of Block 201 in WK 3 featured
city found in Halle-Neustadt an important
the overlapping of functional layers rather
application attempt – even if they were
than the superimposition of flats, and a
already obsolete in Western countries. In
pillared structure. Particularly impressive
this regard, our judgment should abstract
is the aforementioned Block 10 in WK 1: the
from the political programme behind the
original plan reserved the lower levels of
plan which should be treated as a ‘product
the building to social services and common
of its times’.
areas while on residential floor, cells next to
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
104
3.3 REQUIEM FOR AN UTOPIA POST 1989-NEUSTADT
3.3.1
Portrait of a ‘shrinking city’
On May 6th 1990, 66.1% of the Neustädter
arduous task of balancing two cities, while
spoke up for merging with the old Halle
dealing with unprecedented economic,
municipality through a local referendum.
social
Peer Pasternack (2012: 56-57) states that, far
These dynamics, which underwent the
from being an act of capitulation towards the
name of ‘urban shrinkage’, manifested
new system or a way to repair the anomaly
themselves with negative demographic
caused by the separation of the two cities, the
trends, deurbanization, abandonment and
reunification had a different background.
high vacancy rates. Philipp Oswalt (2008)
By merging Halle with Neustadt, the city
describes with great efficacy the challenge
reached the sum of 300.000 inhabitants, so
posed by shrinkage, which is still seen by
that it could rightfully participate in the
our society as an ‘accident and exception’.
political debate around the choice of the
Modern thinking – and architecture and
future capital of Saxony-Anhalt. However,
urban planning as well – have been ruled
the choice eventually fell on Magdeburg,
since 19th century by the idea of endless
which was deemed more appropriate.
growth, which is ‘the foundation of [our]
The decision proved to be far-seeing, as
ideas, concepts for action, theories, laws
Halle is nowadays still struggling with the
and practices; yet, we are slowly reaching a
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
105
and
demographic
phenomena.
Figure 1
Number of unemployed and long-term unemployed 19902008 30.000
25.000
unemploeyees
20.000
15.000
10.000
5.000 0 1990
1995
unemployed long-term unemployed
2000
2005
2008
[Source: UFZ database in (Dieter, Haase, Bernt, Arndt and Ludwig, 2011: 20)].
turning point (set to the end of 21st century),
significant case-study, as the most evident
in which shrinkage and growth will be
phenomenon
balanced. According to Oswalt’s hypotheses,
strongly tied with the effects of post-
new theories and instruments will therefore
socialism
be required to face socioeconomic and
suburbanisation as well.
planning issues and allow a ‘reversal of view:
A
construction [should not be] the goal, but
Environmental Research (UFZ) of Leipzig
the starting point’.
explains how the combine-economy of the
Along
with
suburbanisation
2011
of
and, report
deindustrialisation to of
a
certain the
is
extent,
Centre
for
and
GDR was dismantled under capitalism. The
metropolitanisation, deindustrialisation of
state companies connected to the Buna and
mono-industrially oriented sites appears
Leuna facilities were ‘disintegrated and
to be one most influential factors of urban
privatised – although with an extremely
shrinking in 20th century. In this regard,
reduced number of employees’. It is also
Halle-Neustadt makes an exceptionally
assessed that, since reunification, about one
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
106
fourth of the jobs have been lost. The extent
of shrinkage, which also had strong
of the Eastern deindustrialization is well
repercussions on the social composition of
described by these figures:
the city. While until 1989 Halle-Neustadt had - as we have described earlier - a strong
‘the number of jobs related to industrial
social mix encouraged by the Socialist
activities per 1,000 persons now is around
state, with the shift towards a capitalist
50, compared to an average of 114 in West
economy and the loss of jobs, segregation
German territorial states (which includes
phenomena began to manifest. The first to
agrarian regions)’ (Dieter, Haase, Bernt,
leave, drawn by safer career opportunities
Arndt and Ludwig, 2011: 19).
in the West, were younger individuals and people with high degrees of education –
Right after the reunification, the massive
which in Neustadt represented a fair share
unemployment produced by the chemical
of the population. Outmigration led to a
industry dismantling was kept under
flats surplus, and an increase of the vacancy
control. The UFZ reports that the ‘public-
rates, also due to newly renovated units and
job creation measures’ and also ‘early
housing complexes (Dieter, Haase, Bernt,
retirement programmes’ gave work to
Arndt and Ludwig, 2011: 27). No longer
one third of the unemployed workforce.
regulated by the fixed prices imposed by
However, unemployment rate kept rising
the GDR state, the housing market of Halle
from 1990 to 2005, peaking in the year 2000
responded to the new conditions with a drop
at 21%.
of prices and rents that increased residential
The decrease of the unemployment rate
and social mobility. The UFZ report (Dieter,
from 2005 could be attributed to the
Haase, Bernt, Arndt and Ludwig, 2011: 27)
first reindustrialisation attempts in the
concludes that ‘selective processes of out
area, with the modern Dow Chemicals
and in-migration led to a differentiation
facilities in Merseburg and the solar cell
of the socio-economic structure of Halle’s
production plants in Bitterfeld that pushed
population and a rearrangement and
unemployment rate down to 13.8 in 2008
strengthening of patterns of segregation’.
(Dieter, Haase, Bernt, Arndt and Ludwig,
On the other hand,the fall of Socialism opened
2011: 21). Deindustrialisation
is
certainly
new business opportunities for suburban
to
development, and the newly acquired land
be acknowledged as the main factor
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
107
saw a phase of intense suburbanization right after the fall of the Wall. ‘Benefitting from diverse subsidies’ and unrestricted by the ‘lack of coordinated regional planning and cooperation between the cities and surrounding
municipalities’
(Dieter,
Haase, Bernt, Arndt and Ludwig, 2011: 22), commercial and residential developments were
built.
However,
suburbanization
interested in particular areas with poor housing conditions, which coincided with the old Halle - neglected by the GDR - and was not as relevant as deindustrialisation in regards to demographic dynamics33
33 The yearly maximum of suburbanization was reached in 1998 with 4,600 persons. Before and after that time period, interregional migration was (and is) more important for population losses in Halle. By and large, interregional out-migration has been more important for population decline in Halle than suburbanization (Dieter, Haase, Bernt, Arndt and Ludwig, 2011: 25)
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
108
3.3.2
Job outmigration, segregation patterns and ageing
In order to analyse demographic records and
district went down to 46.000 units in 2008.
better comprehend shrinkage phenomena,
Stabilisation signs are not visible, as from
a distinction between the Old Halle and the
2000 to 2008 Halle-Neustadt lost 8000 more
Neustadt has to be drawn. The old city had
inhabitants (Dieter, Haase, Bernt, Arndt and
already been affected by population loss from
Ludwig, 2011: 10). These figures point out
the late 60s to the late 70s, (Dieter, Haase,
how the two cities shrink at different paces.
Bernt, Arndt and Ludwig, 2011: 10), due to
However, due to the joining of the two
outmigration towards the nearby Neustadt.
municipalities, Halle became ‘one of the big
However, from 1989, the demographic trend
cities in Eastern Germany with the biggest
drastically changed and almost reverted.
population loss throughout the 1990s and
While until the turn of the millennium both
the 2000s’ (Dieter, Haase, Bernt, Arndt and
parts of the city saw a constant population
Ludwig, 2011: 10).
decrease, from 2000 to 2008 old Halle lost
As we have already pointed out in the
merely 4000 inhabitants, showing signs of
previous
stabilisation. On the other hand, Neustadt
migration appears to be the main factor of
lost almost half of its population in the span
shrinkage, with share of negative population
of 20 years: from a population peak of almost
balance equal to the 80% of the total loss
94.000 inhabitants in 1987, the prefab
(Raschke and Schultz, 2006: 51 in Dieter,
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
109
paragraph,
job-related
out-
Table 2
Age groups and ageing 1989 - 2008
1989*
1996
2000
2008
Share of people (0-14)
19.2
13.5
11.1
10.8
Share of people (15-65)
66.3
71.8
71.9
66.2
Share of people (65+)
14.5
14.7
17.1
23.1
Youth dependency rate**
28.9
18.8
15.4
15.6
Age dependency rate***
21.8
20.5
23.7
33.4
Index of ageing****
75.5
108.9
154.0
21.41
* without Halle-Neustadt ** (0-14) / (15-65), per cent *** (65+) / (15-65), per cent **** (65+) / (0-14), per cent
Source: UFZ database in (Dieter, Haase, Bernt, Arndt and Ludwig, 2011: 12).
Haase, Bernt, Arndt and Ludwig, 2011: 11).
although in this segment the costs slightly
Especially in Halle-Neustadt, this process
increased until 2004 [...]While during the
- which started right after the German
last few years the rents for low-price housing remained stable, they slightly increased for
reunification - manifested with ‘selective’
middle and high quality locations’ (Dieter,
traits, since it involved in particular young
Haase, Bernt, Arndt and Ludwig, 2011: 28)
people and individuals with high education degrees. On the other hand, people with
A
‘above average values of low income and
stronger
segmentation
of
the
market prevents lower income groups
unemployment remained’ (Dieter, Haase,
from
Bernt, Arndt and Ludwig, 2011: 29), leading
benefitting
of
wider
relocation
opportunities, excluding them from areas
to the first signs of social segregation and
with rising prices. It is significant that
differentiation. Such trend has been further
during the second half of the 90s, ‘the share
on boosted by the increasing vacancy rates
of inhabitants who depend on social benefit
and the resulting reaction of the housing
increased considerably’. Nowadays, the
market. Rents and prices for flats fell, yet not
share of dwellers living on social benefits is
in every market segment, as:
higher in Halle-Neustadt than in the rest of the city. Neustadt itself is becoming more
‘[...] the highest costs are to be paid for post-
differentiated as low-income households
1990 flats, the lowest for pre-1948 housing
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
110
Figure 2
Population development of Halle ‘old part’ and Halle-Neustadt 1967-2008 300.000
250.000
population
200.000
150.000
100.000
50.000 0 1967
1972
1977
1982
1987
1992
1997
2002
2007
[Source: UFZ database in (Dieter, Haase, Bernt, Arndt and Ludwig, 2011: 11)].
Old Halle Halle-Neustadt
Figure 3
Out-migration 1993-2008 according to target region
16.000 14.000 12.000 10.000 8.000 6.000 4.000 2.000 0 1993
1997
2001
2005
2008
[Source: UFZ database in (Dieter, Haase, Bernt, Arndt and Ludwig, 2011: 14)]. Germany Western Germany towards foreign countries suburbs
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
111
tend to concentrate in the southern part,
UFZ report, ageing will become more and
while the northern part is stabilizing (Dieter,
more important as a negative population
Haase, Bernt, Arndt and Ludwig, 2011).
development factor, due to the decrease of
Moreover, due to the migration of the
women in child-bearing age. This condition
younger households, the population of
– the report asserts – ‘cannot be reversed
Halle-Neustadt
process
in the mid-term even by improved labour
of accelerated aging, aggravated by the
market conditions and household incomes
relatively young pre-1989 population age.
but at best attenuated’ (Dieter, Haase, Bernt,
The UFZ figures for the whole Halle
Arndt and Ludwig, 2011: 16).
municipality clearly describe how the
Future
phenomenon affected especially the prefab
evidences the effect that population ageing,
housing estates (Dieter, Haase, Bernt, Arndt
constant segregation and shrinkage could
and Ludwig, 2011: 12). From 1989 to 2008,
have in the long period: the IBA website
the 0-18 group share had a drastic decrease
(2010) reports that while in 2009 231.978
(from 22 to 13 %), while, in the same period
people still lived in Halle, prospects for 2020
the share of the eldest group (65+) grew from
and 2025 show further population decrease
14% to 23%. The most recent ageing index is
trends (2020: 215.000; 2025: 206.120),
a straightforward sign of the anomaly, and
without stabilization signs.
underwent
a
rose to 214.1 in 2008 from the 75.5 of 1989 – a 138.6 point increment. Therefore we can conclude that a sizeable population share of the former GDR settlements is made by ‘first generation dwellers’, those who ‘aged together with the housing estates (ageing in place)’ (Dieter, Haase, Bernt, Arndt and Ludwig, 2011: 31). This
condition
has
two
evident
consequences. First of all, the occurring of age related segregation phenomena, which are bound to increase as the population keeps ageing. On the other hand, according to the
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
112
population
prospect
effectively
Picture 51
‘Wohnzelle’. Facade of a residential building in WK III. Surprisingly, this block is occupied, but nevertheless in bad shape.
PART II HALLE-NEUSTADT
113
Picture 52
‘Herzlich wilkommen’. This shot was taken in an off-limits area of the underground S-Bahn station of Halle-Neustadt, at 7:20 AM.
Picture 53
‘Damnatio memoriae?’. However, the off limits area is not-so-off-limits. The old S-Bahn platform is separated from the new train platform by a thin wall easy to bypass.
Picture 54
‘Wall-in’. Sealed entrance to a vacant bulding on An der Magistrale. Those buildings have become playgrounds for writers, crews and urban explorers.
Picture 55
‘(not) for sale’. A vacant residential building along the Magistrale, neglected and vandalized.
Picture 56
Another night shot of a building on the Magistrale. It is possible to note how the left section of the facade has no lights switched on. Vacancy or energy saving?
Picture 58
‘Emerald Tower’. One of the four vacant buildings towering the city centre covered with green security nets.
Picture 57
‘Once upon a time, there was the DDR.’ View of the town centre, dominated by four vacant eighteenstorey Plattenbauten. The original circulation system has been entirely preserved, both in form and function.
4 CONCLUSION As we have pointed out in this essay,
analysed
affirming the right of existence of GDR
layers. Behind the consideration of the GDR
architecture required several years of debate.
modern style as inadequate to represent the
In the years following the reunification, the
reunified Germany, there was indeed the
most prominent architectural symbols of
struggle between two ideologies, and the
the socialist regime were erased in favour
will to dispose of socialism in every possible
of a more acceptable and less painful image
way.
of the urban space. By introducing the case
Our research also described this attitude
of the Palast der Republik - and the planned
as a recurring theme in German culture.
reconstruction of the Schloss - we could
Erasure of memory has been led by defacing,
positively affirm the existence of prejudices
rebuilding, and tearing away the heritage
towards the architecture of GDR: through
deviating from an else unalterable Prussian
the interpretation of the recent history of
history. Nevertheless, we should consider
the Palast, the topic of damnatio memoriae
this behaviour as a natural reaction,
towards the socialist heritage could be
triggered by the end of the unnatural
CONCLUSION
124
under
several
interpretation
separation and communist dictatorship:
from being over. As we cannot merely rely
in many cases, GDR is still seen as an alien
on the aesthetical and architectural value
phenomenon, as demonstrated by the many
carried by the GDR heritage, we believe that
Plattenbau
hiding
preserving socialist heritage is essential for
the socialist ‘aesthetics’ behind brightly
historical and pedagogical purposes, to make
coloured facades.
good use of the ‘negative history lesson’. In
On the other hand, urban-scale GDR
the light of this approach, the contribution
heritage posed a more complex issue, due
of the architect restorer is fundamental to
to the surplus of flats in the East and their
acknowledge the aforementioned values and
economic burden. This challenge had
develop redevelopment strategies respectful
been initially faced through a simplistic
of the context. Under this aspect, we believe
approach, symptomatic of the ‘out of
that a significant methodological advance
sight, out of mind’ attitude towards the
has been made: through the analysis of
Stadtumbau Ost
the documents from the Venice Charter
programme provided significant economic
on, we have defined how modern urban
benefits for the demolition of pre-1989
heritage should be certainly embraced by
housing stock, while opening possibilities
the architectural restoration field, against
for urban renewal. Yet, only during the last
the calls for a stand-alone discipline. The
few years former socialist district have been
framework defined in this dissertation
involved in redevelopment projects, such as
relies on the idea of ‘identity’ as something
the recent IBA Saxony-Anhalt 2010 – which
belonging to the collective history, and
also involved Halle-Neustadt, our case study.
the acknowledgment of GDR heritage as
Nevertheless, the reappraisal process is far
product of a unique historical moment.
communist
refurbishing
past.
The
project
CONCLUSION
125
The Venice (1964) and Krakow Charters
with urban environments. From socialist
(2000) in particular, respectively affirm
role model town, Halle-Neustadt became one
the value of cultural asset of whole urban
of the many East German shrinking cities.
settings, and the relevance of contemporary
With the reunification and the privatisation
stratifications as elements that might have a
of the nearby chemical plants, young people
significant meaning in the future.
and well-educated individuals left in search
Attempts have also been made to provide
of better jobs. The negative demographic
a
trend is not expected to revert, also due to
suitable
operative
methodology
to
restore the ‘modern’. Criteria should follow
the aging of population.
the
restoration
These factors, along with the extraordinary
framework, in line with the familiar
architectural and historical value of the
notions
compatibility,
original project, strongly influenced our
distinguishability, minimal intervention
design. First of all, a series of new uses had
and reversibility originally defined by the
to be planned in order to create movement
Venice Charter. Moreover the acquisition of
to and within Halle-Neustadt; in particular,
additional technical knowledge is required
our intention was to attract young people,
to the architect restorer in order to deal with
while providing suitable uses for the elder
the problem posed by steel and concrete
population. Moreover, the project should
structures, while a significant effort should
include a set of ‘dual-speed’ solutions, with
be made in conciliating conservation issues
short-term interventions and long term
with practical and economic needs.
goals aimed to the landscaping (e.g.: creation
By applying the above mentioned framework
of green areas, canals, parks, burial of vacant
to the case study of Halle-Neustadt we
Plattenbauten, improvement of sustainable
have also concluded that extensive studies
mobility) of the most perforated areas.
concerning socio-economical issues are as
Approaching the project with the mindset of
essential as historical analyses, when dealing
an architect restorer allowed us to preserve
current of
architectural authenticity,
CONCLUSION
126
the original spatial values, and to plan new
existing volumes, these ideas are meant to
volumes where demolished buildings once
overcome the dreariness of the socialist city,
stood. To this end, short terms solutions
while preserving the values of the urban
have been devised, such as the construction
space.
of simple steel boxed structures, resembling
Finally, it should be noted that the
the volume of old Plattenbauten. These
formulation of a universally applicable
‘skeletons’ are meant to be completely
planning methodology is not the goal of this
dismountable:
with
study. The study of Halle-Neustadt involved
glass, wood and old prefabricated panels
an unique approach, relative to the issues of
from demolished buildings should provide
a shrinking city: the ‘case by case’ approach
population with flexible spaces for different
itself is indeed typical of the architectural
uses – art exhibitions, live performances,
restoration discipline. Therefore, rather
playgrounds and even sport, with old
than defining an operative methodology,
Plattenbau facades rebuilt for free climbing
the ultimate purpose of this dissertation is
and bungee jumping. On the other hand,
to define a new role for the architect-restorer
buildings flagged for future demolitions
dealing with the ‘modern’ urban heritage.
should be acquired by the city of Halle,
From this point of view, the architect-
parcelized and sold for a symbolic price, on
restorer has the appropriate sensitiveness
condition that purchasers invest a certain
and historical knowledge to work with
amount of wealth to refurbish the units for
designers and urban planners, and shape the
commercial ends. A similar experience has
planning process towards more sustainable
been successfully led in Rotterdam, where
and human sized outcomes.
completing
them
some areas suffered from high vacancy rates. Along with the possibility of extruding with colorful canopied terraces and cutting
CONCLUSION
127
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Seconda UniversitĂ degli Studi di Napoli
FacoltĂ di Architettura Corso di Laurea in Architettura U.E.
A.A. 2011/12
Laboratorio di Sintesi Finale di Progettazione di Restauro Architettonico e Urbano Relatore: Prof. Arch. Luigi Guerriero Correlatore: Prof. Arch. Luca Molinari Referee: Prof. Florian Urban (Glasgow School of Art - Mackintosh School of Architecture) Elaborato di prova finale di Federico Cosimo Biancullo Matricola: 800000804