May 12        

Berlin's Marzch VS. Regina's Harbour Landing

            Berlin Marzchn was built by the East Berlin Government to deal with the housing crisis (Rubin, 2011, p.29).  The large prefabricated buildings were highly sought after and, “built for socialism’s model citizens”, which included young families with children (Rubin, 2011, p.32). These apartments gave them much needed space for their families; space that most existing apartments at the time did not provide. Suburbs in North America, like Regina’s Harbour landing, are also in some ways an ideal place to live (depending on your preference) and popular among young families. But, these types suburbs are associated with urban sprawl and provide way more space (arguably an unnecessary amount) for families than the types of living units in Marzchn.  Neighbourhoods are comprised of many large unattached single-family houses resulting in low population density in these areas. On the other hand, Berlin Marzchn is a community built out of buildings that may comprise of 120 living units (Rubin, 2011, p. 30) making it a very densely populated area.

            Of course, one aspect that draws people to the suburb of Harbour landing is choice over what your home includes. When people purchase new homes in these communities they can decide which features they want; for example, if they feel they need a three-car garage they can get a house with a three-car garage. The tenants of the buildings of Marzchn obviously had no such choice as the neighbourhoods were completely planned out and people felt lucky just to get assigned an apartment. However, today we saw neighbourhoods were planned out in such a way that all necessary amenities were conveniently located and much is within walking distance.

         An interesting outcome of difference in population density in these two types of suburbs is the difference in viability in public transportation. It is nearly impossible to create an efficient public transit system in spread out North American Suburbs, you are pretty much forced to own a car. Even the closest stores are not really within walking distance to most homes and box store developments that you find in these areas are not very pedestrian friendly. However, the dense nature of communities in Berlin allows public transportation to be more efficient.

Both types of neighbourhoods include parks. Harbour Landing has an extensive walking path and pictured above is a park in Berlin Marzchn.

Sources:
Rubin, E. (2011). Concreate Utopia: Everyday life and socialism in Berlin-Marzchn. Bulletin of the German historical institute supplement, East German material culture and the power of memory, 29-45. 

Hohenzollen Schloss - Past and Present

            

         

         Originally built as a palace for the royal family, the Hohenzollen Schloss served as such for over 500 years. Damaged in WWII, the palace was not rebuilt, although it was entirely possible to do so. Instead it served as a parking lot for the Soviets until the Palace of the Regime was built there in early 1970s. The Regime Palace was ‘dismantled’ between 2006 and 2008 and the Schloss it being ‘rebuilt’. This change has created a serious discussion with many different views. There seems also to be a significant split between those from the DDR and BRD, a testament to the truth revealed in the Berlin sculpture (Tauentzienstraße) portraying the belonging yet disconnects between the east and west of Berlin.

            Some believe that rebuilding the castle as it was, in a sense disconnects the history of the space. As some people may only see this castle in passing, they may have a skewed sense of its history from the rebuild, almost rewriting the cities history. Others argue that the Schloss is necessary to complete the districts urban identity, as it has the power and appeal to bring together all other building in the area. Others still are concerned about the $788 million dollar estimate. There were also some that believed it would be a step back instead of a step forward for Berlin’s urban architecture. Some protestors have gone so far as to charge the project manager with embezzlement.  It is also interesting to note that the young population (18-24) had the highest approval rates for the project.

References:

Ekici, Didem. "The Surfaces of Memory in Berlin." Journal of Architectural Education, 2007, 25-34.

Rainer Haubrich. “Der Neubau des Berliner Schlosses ist ein Wunder.”Die Welt, March 3, 2012.

Schneider, Peter. Berlin Now: The City after the Wall. Farrar, Straus and Giroux: New York, 2014.

Torry, Harriet. “Re-creating the Baroque Glory of a Berlin Palace.” The Wall Street Journal, 2014.

“Hohenzollern Palace: Berlin’s Old-New Castle.” The Wall Street Journal Video. WSJ. August 13, 2014

Mini Task: Neue Wache

Compare the interior design of Neue Wache during the Weimar Republic with today's. How has its symbolic significance changed?

From the pictures provided from the Federal Government’s website of the Neue Wache to what we saw today, I noticed little change in the structure of the building, with the obvious exception of the memorial found at its center. The difference I noticed between the Neue Wache during the Weimar Republic and today was the introduction of the remains of an unknown soldier and an unknown prisoner from a concentration camp in 1969. In Canada, we have a memorial for the Unknown Soldier found fighting with Canadian Forces, which is where our national Remembrance ceremony is held and is a source of pride. Whereas in the Neue Wache, the Unknown Soldier and prisoner act as a sensitive issue, but also as a vehicle. Atop the remains is the two, there is the memorial of what can be assume to be a mother holding her child. The arrangement in the Neue Wache is significant as it pairs the memorial of war and tyranny with the unknown prisoner with the Unknown Soldier without any explicit claims that the memorial is also for Germany as the Unknown Soldier and prisoner may or may not have been Germans. In my opinion, the Neue Wache changed from having an abstract memorial to having a ‘common’ image atop unspecified individuals as a way to also include Germany in a memorial for everyone.

Neue Wache Today

Neue Wache was originally built 1816 as a guardhouse for the troops of the prince of Prussia, whose palace was right next door.  It served this purpose until the fall of the German monarchy in 1918.  In the following years it sat relatively unused until in 1931 it was repurposed by the Weimar Republic as a memorial for soldiers lost in the First World War.  The interior was cleared, and a circular hole was made in the ceiling under which a metallic wreath was placed on a block of granite in the floor.  It served in this capacity until it was severely damaged by a bomb in World War II.

The building’s significance resulted in it being repaired and restored by the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) in 1960, and served as the “Memorial to the Victims of Fascism and Militarism” until reunification.  In 1969, an eternal flame was lit in the middle of the room, under which the remains of an unknown soldier were buried.

A few years after reunification, in 1993, the memorial was again re-dedicated as the “Central Memorial of the Federal Republic of Germany for the Victims of War and Tyranny”.  The room has largely been emptied once again, and where the eternal flame once stood now sits an enlarged version of Käthe Kollwitz’s sculpture “Mother with her Dead Son”.  It now serves as a memorial to commemorate victims of war and tyranny in the broadest sense, since previous incarnations failed to recognize those who lost their lives as a result (and not just in) the two World Wars.

Neue Wache -Central Memorial

1931 - Bundesarchiv

Neue Wache - May 11, 2015

Kollwitz's Mother and Dead Son - May 11, 2015

            Originally built between 1816 as a guardhouse for the royal family, the Neue Wache was repurposed in 1931 (Weimar Republic) as a memorial for those who died during World War I. It has since remained a memorial, although slightly altered throughout the years. In 1993 after reunification, it was named the Central Memorial of the Federal Republic of Germany for the Victims of War and Tyranny.

            As a memorial to those fallen during World War I, the building housed a metallic wreath on top of a tall granite block with the inscription ‘1914-1918’. This was meant to honor the soldiers that did not make it back from World War I.

             It now features an enlarged version of Käthe Kollwitz's Statue of Mother and dead Son made by Harald Haacke. This memorial is meant to commemorate all the lives loss to war, including those not normally recognized. There is some controversy surrounding the use of the statue; artistically, due to its enlargement, and also generally, due to what some see as its lack of representation of the mass murders of WWII. Despite this, the memorial is still moving and reminder of the perils of war.

~ Something interesting about the Neue Wache, although not related to the interior design, are the statues of Prussian generals put out front the memorial by Schinkel, but moved after unification by the preference of the artist’s Grandchildren.

References:

Käthe Kollwitz Museum Köln. http://www.kollwitz.de/module/werkliste/Details.aspx?wid=350&lid=10&head=Tour+-+War&ln=e

Zachodni, Przeglad. “Neue Wache (1818-1993).” 2011.

http://www.iz.poznan.pl/pz/news/9_03.%20Mazur.pdf

Mini Task: Neue Wache

                                                                                       

Neue Wache during the Weimar Republic was used as a memorial, and was titled "Memorial Site for the Fallen of the World War." Creating a symbolic reference to those who sacrificed their lives for Germany during the First World War. This was accomplished with an approximately 2 meter high black block of granite placed in the center of the room, accompanied by a wreath of silver and gold oak leaves. This is displayed with the help of a large circular skylight, providing the memorial with ample light.

Neue Wache as we see it today is rather updated, titled the “Central Memorial of the Federal Republic of Germany to the victims of war and tyranny.” The title itself offers a much more encompassing memorial than that of the past, as it includes Germans as well as Jews and other victims. Although the interior was destroyed during the Second World War and later restored, it was done so in a way to resemble its time during the Weimar Republic. The main focus of change would be the statue that has replaced the block of granite in the center of the memorial. As it now presents a mother and her son, presumably with her protecting her son from these acts of tyranny. Thus it updated symbolic meaning might be to commemorate victims of war, but more specifically to commemorate victims who were wrongfully victimized during World War II.

Field Question: Hohenzollern Palace Controversy

Answer to Field Question: Discuss the controversy surrounding the current reconstruction of the Hohenzollern palace.

The Hohenzollern Schloss built in 1443 existed in some form until 1950 when it was razed by the German Democratic Republic (GDR)1. In 1976 the GDR completed construction on the Palace of the Republic, which occupied the same space as the Schloss1. The Palace of the Republic functioned as the legislative building for the GDR government1. Shortly before reunification of East and West Germany, the Palace of the Republic was closed to the public due to asbestos contamination.

            After reunification plans were formed use the space the Palace occupied. One plan from the Green party suggested the development of a park, another plan, which was chosen, is the reconstruction of the Hohenzollern Schloss. Either idea involved the removal of the Palace of the Republic which was opposed by former East Germans. Former GDR citizens viewed the building as a symbol of their past that was being discarded by West Germans who had consumed their companies and had only watched the 1989 revolution.

            Another sentiment shared by East Germans was the fear that the reconstruction of a Prussian royal building was the beginning of a path down to Prussian values. The path eventually circling back from Prussia to fascism; Nazism.  

            Defenders of the Palace of the Republic decried the report stating the asbestos contamination. They in turn wanted to know the status of asbestos in important West German buildings, like the International Congress Center. The tear down of a East German landmark for the tear down of a West German landmark was the goal by the Palace proponents.

           

Works Cited

Ekici, Didem. "The Surfaces of Memory in Berlin." Journal of Architectural Education, 2007, 25-34.

Schneider, Peter. Berlin Now: The City after the Wall. FSG, 2014.

Amazing video of Berlin (and Munich) around 1900-1914

In today's lecture, we will be talking about Berlin's early history and its urban development during the years 1840-1914, have a look at this video of Berlin (and Munich) from around 1900-1914. Definitely worth watching!