Weissenhofsiedlung in Stuttgart

The Weissenhofsiedlung is one of the most significant landmarks left by the movement known as "Neues Bauen”. The estate was erected in 1927 as a residential building exhibition arranged by the City of Stuttgart and the Deutscher Werkbund. Working under the artistic direction of Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, seventeen architects created an exemplary residential scheme for modern urban residents.

The participating architects were: Le Corbusier and Pierre Jeanneret, Walter Gropius, Peter Behrens, Hans Poelzig, Ludwig Hilberseimer, J. J. P. Oud, Mart Stam, Josef Frank, Victor Bourgeois, Hans Scharoun, Adolf Rading, Bruno Taut, Max Taut, Richard Döcker, Adolf Gustav Schneck and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe himself. Back then most of them were known only within the circles devoted to the international avantgarde. Today they are amongst the most prestigious masters of modern architecture.
There are numerous homes to be found at the Weissenhof estate built by these architects, all in close proximity to one another. And that's what makes this residential development unique in the world.

The ever-changing story of the Weissenhofsiedlung reflects the social and cultural changes of the Twentieth Century. Largely shunned during the Third Reich, destroyed in part during World War II, the development was later approached with a lack of understanding for its precepts. It was not before 1958 that the Weissenhofsiedlung had been enrolled in the register of historical monuments. The 75th anniversary of the Werkbund Exhibition at the Weissenhof provided new impetus. In 2002 it became possible for the City of Stuttgart to purchase Le Corbusier's semi-detached houses, in which the Weissenhof Museum was to be installed.

 

Anja Krämer M.A., studied art history, german philology and conservation of built heritage in Stuttgart and Bamberg. She has been working as architectural historian and as assistant at the University of Stuttgart. Since 2006 she is head of the Weissenhofmuseum im Haus Le Corbusier.

 

The lecture will be held on Monday 3 November 2014 at 6 p.m., at the beginning we will introduce exhibition about Weissenhofsiedlung (a tour of the villa is not included in the lecture).

The lecture will be in English and will not be interpreted.

Entrance fee is CZK 100; students and senior citizens CZK 50.

An advance booking is required for the lecture, by telephone at +420 515 511 015 / 017
or e-mail: info@tugendhat.eu (limited capacity of 70 people).

A poster for the lecture can be downloaded here.