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Wie kam das Bauhaus zu seinem Namen?
Dietrich Neumann
From the Journal: Architectura
Published online:
07 Apr 2021
Abstract
It has always been assumed that the name Bauhaus was invented in 1919 by Walter Gropius, the institution’s founder and first director. However, the name had been in use since 1915 by the conservative Berlin architect Albert Gessner for his practice. Gessner had become famous for large, ingeniously designed apartment house complexes. Gropius and Gessner knew each other from the German Werkbund and Gropius probably saw the name in this context and adopted it. Gessner’s private practice had little success at the time, he closed his Bauhaus in 1920 and the competing use of the name in Weimar probably did little damage. But Gessner was fiercely opposed to the modern movement in architecture and enthusiastically joined the Nazi party in 1932, which ultimately determined its demise.
It has always been assumed that the name Bauhaus was invented in 1919 by Walter Gropius, the institution’s founder and first director. However, the name had been in use since 1915 by the conservative Berlin architect Albert Gessner for his practice. Gessner had become famous for large, ingeniously designed apartment house complexes. Gropius and Gessner knew each other from the German Werkbund and Gropius probably saw the name in this context and adopted it. Gessner’s private practice had little success at the time, he closed his Bauhaus in 1920 and the competing use of the name in Weimar probably did little damage. But Gessner was fiercely opposed to the modern movement in architecture and enthusiastically joined the Nazi party in 1932, which ultimately determined its demise.
Other articles in this issue:
architectura Issues
Volume 51 (2021)
Volume 50 (2020)
Volume 49 (2019)
Volume 48 (2018)
Volume 47 (2017)
Volume 46 (2016)
Volume 45 (2015)
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