Zephyr
Active Member
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© 2006 tel aviv 4 fun
Within the well-worn twists and turns of Modernism's history, there are repeated references to ‘white' somewhere in the re-telling. Sometimes it relates to purity of form, other times to idealism, often to something literal in the Architecture.
No one in Architecture need be reminded that Bauhaus did not require that a building be white. In fact, most of the actual buildings in Germany were not white at all. Yet, in its translation through Le Corbusier, the Bauhaus was specifically rendered white, and that was due in part to his aesthetic at that time. Richard Meier, a latter day neo-Corbusian, also carried the theme forward in his title of ‘White Knight’ of the Modernists beginning with his homes, and continued in his museums, office buildings, and scattering of skyscrapers, churches and technical buildings. And we have also noted the use of ‘Whites versus Grays’ during the rise of Post-Modernism, in which the ‘Whites’ were often cast as the dutiful, Modernist elitists, supposedly restricting creativity within Architecture, with their emphasis on Modernist rules dating back to the Bauhaus.
I will now add one more 'white' story. It happened between the early 1930s and mid 1950s, with estimates that range wildly between 2500 and 5000, 'Bauhaus-like' or 'Bauhaus-inspired' buildings constructed in the old section of Tel Aviv. That area came be known as "The White City” - although many of these structures were not white - the largest concentration of this Bauhaus genre in the world. In 2003, UNESCO belatedly recognised 'The White City' on its prestigious "World Heritage List". But why did this happen in Tel Aviv, of all places? Tel Aviv, after all, served as shelter for Jews that tried to escape from problems brought about by such fascistic organisations as the National Socialists, or Nazi's, in Germany.
© flickr / Yoav Lerman
This is a rhetorical question, of course. The Bauhaus schools, and its founders, were forced to flee as well - going to Russia and America and Venezuela, among other places. In the transition from the Weimar Republic to National Socialism, so-called “degenerative” Architecture and ideas were being stamped out. The Bauhaus was 'not historically German,' according to Nazi authorities, and those that followed in its precepts, were leading Architecture in the 'Fatherland' down the path of 'foreign ideas masquerading as Teutonic treasures'. Think about this logic for a moment - 'not historically German,' was enough of a reason for rejecting what would eventually become a major force in Architecture from that point forward. Moreover, this type of logic should vaguely 'ring a bell' for those on this forum, because it echoes events in the United States, a few decades later - with the rise of Post Modernism as a response to Modernism.
And what about those Architects of Tel Aviv, who are credited with creating these buildings? Not only were there many in number, a significant amount were notably not German, nor trained in the ideas of the Bauhaus. And although the form it took in Tel Aviv lasted longer than in Germany, the Tel Aviv version also developed a backlash response toward the end of the 1950s.
We can only brush on this fascinating topic, of which there is much written, but it is a fascinating chapter in Architectural history that needs be understood.
© flickr / Tierecke
© 2006 tel aviv 4 fun
Within the well-worn twists and turns of Modernism's history, there are repeated references to ‘white' somewhere in the re-telling. Sometimes it relates to purity of form, other times to idealism, often to something literal in the Architecture.
No one in Architecture need be reminded that Bauhaus did not require that a building be white. In fact, most of the actual buildings in Germany were not white at all. Yet, in its translation through Le Corbusier, the Bauhaus was specifically rendered white, and that was due in part to his aesthetic at that time. Richard Meier, a latter day neo-Corbusian, also carried the theme forward in his title of ‘White Knight’ of the Modernists beginning with his homes, and continued in his museums, office buildings, and scattering of skyscrapers, churches and technical buildings. And we have also noted the use of ‘Whites versus Grays’ during the rise of Post-Modernism, in which the ‘Whites’ were often cast as the dutiful, Modernist elitists, supposedly restricting creativity within Architecture, with their emphasis on Modernist rules dating back to the Bauhaus.
I will now add one more 'white' story. It happened between the early 1930s and mid 1950s, with estimates that range wildly between 2500 and 5000, 'Bauhaus-like' or 'Bauhaus-inspired' buildings constructed in the old section of Tel Aviv. That area came be known as "The White City” - although many of these structures were not white - the largest concentration of this Bauhaus genre in the world. In 2003, UNESCO belatedly recognised 'The White City' on its prestigious "World Heritage List". But why did this happen in Tel Aviv, of all places? Tel Aviv, after all, served as shelter for Jews that tried to escape from problems brought about by such fascistic organisations as the National Socialists, or Nazi's, in Germany.
© flickr / Yoav Lerman
This is a rhetorical question, of course. The Bauhaus schools, and its founders, were forced to flee as well - going to Russia and America and Venezuela, among other places. In the transition from the Weimar Republic to National Socialism, so-called “degenerative” Architecture and ideas were being stamped out. The Bauhaus was 'not historically German,' according to Nazi authorities, and those that followed in its precepts, were leading Architecture in the 'Fatherland' down the path of 'foreign ideas masquerading as Teutonic treasures'. Think about this logic for a moment - 'not historically German,' was enough of a reason for rejecting what would eventually become a major force in Architecture from that point forward. Moreover, this type of logic should vaguely 'ring a bell' for those on this forum, because it echoes events in the United States, a few decades later - with the rise of Post Modernism as a response to Modernism.
And what about those Architects of Tel Aviv, who are credited with creating these buildings? Not only were there many in number, a significant amount were notably not German, nor trained in the ideas of the Bauhaus. And although the form it took in Tel Aviv lasted longer than in Germany, the Tel Aviv version also developed a backlash response toward the end of the 1950s.
We can only brush on this fascinating topic, of which there is much written, but it is a fascinating chapter in Architectural history that needs be understood.
– Zephyr
© flickr / Tierecke
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