Avant-Garde Movements
'The Einstein Tower', Eric Mendelsohn
by Joanne Benzimra Morali, Alicia De Lucas Bautista and Lina El Abdi
University : Universidad Europea de Madrid (UEM)
Course : Communication Skills
Project Type : Research
1st Semester - 2020
Tutor : Miguel Luengo
Tools : Microsoft Word
Architect : Erich Mendelsohn (1857-1953)
Project date : 1920-24
Location : Potsdam, Germany
Architectural Movement : German Expressionism
The Einstein Tower, also called Potsdam Observatory was completed in 1922 (the technical equipment was added in 1924). This unique building not only symbolizes the new spirit in architecture at the time but also showcases the requirements of an astrophysics observatory. Indeed, the tower’s project came from the collaboration of German architect Erich Mendelsohn and astrophysicists Erwin Finlay Freundlich and Albert Einstein, hence the name.
Expressionism
In the early years of the 20th century, Expressionism Avant Garde movement appeared in Germany. Just before the great World War (1914-1919), it surged more as a revolutionary movement than as an artistic style. Expressionism, which was a reaction against the reality of the moment, affected many areas such as art, literature, politics, music, cinema or architecture, thought.
From an artistic point of view, expressionism artists refused to use traditional and common shapes or spaces that had been already used until the moment. They wanted to move their creations closer to reality, while they defended a more intuitive and subjective art than in other Avant Gards like impressionism or naturalism. Because of that, we can say that expressionism is more than an artistic style since it is a completely relation between live and art.
Historical Context/ Influence of Politics
Expressionism appeared in the first years of the 20th century, before the First World War and among the called “Historical Vanguards”. At that time, positivism philosophy, which was based in an objective thought that looks forward progress and scientific advances, started to be rejected. This led to a pessimist and critical atmosphere, and so, a loss of human being values; all of these were reflected in Expressionism.
This initial atmosphere went worse after the First World War and then, Expressionism even affected areas like cinema or theatre. This Avant Gard lasted till the Second World War, when it was linked to communism and Nazis described it as degenerate art. However, after the Second World War it reemerged in USA as an abstract art movement.
Style
In fact, many different artists in terms of style, interest or trend, joined expressionism. Therefore, it ended to be a movement with a lot of varied characteristics. However, the main characteristicis which defined the movement. Expressionism is usually described as a deformation of reality in order to reflect what was inside the own artist, that is to obtain a expression of their own subjectivity.
Although numerous artist from different aesthetics styles joined Expressionism, the issue that all of them shared inthis movement was to give importance to the inner vision of the artist, and notto the harmony or the imitation of reality and daily life.
Based on this idea, many artists create a more figurative or abstract art. This idea was captured by all the areas it affected, like literature or architecture. All in all, Expressionism led to a thoughtful and abstract artistic renovation.
Painting
If we talk in particular about German Expresionism, we could say it appeared in 1905, when the artistic community De Brücke (The Bridge) was established; and in 1920, when the revolutionary disturbs from the First World War finished, the movement started to reduce its influence in society. After 1920, expressionism continue existing but the spirit of those years was not as impregned by expressionism as before.
Painting was the area in which expressionism influenced the most, since two pioneering painting groups were created in Germany.
The Bridge was found by four architecture students who were really enthusiastic about painting. They wanted to reflect sensorial experiences and visual impressions trough images. Munch and Ensor paintings were some of their references and Kirchner or Erich Heckel were some of the most recognized artist from this organization.
Der Blaue Reiter (Blue) was the other pioneering movement of German Expressionism. It pursued the spiritual value of art to show the main idea of Expressionism. Kandinsky, Franz Marc and Gabriele Münter were the centers of the group.
Influence on Architecture
Expressionist architecture was mainly developed in Germany, Denmark, Holland, Belgium, Czechoslovakia and Austria. It was mainly influenced by modernism and the critic of functionalism. This tendence use different new materials like bricks, steel and glass, which were produced in mass, to have more possibilities in order to create experimental shapes.
Architecture was individual and, in many senses, it kept clear of an aesthetic pattern. Although, as in the painting, it had a lot of varied styles, some characteristics were shared in the works. Shape distortion as a way to an emotional effect, the conception of architecture as an artwork and looking forward creating original and visionary buildings, are the main characteristics that define expressionist architecture.
Frank Lloyd Wright and Gaudi were some ofthe main influences in this trend. Moreover, some writers also contribute to architect’s ideology, such as Nietzsche, Freud or Schopenhauer.
In 1925, most expressionist architects as Erich Mendelsohn, Bruno Taut or Mies van der Rohe, together with some expressionist painters join a trend known as Neue Sachlichkeit (NewObjectivity). This trend consists of looking forward a more practical art and refuse in some way the sensorial excitement from the early Expressionism.
Influence on Einstein Tower
Einstein Tower by Enrich Mendelsohn is one of the most iconic buildings from expressionist architecture. Erich Mendelsohn take away fantasy from painting in his construction, and so, he ordered the geometric shapes to achieve a functional dynamism of the space.
Different parts of the building overlapped, and in this way, limits between them tended to disappear. The curved shapes that characterize the Tower are integrated in the straight walls. Moreover, Mendelsohn make a difference between concepts like horizontality and verticality, concavity and convexity or tension and distension. In addition, he wanted to reflect on the inner subjectivity of the own creator, as it was done in painting, by make an aerodynamic shape that is firmly place on the terrain but also this shape catapults it towards the sky.
The Architect : Erich Mendelsohn
Erich Mendelsohn was a German architect, born in 1887 and died in 1953 in San Francisco.
He is known for his buildings with a curvilinear and an expressionist style, and for his use of modern materials and construction methods to create what he considers tobe organically unified buildings.
He studied architecture at the technical academy in Munich, and it was during this time that he met the group of German expressionist artists BlaueReiter, whose artistic approach is the absence of any traditional division between the different artistic techniques, which inspired Mendelsohn a lot. He was under the tutelage of Theodor Fischer, and he grew up influenced by the neoclassical and the Jugendstil, in particular by Joseph Maria Olbrichand Van de Velde.
During the First World War he served in the German army but did not forget his passion for architecture: he produced during the war a series of very imaginative architectural sketches which attracted general attention when they were exhibited in Berlin post-war.
After theWorld War, he opened his first architectural firm in Berlin, where he designed the plans for the Einstein Tower. The highly sculpted structure caused an immediate sensation.
In the 1920s, a series of stores and cinemas helped him to evolve and assert its expression. Mendelsohn designed many structures that are distinguished by their predominant use of glass in horizontal compositions; The Schocken department store chain, which was one of the most prominent examples ofthe modernist movement in German architecture.
By 1930, the architect had built 20 stores in southern Germany. The first one was Kaufhaus Schocken in Nuremberg (1926) and the last one was in Chemnitz (1930). These buildings show the influence of Frank Lloyd Wright on his work. There are curved facades, clean lines and longhorizontal windows.
In 1933, the Nazis came to power and Mendelsohn was forced to leave Germany. Furthermore, his fortune was confiscated by the Nazis and he was expelled from the Union of Architects of Germany and the Prussian Academy of Arts. He first went to Brussels and then to London.
His most important work in England is the De La Warr Pavilion at Bexhill, which contains a spiral staircase tower enclosed in a glass tower.
During the same period, he built many hospitals; the large hospitals of Haifa (1937) and Jerusalem (1938). In 1941, he went to the United States and in 1945, and he moved to San Francisco, where his significant works included the Maimonides Hospital (1946).
The Building
Scientific Purpose of the project
Contrary to the USA, at the beginning of 20thcentury, Germany was focused on classical astronomy neglecting modern astrophysics and solar physics. Therefore, most of the observatories there were not up to date technologically. However, after WWI, ‘Science as substitute for political power’ was introduced to promote progress and in 1920 the “Notgemeinschaft derDeutschen Wissenschaft” (NDW) was founded as the major scientific associationin Germany despite the post-war conditions.
On another note, the English eclipse expedition in October 1919 confirmed Einstein’s general theory of relativity. Before that, other proof attempts had been unsuccessful such as observing solar spectral profiles. Even if it failed for this purpose, as a consequence of studying all these other effects, the Einstein Tower became the most important solar observatory in the world inthe 1920s. In 1933, with the development of the Nazi era, it started to decline.
Cultural and architectural dimension
In this successful collaborative project, Erwin Finlay-Freundlich (1885-1964), astronomer and architect, gave advice about the instrumentation and Mendelsohn was assigned the task of designing the tower.
He became fascinated by Einstein’s world of thought and this inspired him to produce innovative architectural ideas. Looking for new architectural forms of expression, he also wanted to incorporate modern materials such as steel and reinforced concrete.
The resulting building, is a perfect synthesis between dynamics and functionality and is widely recognised as one of the best examples of explorations inconstructivist and expressionist architecture during the 1920s in Central Europe.
The Expressionist Creation Process
The Einstein Tower is a rare and unique, example of a real creative effort in observatory design, directly related to a new structural style. The expressionist architects follow their emotions. It can even be described as “music of the eyes”: Expressionism consists infollowing fluidly the imagination, almost like a dream experience. According to them, it is the best way to imitate natural shapes. Imperfection is another expressionist concept going against norms.
The ultimate goal is not to represent or to embellish reality but to give life to a pure and organic idea. The emotions and visceral sensations guide the creative process making mobility and dynamic shapes recurrent.The main guidelines of expressionist architecture are Spatial Fluidity and Visual Indetermination: floor, walls and roof make a harmonious whole.
“Expressionism is no more than a simple movement”
The Design
The edifice seems to have been sculpted and manipulated by “giant hands”. The general design is thought around the feeling of proportion and a consecutive increase of uninterrupted contours.
This atypical philosophy results from an intense expressive intent of the architect dominating the overall shape.
Indeed, the building is dynamic, using curved lines and window openings to contrast with the verticality of the solar instrument, while the horizontal lines subtly fade with the surroundings. This kind of sculpted mass aims to show the balance of physical forces coming from all sides and directions.
The observatory has a living organism appearance from the exterior. But the interior space also designed by Mendelsohn until the last piece of furniture. The result is a coherent combination between expression and function: the scientific devices are « on stage », establishing a link between modern architecture and cutting-edge science.
Then, the soft shapes follow the interior circulation with the different double heights and repeating sequences in the stairs and balusters for example. In general, the elements look stretched and interdependent because of the “tensed” materials.
The surrounding nature is also part of the Einstein Tower especially with the natural light. The particularity is that here it’s following “casualty” as opposed to usual“premeditation” of the use of light.
Finally, the dome usually separate from the rest of the building is completely integrated into the whole structure, and its curves are also presentand in the overall shape of the monument.
We notice these characteristic circular shapes and a central major core as in other expressionist artworks or architecture.
Construction and Instrumentation
The Einstein Tower elevates at 87m above sea level. The tower itself is 20m high.
The construction system used illustrates the intimate relation between structure and architecture. He had planned the structure to convey the possibilities of poured concrete which corresponded precisely to his expressionist style.
Because of a lack of modern construction materials after WWI, Mendelsohn had to use bricks instead of reinforced concrete. This proves that for the expressionist architect the aesthetic and expressiveness are more important than the construction means. Disregarding the material, the façade was conceived as a fluid plastic mass contradicting the hard-edged bricks used. Cement was then added to make itsmooth.
To protect the building against the wind and provide heating, a wooden structure was added on the inside of the tower, and therefore supports the objective lens on the top of the 4.5 m diameter dome.
The astronomical instrumentation was installed in1924. The cellar contained a room at constant temperature with two high-resolution spectrographs producing solar spectra from red to violet.
In 1925, a physical-spectrographic laboratory was constructed containing several high-tech instruments. Indeed, the instrumentation reached the highest technological standards found anywhere at the time.
To conclude, the borders between Art and Architecture fade in the design concept and process as well as in the final appearance of the observatory.
The major guideline behind this project is the way emotions are conveyed and how they affect the solutions. Mendelsohn bases more his design on sensitiveness than on functionality.
Finally, the organic shape of the Tower reflects the values and codes of the Expressionist artists.
· http://www.rocagallery.com/star-chitecture
· https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erich_Mendelsohn
· https://fahrenheitmagazine.com/arte/arquitectura/erich-mendelsohn-el-precursor-de-la-arquitectura-expresionista
· Expresionismo: arte,arquitectura, autores y características (caracteristicas.co)
· Arquitecturaexpresionista – HiSoUR Arte Cultura Historia
· WikiArt.org - Visual Art Encyclopedia
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· Climent Ortiz, J. (2007). Expresionismo: Lenguaje yconstrucción de la forma arquitectónica. J.Climent