Hans Wittwer (4 February 1894 – 19 March 1952) was a
Swiss architect who worked in
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
and who taught architecture at the
Bauhaus
The Staatliches Bauhaus (), commonly known as the Bauhaus (), was a German art school operational from 1919 to 1933 that combined crafts and the fine arts.Oxford Dictionary of Art and Artists (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 4th edn., 20 ...
art school in
Dessau. He was a proponent of
functionalist architecture; the idea that form follows function. He worked with the Bauhaus director
Hannes Meyer
Hans Emil "Hannes" Meyer (18 November 1889 – 19 July 1954) was a Swiss architect and second director of the Bauhaus Dessau from 1928 to 1930.
Early life
Meyer was born in Basel, Switzerland, trained as a mason, and practiced as an architect ...
both at the school and in a joint architectural practice in
Basel
, french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese
, neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS ...
. He also taught at the
Kunstgewerbeschule
A Kunstgewerbeschule (English: ''School of Arts and Crafts'' or S''chool of Applied Arts'') was a type of vocational arts school that existed in German-speaking countries from the mid-19th century. The term Werkkunstschule was also used for thes ...
Burg Giebichenstein in
Halle.
[Bauhaus Denkmal Bundesschule Bernau. Biografie Hans Wittwer]
Retrieved 7 May 2019
Life and Work
Wittwer was born in Basel, Switzerland on 4 February 1894.
[Wittwer, Hans-Jakob (ed.) (1985) ''Dokumente zur Modernen Schweizer Architektur: Hans Wittwer (1894–1952)'' Zurich: gta Verlag]
He began studying architecture at
ETH Zurich, a technical college, in 1912 under
Karl Moser and
Friedrich Bluntschli, completing his course in 1916. Following that, Moser employed him in his architectural office in
Zurich until 1919. He then moved to Basel where he completed his professional internship. In 1925, he went to the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
to study the history of urban development at the
University of London
The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...
.
[Bauhaus100. Masters and teachers. Hans Wittwer]
. Retrieved 21 April 2019 He also worked on the Basel-based architecture magazine ''ABC – Beiträge zum Bauen'' (Contributions on Building), founded by
Mart Stam
Mart Stam (August 5, 1899 – February 21, 1986) was a Dutch architect, urban planner, and furniture designer. Stam was extraordinarily well-connected, and his career intersects with important moments in the history of 20th-century Europe ...
,
El Lissitzky
Lazar Markovich Lissitzky (russian: link=no, Ла́зарь Ма́ркович Лиси́цкий, ; – 30 December 1941), better known as El Lissitzky (russian: link=no, Эль Лиси́цкий; yi, על ליסיצקי), was a Russian artist ...
and
Hans Schmidt (1893–1972). Hannes Meyer also worked on the magazine.
[Martínez de Guereñu, Laura (2009]
Hans Wittwer: Indexes in the Halle-Schkenditz airport
(PDF) in ''ear: theory, art and architecture history journal'', no. 6, October 2013.Retrieved 22 April 2019 It was published from 1924 to 1928. Its aim was to spread the ideas of
Russian Constructivists and to give a voice to European radical architects.
In 1926, Wittwer founded his own architectural practice in Basel, which he co-directed with Hannes Meyer. Together they submitted a design for the "Petersschule", a school building in Basel. Although their design was not chosen, its radical character, an exemplar of
New Objectivity
The New Objectivity (in german: Neue Sachlichkeit) was a movement in German art that arose during the 1920s as a reaction against expressionism. The term was coined by Gustav Friedrich Hartlaub, the director of the ''Kunsthalle'' in Mannheim, wh ...
principles, made it the most important of all the designs submitted. In 1927 Wittwer and Meyer entered the competition for the
League of Nations
The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference that ...
Building in
Geneva
, neighboring_municipalities= Carouge, Chêne-Bougeries, Cologny, Lancy, Grand-Saconnex, Pregny-Chambésy, Vernier, Veyrier
, website = https://www.geneve.ch/
Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevr ...
, a building to be called the
Palace of Nations
The Palace of Nations (french: Palais des Nations, ) is the home of the United Nations Office at Geneva, located in Geneva, Switzerland. It was built between 1929 and 1938 to serve as the headquarters of the League of Nations. It has served ...
. Their design won one of nine second prizes, in a line up of 377 entries, including one by
Le Corbusier and
Pierre Jeanneret
Pierre Jeanneret (22 March 1896 – 4 December 1967) was a Swiss architect who collaborated with his cousin, Charles-Édouard Jeanneret (who assumed the pseudonym Le Corbusier), for about twenty years.
Early life
Arnold-André-Pierre Jea ...
. The jury felt that none of the entries entirely met the requirements and five leading architects were contracted to produce a much more conventional building than Meyer and Wittwer's
constructivist concept.
When Meyer was invited to lead the newly formed Building department at the Bauhaus in 1927, Wittwer joined him, teaching building theory and technical design, where he introduced new teaching practices. Later, he was head of the construction office of the Building department. In Meyer and Wittwer's building theory classes, students were taught to scientifically analyse both the client's requirements and the site conditions. Students carried out environmental studies at the site, such as how the sunlight entering the buildings would change during the day. The aim was to create
functionalist buildings which put users' needs at the centre of the design and which took account of the natural conditions of the building site.
[Bauhaus100. The “School in the Woods” as a Socio-pedagogical Ideal ]
. Retrieved 17 April 2019
While working together at the Bauhaus, Wittwer and Meyer led the design and construction of the
ADGB Trade Union School
The ADGB Trade Union School (''Bundesschule des Allgemeinen Deutschen Gewerkschaftsbundes'' (ADGB)), is a training centre complex in Bernau bei Berlin, Germany. It was built for the former General German Trade Union Federation, from 1928 to 1930 ...
in
Bernau bei Berlin
Bernau bei Berlin (English ''Bernau by Berlin'', commonly named Bernau) is a German town in the Barnim district. The town is located about northeast of Berlin.
History
Archaeological excavations of Mesolithic-era sites indicate that this area ha ...
(1928–1930). Students from all areas of the Bauhaus were involved in this work. In 2017, the ADGB school, which is considered an outstanding example of Bauhaus functionalist architecture, was inscribed as part of the
World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
called the
Bauhaus and its Sites in Weimar, Dessau and Bernau
Bauhaus and its Sites in Weimar, Dessau and Bernau is a World Heritage Site in Germany, comprising six separate sites which are associated with the Bauhaus art school. It was designated in 1996 with four initial sites, and in 2017 two further si ...
.
[Markgraf, Monika (ed.) (2017) ''Bauhaus World Heritage Site''. Leipzig: Spector Books]
Following conflicts with Meyer, in 1929 Wittwer left the Bauhaus to become Head of Architecture at
Kunstgewerbeschule
A Kunstgewerbeschule (English: ''School of Arts and Crafts'' or S''chool of Applied Arts'') was a type of vocational arts school that existed in German-speaking countries from the mid-19th century. The term Werkkunstschule was also used for thes ...
Burg Giebichenstein, a vocational arts college in
Halle, now the (Burg Giebichenstein University of Art and Design). He was offered the post by the former Bauhaus teacher
Gerhard Marcks
Gerhard Marcks (18 February 1889 – 13 November 1981) was a German artist, known primarily as a sculptor, but who is also known for his drawings, woodcuts, lithographs and ceramics.
Early life
Marcks was born in Berlin, where, at the age of 18, ...
, who was the
Rector
Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to:
Style or title
*Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations
*Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...
of school. Wittwer also managed the Interior Design studio at school, which operated separately from the Architecture Department. He was also employed as an architectural consultant to the municipality of
Merseburg
Merseburg () is a town in central Germany in southern Saxony-Anhalt, situated on the river Saale, and approximately 14 km south of Halle (Saale) and 30 km west of Leipzig. It is the capital of the Saalekreis district. It had a dioces ...
.
[Kulturstiftung Sachsen-Anhal]
Protagonisten der Moderne in Halle (Saale). Hans Wittwer
Retrieved 9 May 2019. A number of other people from the Bauhaus also taught at the school, including
Benita Koch-Otte,
Marguerite Friedländer and
Erich Consemüller Erich Consemüller (10 October 1902 — 11 April 1957) was a German photographer and architect who studied and taught at Bauhaus art school. He worked alongside the photographer Lucia Moholy documenting life at the Bauhaus.
Early life
Consemülle ...
.
[Dolgner, Angela (ed.) (1993) ''Burg Giebichenstein. Die hallesche Kunstschule von den Anfängen bis zur Gegenwart; Staatliche Galerie Moritzburg, Halle, 20. März bis 13. Juni 1993 ; Badisches Landesmuseum, Karlsruhe, 25. Juni bis 12. September 1993.'' Halle: Staatliche Galerie Moritzburg] Consemüller was also employed in Wittwer's private architectural office in Halle.
At the same time, he also worked as an architect for
Leipzig/Halle Airport, designing a glass-walled airport restaurant, built 1930–1931. It had light fittings made in the Kunstgewerbeschule metal workshop, led by Karl Müller, curtains from the weaving workshop led by Koch-Otte and the "Hermes" crockery service designed by Friedländer.
The building, along with most of the airport, was destroyed in a
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
air raid on 16 April 1944.
[Hesse, Wolfgang, et al. (1997) ''70 Jahre Flughafen Leipzig-Halle''. Leipzig: Flughafen Leipzig/Halle GmbH]
In 1933, when the Nazis came to power, Wittwer was dismissed from both the art school and his consultant role to Merseburg city council. Marcks, Consemüller, Koch-Otte, Friedländer and others were also dismissed from the art school at the same time.
He stayed in Halle for another year, working as a self-employed architect. In 1934 he returned to Basel where he worked for his parents' company and no longer practised architecture. He died there on 19 March 1952, aged 58.
Further reading
* Wittwer, Hans-Jakob (ed.) (1985) ''Dokumente zur Modernen Schweizer Architektur: Hans Wittwer (1894–1952)''. Zurich: gta Verlag
References
External links
* Martínez de Guereñu, Laura (2009
Hans Wittwer: Indexes in the Halle-Schkenditz airport(PDF) in ''ear: theory, art and architecture history journal'', no. 6, October 2013.
Die Protagonisten der Moderne in Halle (Saale). Hans Wittwer
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wittwer, Hans
1894 births
1952 deaths
Bauhaus teachers
Functionalist architects
20th-century Swiss architects
Architecture educators
People from Basel-Stadt
Swiss expatriates in Germany