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ErichMendelsohnWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia

ErichMendelsohn
FromWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia

ErichMendelsohn(21March188715September1953)[1]wasaJewishGermanarchitect,known
forhisexpressionistarchitectureinthe1920s,aswellasfordevelopingadynamicfunctionalismin
hisprojectsfordepartmentstoresandcinemas.MendelsohnisapioneeroftheArtDecoand
StreamlineModernearchitecture,notablywithhis1921Mossehausdesign.

ErichMendelsohn

Contents
1
2
3
4
5

Biography
Architecturecareer
Buildings(selected)
Publishedworks(German)
References
5.1 Bibliography
6 Externallinks
7 Furtherreading

Biography
ErichMendelsohnwasborninAllenstein(Olsztyn),EastPrussia.Hisbirthplacewasattheformer
Oberstrasse21,nowno.10Staromiejskastreet.AplaqueembeddedonthewallonthesideofBarbara
streetcommemorateshisplaceofbirth.[2]
HewasthefifthofsixchildrenhismotherwasEmmaEsther(neJaruslawsky),ahatmakerandhis
fatherDavidwasashopkeeper.[2][3]HeattendedahumanistGymnasiuminAllensteinandcontinued
withcommercialtraininginBerlin.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erich_Mendelsohn

Born

21March1887
Allenstein,Prussia

Died

15September1953(aged66)
SanFrancisco,California,United
States

Nationality GermanBritishAmerican
Occupation Architect
Buildings

EinsteinTower,Potsdam
DeLaWarrPavilion,BexhillonSea
Petersdorffdepartmentstore,Breslau
Weizmannresidence,TelAviv

Projects

HebrewUniversityofJerusalem
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In1906hetookupthestudyofnationaleconomicsattheUniversityofMunich.In1908hebeganstudying
architectureattheTechnicalUniversityofBerlintwoyearslaterhetransferredtotheTechnicalUniversityof
Munich,wherein1912hegraduatedcumlaude.InMunichhewasinfluencedbyTheodorFischer,anarchitect
whoseownworkfellbetweenneoclassicalandJugendstil,andwhohadbeenteachingtheresince1907
MendelsohnalsomadecontactwithmembersofDerBlaueReiterandDieBrcke,twogroupsofexpressionist
artists.
From1912to1914heworkedasanindependentarchitectinMunich.In1915hemarriedthecellistLuiseMaas.
Between1910and1953theycorrespondedwitheachotherthesematerialsprovide[4]insightintothelivesofan
artistandcouplewhoexperiencedachanginginternationallandscape,includingtheirfleeingfromtheThird
EinsteinTowerinPotsdam
ReichinGermanyin1933.Throughhiswife,hemetthecelloplayingastrophysicistErwinFinlayFreundlich.
FreundlichwasthebrotherofHerbertFreundlich,thedeputydirectoroftheKaiserWilhelmInstitutfr
PhysikalischeChemieundElektrochemie(nowtheFritzHaberInstituteoftheMaxPlanckSocietyintheDahlemdistrictofBerlin).Freundlichwished
tobuildasuitableastronomicalobservatorytoexperimentallyconfirmEinstein'sTheoryofRelativity.
ThroughhisrelationshipwithFreundlich,MendelsohnhadtheopportunitytodesignandbuildtheEinsteinturm
("EinsteinTower").ThisrelationshipandalsothefamilyfriendshipwiththeLuckenwaldehatmanufacturers
SalomonandGustavHerrmannhelpedMendelsohntoanearlysuccess.Fromthenuntil1918,whatisknownof
Mendelsohnis,aboveall,amultiplicityofsketchesoffactoriesandotherlargebuildings,ofteninsmallformat
orinlettersfromthefronttohiswife,LouiseMendelsohn(neMaes)(18951980).The2011documentaryfilm
byDukiDrortitled"IncessantVisions"isaboutErichMendelsohnandhiswife,inwhichDroranimatesthe
memoirsofLouiseandtheletters.[5]
HatFactoryinLuckenwalde

Architecturecareer

Attheendof1918,uponhisreturnfromWorldWarI,hesettledhispracticeinBerlin.TheEinsteinturmandthehatfactoryinLuckenwaldeestablished
hisreputation.TheHatFactorywascommissionedin1921,Mendelsohn'sdesignincludedfourproductionhalls,aboiler,aturbinehouse,two
gatehousesandadyeinghall.Thedyeinghallbecameadistinctivefeatureofthefactory,thebuildingwasshapedwithamodern,ventilationhoodthat
expelledthetoxicfumesusedinthedyeingprocess.Thestructureevenironicallyresembledahat.[6]
Asearlyas1924WasmuthsMonatsheftefrBaukunst(aseriesofmonthlymagazinesonarchitecture)producedabookletabouthiswork.Inthatsame
year,alongwithLudwigMiesvanderRoheandWalterGropius,hewasoneofthefoundersoftheprogressivearchitecturalgroupknownasDerRing.
Hispracticeemployedasmanyasfortypeople,amongthem,asatrainee,JuliusPosener,lateranarchitecturalhistorian.Mendelsohn'swork
encapsulatedtheconsumerismoftheWeimarRepublic,mostparticularlyinhisshops:mostfamouslytheSchockenDepartmentStores.Nonethelesshe
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wasalsointerestedinthesocialistexperimentsbeingmadeintheUSSR,wherehedesignedtheRedBannerTextileFactoryin1926(togetherwiththe
seniorarchitectofthisproject,HyppolitPretreaus).HisMossehausnewspaperofficesandUniversumcinemawerealsohighlyinfluentialonartdeco
andStreamlineModerne.
In1926,heboughtanoldvilla,andin1928,hedesignedRupenhorn,nearly4000m,whichthefamilyoccupied
twoyearslater.Withanexpensivepublicationabouthisnewhome,illustratedbyAmdeOzenfantamong
others,Mendelsohnbecamethesubjectofenvy.
Inthespringof1933,inthewakeofgrowingantisemitismandtheriseoftheNazisinGermany,hefledto
England.HisfortunewasseizedbytheNazis,hisnamestruckfromthelistoftheGermanArchitects'Union,and
hewasexcludedfromthePrussianAcademyofArts.
InEnglandhebeganabusinesspartnershipwithSergeChermayeff,whichcontinueduntiltheendof1936.
MendelsohnhadlongknownChaimWeizmann,laterPresidentofIsrael.Atthestartof1934hebeganplanning
onWeizmann'sbehalfaseriesofprojectsinPalestineduringtheBritishMandate.In1935,heopenedanofficein
JerusalemandplannedJerusalemstonebuildingsintheInternationalStylethatgreatlyinfluencedlocal
architecture.[7]In1938,afterdissolvinghisLondonoffice,hetookUKcitizenshipandchangedhisnameto
"Eric."InPalestine,Mendelsohnbuiltmanynowfamousbuildings:WeizmannHouseandthreelaboratoriesat
theWeizmannInstituteofScience,AngloPalestineBankinJerusalem,HadassahHospitalonMountScopus,
RambamHospitalinHaifaandothers.
From1941untilhisdeath,MendelsohnlivedintheUnitedStatesandtaughtattheUniversityofCalifornia,
Berkeley.UntiltheendofWorldWarIIhisactivitieswerelimitedbyhisimmigrationstatustolecturesand
publications.However,healsoservedasanadvisortotheU.S.government.Forinstance,in1943hecollaborated
withtheU.S.ArmyandStandardOilinordertobuild"GermanVillage",asetofreplicasoftypicalGerman
workingclasshousingestates,whichwouldbeofkeyimportanceinacquiringtheknowhowandexperience
necessarytocarryoutthefirebombingofBerlin.[8]In1945heestablishedhimselfinSanFrancisco.Fromthen
untilhisdeathin1953heundertookvariousprojects,mostlyforJewishcommunities.

Weizmannresidence,Weizmann
InstituteofScience,Rehovot

DeLaWarrPavilioninBexhillon
Sea

Buildings(selected)
WorkhalloftheHerrmannhatfactory,Luckenwalde(19191920)
Einsteinturm(solarobservatoryontheTelegraphenberg)inPotsdam,1917or19201921(building),19211924(technicalequipment).The
building,itsexpressionisticformgivingtheimpressionofconcreteasabuildingmaterial,wasmostlybuiltinbrickandthencoveredwithplaster.
Mendelsohnexplainedthiswasbecauseofdeliveryproblemshowever,itispresumedthattherealreasonforthechoiceofbuildingmaterialswas
problemswithconstructingthecasing.
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problemswithconstructingthecasing.
Steinberghatfactory,Herrmann&Co,Luckenwalde(19211923)withastrict,angularform
Mossehaus,conversionoftheofficesandpressofRudolfMosse,Berlin(19211923)
Schockendepartmentstore,Nuremberg(19251926)
RedFlagTextileFactory,Leningrad,1926.Mendelsohnauthoredthebuildingofthepowerstationofthe
factorytheotherbuildingswereauthoredbyS.O.Ovsyannikov,E.A.Tretyakov,andHyppolitPretreaus,
whowastheseniorarchitectofthisproject.ThecomplexofbuildingsofthisfactoryisincludedintheList
oftheobjectsofhistoricalandculturalheritageissuedbythegovernmentofSaintPetersburgin2001
(withadditionsof2006).
ExtensionandconversionofCohen&Epsteindepartmentstore,Duisburg(19251927)
Schockendepartmentstore,Stuttgart(19261928).Thedepartmentstore,togetherwiththeTagblattTurm
InteriorviewoftheHatFactoryin
(19241928)ofErnstOttoOwaldacrosstheway,constitutedanimpressiveensembleofmodern
Luckenwalde
architecture,andwasdamagedonlylightlyinWorldWarII.In1960,thecityofStuttgartdemolishedthe
store,despiteinternationalprotest.InitsplacetodaystandsEgonEiermann'sunremarkabledepartment
storebuilding(GaleriaKaufhof,previouslyHorten).
ExhibitionpavilionfortheRudolfMossepublishinghouseatthePressainCologne(1928)
WogaKomplexandUniversumKino(cinema),Berlin(19251931)
Schockendepartmentstore,Chemnitz(19271930),knownforitsarchedfrontwithhorizontalstripsof
windows.
Hisownhome,AmRupenhorn,Berlin(19281930)
Columbushaus,PotsdamerPlatz,Berlin(19281932)(nottobeconfusedwiththe"ColumbiaHaus"in
BerlinTempelhof,whichwasburntoutduringtheJune1953uprisinganddemolishedin1957)
BachnerdepartmentstoreinOstrava(19321933)
Jewishyouthcenter,Essen(19301933)
NimmoHouse(laterrenamedShrubsWoodbyformerownerBridgetD'OylyCarte),ChalfontStGiles,
Buckinghamshire,England(19331934).IncollaborationwithSergeChermayeff.
TheDeLaWarrPavilion,BexhillonSea,Sussex,England(1934).IncollaborationwithSerge
MossehausinBerlin
Chermayeff.
CohenHouse,Chelsea,London(19341936).IncollaborationwithSergeChermayeff.
WeizmannHouse,WeizmannInstitutecampus,RehovotnearTelAviv(19351936)
Builtaroundthesametime:aclusterofthreebuildingsontheWeizmannInstitutecampus,presentlyhousinghighresolutionNMR,biological
MRI,andtheKimmelCenterforArcheology,respectively
HebrewUniversity,Jerusalem(19341940)
SynagogueB'NaiAmoona,nowCenterofCreativeArts,UniversityCity,Missouri(19461950)
MaimonidesHospital,SanFrancisco(19461950)
ParkSynagogue,ClevelandHeights,Ohio(19471951)
RussellHouse,SanFrancisco,California(1951)
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Publishedworks(German)
ErichMendelsohn:Amerika.BilderbucheinesArchitekten(1976)Berlin:NachdruckDaCapoPress,ISBN0306708302
ErichMendelsohn:RulandEuropaAmerika.EinarchitektonischerQuerschnitt.(1929)Berlin
ErichMendelsohn:NeuesHausNeueWelt.MitBeitrgenvonAmdeOzenfantundEdwinRedslob(1932)Berlin.Reprinted,
withanafterwordbyBrunoZevi(1997)Berlin

References
1."ErichMendelsohn".EncyclopdiaBritannica.RetrievedJan.15,12.Checkdatevaluesin:|accessdate=(help)
2.http://www.sztetl.org.pl/en/article/olsztyn607/5,history/#footnote_6
3.ErichMendelsohninBerlin(http://books.google.de/books?

Petersdorffdepartment
storeinBreslau,now
Wrocaw

FormerSchockenDepartmentStore
inChemnitz,shortlybeforere
openingasStateMuseumof
ArchaeologyChemnitz(smac)
id=88AL7mejdvcC&pg=PA2&dq=erich+mendelsohn+emma+esther&hl=de&sa=X&ei=N3ADU6WkA4OktAa3ioCYDQ&ved=0CDkQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=erich%20mendelsohn
%20emma%20esther&f=false)
4.Menelsohn."CorrespondenceofErichandLuiseMendelsohn19101953".http://www.getty.edu/research/tools/guides_bibliographies/mendelsohn_archive.html.Externallinkin
|website=(help)
5.EstherZandberg,"SomethingEternal"Haaretz,July7,2011.(http://www.architectmovie.com/reviews1.html)
6.Architectuul(http://architectuul.com/architecture/hatfactory)
7.IncessantVisions,SomethingEternal(http://architectmovie.weebly.com/reviews1.html)
8.QuotedbyMikeDavisinChapter3ofhisworkDeadCities(http://books.guardian.co.uk/reviews/politicsphilosophyandsociety/0,6121,896240,00.html).Theoriginalreference,
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accordingtothisonlineversionofthechapter(http://msqr.us/articles/firebomb.xml?&page=3),is"DesignandConstructionofTypicalGermanandJapaneseTestStructuresatDugway
ProvingGrounds,Utah"27May1943,bytheStandardOilDevelopmentCompany.

Bibliography
BrunoZevi(1999)E.MendelsohnTheCompleteWorks.BirkhuserVerlagISBN3764359757
VonEckardt,Wolf(1960)MastersofWorldArchitecture:EricMendelsohnLondon:Mayflower.ISBN0807602302
Whittick,Arnold(1956)EricMendelsohn(2ndEd.).NewYork:F.W.DodgeCorporation
ErichMendelsohn:CompleteWorksoftheArchitect:Sketches,Designs,Buildings(1992translationofBerlin,19301sted.)PrincetonArchitecturalPress

DavidPalterer(acuradi)ErichMendelsohn:Nuoveriflessioni(Newreflections).Ed.TreLuneEdizioni,2004.ISBN8887355843,100p.ill.
DavidPalterer,"TraccediMendelsohn",inDomus,646,1984,pp.49
OxfordDictionaryofNationalBiography
ErichandLuiseMendelsohnpapers,18941992.ResearchLibraryattheGettyResearchInstitute.LosAngeles,California.
(http://library.getty.edu/cgibin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=133139)

Externallinks
BirthplacehouseofMendelsohn(http://www.sztetl.org.pl/en/article/olsztyn607/39,heritagesites/26740,domrodzinnyerichamendelsohna/)
(English)

preburialhouseMendelsohnplannedinishometownOlsztyn(http://www.sztetl.org.pl/en/article/olsztyn607/39,heritagesites/6965,preburial
house/)(English)
EMAErichMendelsohnArchive:CorrespondenceofErichandLuiseMendelsohn19101953(http://ema.smb.museum/en/letters)
Mendelsohn'sIncessantVisionsBiopicFilm(http://www.architectmovie.com/)(English)

Furtherreading
,ErichMendelsohn:DasGesamtschaffendesArchitekten.Skizzen,Entwrfe,Bauten(1930)Berlin,
WikimediaCommonshas
ReprintedbyViewegVerlag,Braunschweig/Wiesbaden,1988,ISBN352818731X
mediarelatedtoErich
,ErichMendelsohnDynamikundFunktion,KatalogzurAusstellungdesInstitutsfr
Mendelsohn.
Auslandsbeziehungene.V.(1999)HatjeCanzVerlag
JuliusPosener:"ErichMendelsohn".In:VorlesungenzurGeschichtederneuenArchitektur,specialissueofArch+forthe75thbirthdayofJulius
Posener.Nr.48,December1997,813
ItaHeinzeMhleib:ErichMendelsohn.BautenundProjekteinPalstina(19341941)
SigridAchenbach:ErichMendelsohn18871953:IdeenBautenProjekte.Catalogforanexhibitonthe100thanniversaryofhisbirth,
BestndenderKunstbibliothek,StaatlicheMuseenPreussischerKulturbesitz.WillmuthArenhvelVerlag,ISBN3922912184
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