{"id":6177,"date":"2018-07-02T06:07:59","date_gmt":"2018-07-02T06:07:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hansaviertel.berlin\/?page_id=6177"},"modified":"2019-03-28T11:03:02","modified_gmt":"2019-03-28T11:03:02","slug":"die-stadt-von-morgen","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/hansaviertel.berlin\/en\/interbau-1957\/die-stadt-von-morgen\/","title":{"rendered":"the city of tomorrow"},"content":{"rendered":"

The special exhibition the city of tomorrow<\/em>: a crowd-puller at Interbau<\/em><\/h4>\n

The urban planning exhibition the city of tomorrow<\/em> was the largest and most popular special exhibition held at Interbau<\/em> and, after the new buildings in the Hansaviertel, it was the most visited part of the architectural exhibition. Situated near the main entrance at the Gro\u00dfer Stern, it wasn\u2019t just its subject matter that attracted the attention of the public. Its appealing design and the innovative temporary pavilion in which it was held also contributed to its fame.<\/p>\n

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The lettering of the special exhibition the city of tomorrow<\/em> Landesarchiv Baden-W\u00fcrttemberg, Willy Pragher<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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Pavilion of the special exhibition the city of tomorrow<\/em> at the Interbau entrance at the Gro\u00dfer Stern Landesarchiv Baden-W\u00fcrttemberg, Willy Pragher<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

An \u201cumbrella for Tiergarten\u201d (1)<\/a><\/span>: the pavilion for the special exhibition the city of tomorrow<\/em><\/h4>\n

The pavilion for the special exhibition was a particular attraction at Interbau<\/em>. For the trade press, its construction and design, along with that of Hugh A. Stubbins\u2019 Congress Hall, embodied \u201cthe shapes of the future\u201d. (2)<\/a><\/span> Devised by Karl Otto (1904\u20131975), Frei Otto (1925\u20132015) and G\u00fcnther G\u00fcnschel (1928\u20132008), it was the first time the Mero System had been used for an exhibition hall. It consisted of a space frame made of 2-metre long Mero-norm tubing, held together at the joints by spherical connectors, which allowed for a roof construction needing few supports, giving the pavilion a light and airy feel. To provide protection from rain and sun, the Mero space frame was covered with a white polyurethane-coated strong cotton fabric, the brainchild of Frei Otto. The distinctive bumpy-shaped roof was created by wooden springs mounted on the Mero System bending strongly under the fabric tension, and this light-weight roof construction, resembling an umbrella, provided the exhibition with ample daylight, even in cloudy weather. The pavilion was mostly without walls, allowing views into Tiergarten and ensuring excellent ventilation during the hot summer days, so that the pavilion was \u201cclimatically the most pleasant place to be\u201d\u00a0(3)<\/a><\/span> at the Interbau<\/em> exhibition.<\/p>\n

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Floor plan of the exhibition hall Landesarchiv Berlin, Amtlicher Katalog der Internationalen Bauausstellung Berlin 1957<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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cross section through the pavilion Landesarchiv Berlin, Amtlicher Katalog der Internationalen Bauausstellung Berlin 1957<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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The Mero system under construction Landesarchiv Berlin, Wiederaufbau Hansaviertel; Sonderver\u00f6ffentlichung zur Interbau Berlin 57, Foto: K\u00f6ster<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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… covered with polyurethane-coated cotton fabric Landesarchiv Berlin, Foto: Waltraud Rodewald<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

The exhibition: the city landscape \u2013 urban planning for tomorrow as an educational mission<\/h4>\n

Initially planned as an accompanying exhibition, the city of tomorrow<\/em> became increasingly important during the planning of Interbau<\/em> as it became more apparent that a \u201ccity of tomorrow\u201d could only partly be achieved in the Hansaviertel. This was down to the complicated planning processes involved and the many considerations to be taken into account regarding ownership, construction law and political stipulations. Therefore, over time the city of tomorrow<\/em> became the heart of the Interbau<\/em> programme. The guiding principles of the exhibition were prepared in development consultations involving an interdisciplinary group of sociologists, representatives of planning authorities, landscape architects, Senate employees, representatives of the Design Council and from Federal Ministries, as well as a doctor, a psychologist, a sociologist and an agriculturist. These consultations were led by the two men responsible for the special exhibition \u2013 Karl Otto, the architect and director of the Werkkunstschule in Hannover, and Erich K\u00fchn, Professor of Urban Development and Regional Planning at the RWTH in Aachen. A series of catchy statements of intent were developed in the consultations and then illustrated in a colourful and varied presentation under the leadership of the graphic designer Claus-Peter Gro\u00df. The content was conveyed in an entertaining way through photoboards, explanatory texts and humorous drawings by the Berlin cartoonist Oswald Meichsner, who had made his name under the pseudonym Oswin. (4)<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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Exhibition hall open towards Altonaer Stra\u00dfe Ullstein Bild<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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The light, airy pavilion with its views into Tiergarten Landesarchiv Baden-W\u00fcrttemberg, Willy Pragher<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Right at the beginning of the special exhibition, it was stated that city structures from the imperial era no longer \u201cworked\u201d. Life was in \u201ca state of disorder in city housing that was no longer suitable\u201d. (5)<\/a><\/span> The dense city of the 19th<\/sup> century with its tenement blocks, rear courtyards and narrow alleyways was identified as the reason for such societal disorder, alongside the mix of living, working, recreation and transportation. The exhibition presented an alternative model \u2013 a subdivided, more dispersed, landscaped urban structure, in which life would become decent again and where social and family values would come into their own. The city should turn into a sort of \u201cstructured casing\u201d (6)<\/a><\/span>, where individuals, families and neighborly communities \u201cwould have living conditions that would protect and shape them\u201d; indeed, the whole of society would re-discover \u201can orderly structure\u201d. What is more, in such an environment \u201cthe shared responsibility of each individual towards the wider community would flourish in accordance with true democracy\u201d. (7)<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

The focus of the exhibition was a diorama designed by Oswin showing the ideal open, green city landscape. This was further illustrated in different sections of the exhibition, dealing with the themes \u2018City and Man\u2019, \u2018City and Health\u2019, \u2018City and Nature\u2019 and \u2018City and Transport\u2019, before being converted into planning principles and twelve concrete examples for urban planning. (8)<\/a><\/span> One of these was a design by Hubert Hoffmann and Walter Rossow for Berlin-Moabit, showing a city divided into neighborhoods, pervaded by green spaces and laid out around a green centre, disregarding the city structure in existence at that time.<\/p>\n

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Diorama of the city of the future, drawing by Oswin (Oswald Meichsner) Landesarchiv Berlin<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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\u201cHanging photos\u201d in the exhibition Landesarchiv Baden-W\u00fcrttemberg, Foto: Willy Pragher<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

As in a burning glass, the special exhibition the city of tomorrow<\/em> brought together the socio-political expectations that were connected with this more relaxed urban planning design. In no other architectural exhibition of the 1950s was the assumed interrelationship between urban structure, way of life and societal values so clearly expressed as it was in the city of tomorrow<\/em>. At the same time, the exhibition unambiguously dedicated itself to the goal of influencing public opinion, not least through a targeted and accessible presentation of the content and through various publications. (9)<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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Ideal planning template for a city with 200,000 inhabitants by Erich K\u00fchn aus Karl Otto: Die Stadt von morgen, Berlin 1959<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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Proposal for urban redevelopment in Berlin-Moabit by Hubert Hoffmann and Walter Rossow aus Karl Otto: Die Stadt von morgen, Berlin 1959<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Silhouettes of the medieval city and the new subdivided city compared in: Johannes G\u00f6deritz\/ Roland Rainer\/ Hubert Hoffmann: Die gegliederte und aufgelockerte Stadt, T\u00fcbingen 1957, S. 87<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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Karl Otto (ed.): Die Stadt von morgen, Berlin 1959 Karl Otto (Hg.): Die Stadt von morgen, Berlin 1959<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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Johannes G\u00f6deritz\/ Roland Rainer\/ Hubert Hoffmann: Die gegliederte und aufgelockerte Stadt, T\u00fcbingen 1957 Johannes G\u00f6deritz\/ Roland Rainer\/ Hubert Hoffmann: Die gegliederte und aufgelockerte Stadt, T\u00fcbingen 1957<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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Dr. Sandra Wagner-Conzelmann<\/p>\n

> Landscape architecture<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

More about the crowd-pulling special exhibition the \u201cstadt von morgen\u201d at Interbau<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":7401,"parent":5434,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":{"0":"post-6177","1":"page","2":"type-page","3":"status-publish","4":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"entry"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hansaviertel.berlin\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/6177","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hansaviertel.berlin\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hansaviertel.berlin\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hansaviertel.berlin\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hansaviertel.berlin\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6177"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/hansaviertel.berlin\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/6177\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8523,"href":"https:\/\/hansaviertel.berlin\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/6177\/revisions\/8523"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hansaviertel.berlin\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/5434"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hansaviertel.berlin\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7401"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hansaviertel.berlin\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6177"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}