bhrarchinerd

[bhrarchinerd]

In recent years two of Berlin’s (and actually Germany’s) most significant brutalist buildings sparked quite an outcry among architects, preservationists and lovers of Brutalism: the so-called Mäusebunker designed by Gerd & Magdalena Hänska as well as the Institute for Hygiene and Microbiology by Fehling + Gogel were threatened with demolition. Fortunately, a big discussion ensued and concluded with the heritage protection of both buildings. But until now only for the Institute building a viable continued use has been determined whereas the Mäusebunker still lies dormant despite the numerous concepts on the table. They range from b+’s plan to turn the Mäusebunker into a hub for studios and workshops to FORWARD’s proposal of turning it into a modern day ark. The latter was developed by Ludwig Heimbach, the editor of „Mäusebunker & Hygieneinstitut - Eine Berliner Versuchsanordnung“, recently published by Jovis Verlag, a volume that takes a deep dive into the history, present and potential future of the two emblematic buildings. The book is the conclusion Heimbach’s long-term advocacy of the buildings’ preservation and the comprehensive archival research that accompanied it. Together with different authors Heimbach recounts the building history of Mäusebunker and Hygieneinstitut, highlights their architectural uniqueness and also involves the heated debate surrounding their preservation or demolition, with the latter being especially hard-fought in the Mäusebunker’s case. As the book recounts, the Mäusebunker due to its function as „Central Animal Laboratories of the Free University Berlin“ from its very opening on had a hard time being accepted: for animal-rights activists it naturally was a fed flag and for the average Berliner an eyesore. But its monolithic, warship-like appearance shouldn’t deflect from the wealth of details the building contains and which the plans included in the book reveal. They come to life in Kay Fingerle’s essay and photographs that take a look behind the facades of both buildings and particularly vividly show the dystopian atmosphere inside the Mäusebunker.

Together with the incredible amount of plans, sections and historic photographs as well as the informative texts, Fingerle’s photographs leave no doubt why Mäusebunker and Hygieneinstitut are outstanding examples of German Brutalism that with the present volume receive a well-deserved homage!

[bhrarchinerd]

Nissan Cocoon Concept, 1991

[bhrarchinerd]

LACA, Wiltshire Blvd, RA Clayton

[bhrarchinerd]

#9401 Copyright © Takeuchi Itsuka. All Rights Reserved.

[bhrarchinerd]

D.A.C. Concept, 1988

[bhrarchinerd]

Antony Gormley

[bhrarchinerd]

Rupprecht Geiger, E197, 1954, Hagen, Emil Schumacher Museum. Photo from March 2025.

[bhrarchinerd]

1248. Yuzuru Tominaga /// House in Oji /// Kita City, Tokyo, Japan /// 1993-94

OfHouses presents: Japanese Fields OfHouses, part XXII. (Photos: © Mitsuo Matsuoka. Source: ‘Jutakutokushu’ 11/1994.) — This project will be published in our upcoming book: ’Japanese Fields | OfHouses.’

[bhrarchinerd]

Mare, Thierry De Cordier, 2004

[bhrarchinerd]

MacEffects Clear Case for Macintosh SE & SE/30

[bhrarchinerd]

Upstairs

[bhrarchinerd]

[bhrarchinerd]

House (1964) in Castricum, the Netherlands, by Gerard Holt

[bhrarchinerd]

Lincoln Cathedral sunset by John Wolfe Via Flickr: Lincoln UK 2025

[bhrarchinerd]

Bikeriders, Louisville, Kentucky

Danny Lyon, 1966

[bhrarchinerd]

Quite a number of comprehensive books have been written about Estonian-born architect Louis I. Kahn (1901-74) but if I had to recommend just one this would be it: Robert McCarter’s eponymous monograph on the master, published by Phaidon in 2005 and in enlarged, expanded and updated version in 2022. McCarter, who has published monographs about such diverse architects as Alvar Aalto, Marcel Breuer, Aldo van Eyck and Carlo Scarpa, in the book provides a career-spanning narrative that follows Kahn from his upbringing in Estonia and Philadelphia to his unexpected death in 1974. Although McCarter’s text is a little dry at times it is, by virtue of its focus on the designs and their genesis, very well aligned with the rich pictorial material consisting of drawings, photographs and renderings of unbuilt projects. In this regard the case studies discussing key projects like the Salk Institute, the Yale Center for British Art or the Kimball Art Museum stand out as exemplary analyses of Kahn’s multi-layered architecture as well as his dealing with monumentality. Drawing upon rich archival material McCarter presents these projects from sketch to final building and also shows the changes they underwent in the process. Accordingly, the volume is warmly recommended to anyone seeking to take a deep dive into Louis Kahn’s fascinating oeuvre!

[bhrarchinerd]