City-History-Identity 1: Berlin as Palimpsest Flashcards
Palimpsest
a parchment or the like from which writing has been partially or completely erased to make room for another text.
Ladd
His Berlin was much more scarred, filled with buildings that had lost their purpose
History was more visible (90s)
Contested Buildings in Berlin: Stadtschloss
Former residence of the Prussian King and later the Kaiser
Destroyed after WW2
Came under possession of the DDR and they blew it up in 1950
Why?
It was a symbol of Prussian militarism and imperialism
By demolishing the building they also tried to get rid of the ideology
Built the Palast Der Republik in the empty space - 1976-2009
Seat of parliament - Volkskammer
Also had theaters, bars, restaurants, bowling
Meant to be a palace for the people
Very symbolic
Transparency, openness
But also luxurious for a people not used to luxury
A showcase
Now: re-build the palace
Why?
Etching/Radierung
The way a vision of a politician becomes visible in the form of destruction
Radieren - also means to erase
View of the city and also the act of erasing something from a surface
Churchill aids Hitler in destroying the city
Destruction of the city after the war - worse than the destruction of the war
Now people want to reclaim the old identity of the city
Fischerinsel
Wedding and Willy Brandt - West Berlin
Radical modernization and eradication of what was there before
Something lost - nostalgic tone
“Progress” is just as destructive as war
Fischerinsel
Old buildings destroyed by the GDR in the 60s
Represent modern idea of a socialist state
Not just about demolishing representative buildings (castles) but also about demolishing anything old and replacing with the then-perceived “modern”
Wedding and Willy Brandt - West Berlin
Brunnenstr.
SPD party
Traditionally a working class district
Lots of factories and workers that lived there
Working class buildings demolished
Different idea of what is a good building in terms of hygiene and aesthetics
Bathrooms with running water, Windows, larger kitchens
Ideas of what cities should look like
Street made wider for the cars
Divisions between centers: living areas, shopping areas, theater, etc…
Vinetaplatz
Vinetaplatz
Complete different ideas about the design of public space
Buildings and occupants are easier to control
Public money spent for a public that didn’t want it by a social democrat
Not a real democratic process
The word Vineta
Comes from a mythical, sunken city
Sanitized modernized buildings
Northern Brunnenstr. - not representational
They were trying to erase the presence of communism all together (Workers in the 20s had a strong bent to the communists)
There was a strong communist tradition in Wedding, so the Social Democrats wanted to get rid of the tenements and build something with much better quality
Modern buildings that are much easier to control: know who lives there, disrupt potential communist outposts
Reflect the idea of a society - We have a different idea of society, we have a more modern view of society
What are the reasons for this constant change?
Politicians want to leave their mark on the city
Representative buildings
Palaces, parliament buildings
Architectural legacy
Northern Brunnenstr. - not representational
Brain Ladd “The Ghosts of Berlin”
Buildings and monuments are the visible remnants of the past: they often outlast the human beings who created them
how these structures are seen, treated, and remembered sheds light on a collective identity that is far more felt than articulated
Ladd’s thoughts on Berlin
Berlin is fascinating as a city of bold gestures and startling incongruities, of ferment and destruction
It is a city whose buildings, ruins, and voids groan under the burden of painful memories
Berlin’s landscape is uniquely politicized
historical minefield
historical identity
buildings are the symbols and repositories of memory
The text makes various points about remembrance and forgetting, and about the part that built structures play when it comes to the identity and history of a nation or city, also
regarding questions of preservation and destruction / demolition. Please summarise the
most important arguments of the text.
Buildings give form to a city’s history and identity.
Buildings and monuments are the visible remnants of the past
How these structures are seen, treated, and remembered sheds light on a collective identity that is more felt than articulated.
Is an indication of subtle, indirect, at times unspoken burden of the past
The cultural and political significance of buildings
Christians destroying mosques
South koreans destroy Seoul’s prominent buildings because they are “products of Japanese imperialism”
The West years for attachment to history - buildings facilitate this
Buildings matter because they are the symbols and repositories of memory
Places whose beauty or ugliness is more political than aesthetic
The text also addresses the specificities of Berlin in this respect. What are they?
Berlin is a typical Western city in that its citizens and leaders take historical preservation very seriously
Berlin is fascinating, rather, as a city of bold gestures and startling incongruities, of ferment and destruction
The burden of painful memories
Berlin’s landscape is uniquely politicized
An uncertain national identity
Historical identity
Which events define the city and give it a true identity?
The concentration of troubling memories, physical destruction, and renewal has made Berliners international leaders in exploring the links between urban form, historical preservation and national identity
- What are some of the reasons why there would be controversies around constructing or demolishing certain buildings (or other built structures) – especially in Berlin? Name some of the most important reasons.
The issue of remembering past mistakes
Building on “blood-stained ground” - is that irreverent?
