The Deutscher Werkbund, Stuttgart's Weißenhofsiedlung exhibition of 1927, and Adolf Loos

       To preface this entry, it is important to identify the central designers to be discussed.  The Deutscher Werkbund, or German Work Federation, was established in 1907 in München by Hermann Muthesius, a German architect best known for his three volume work "The English House"; an extensive study of the English Arts & Crafts movement.  It's purpose upon formation was to establish a connection between designers and product manufacturers to promote the success of German products in international markets.  It would come to define the direction of modern architecture and eventually transform into the German Bauhaus.  Adolf Loos is an Austrian architect born in 1870.  He detested the ideas of the Art Nouveau and was a vocal theorist of modern architecture.


  In 1927 the Deutscher Werkbund, under the creative direction of Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, held an exhibition in Stuttgart meant to showcase the efficiency and viability of the modern style.  The Weißenhofsiedlung, as it was known in German, featured 17 architects; among them Walter Gropius, Peter Behrens, Le Corbusier, and Mies himself; and 21 residential buildings united by features such as simplified facades, flat roofs, and open plan interiors.  Among these 21 buildings is Mies' Weißenhof Apartments.

The rear entries of Mies' Weißenhof Apartments viewed from the rear facade streetfront.  

Occupants are directed though exterior courtyard spaces and into a central datum.  

Vertical circulation is extruded out away from the interior living space.

An axonometric drawing of the Weißenhof Apartments.  The spatial connection 

from exterior to interior through the courtyard spaces is illustrated.

Mies' simplified facade is illustrated in this plan drawing of the Weißenhof 

Apartments.  Simplifed facades such as this one are a trademark of the Weißenfhofsiedlung 

exhibition and the International Style that largely arose from it.

A plan drawing of a single unit in the Weißenhof Apartments.  Blue areas signify Mies' 

circulation plan. Red areas show the proportional rhythm that structures the open plan.

      Ludwig Mies van der Rohe's Weißenhof Apartments feature 5 equal divisions of space arranged laterally and contained within four simple planes.  The spaces are united by a central datum that runs through two living spaces to one side of a central stairway and one living space to the other.  Less public spaces, such as the kitchen, are drawn away from the center to the edge of the bounded space where it can serve its function away from visiting eyes.  Upon examination, the one area of the building that breaks the defined form of the rest of the design is used for vertical circulation.  From the outside the space holds a certain prominence as it extrudes out from the unifying facade of the apartment's living areas.  This move allows vertical circulation, while remaining prominent, to be pulled from the open plan, freeing the living space to exist in an uncluttered condition.

Adolf Loos' Steiner House features a simplified facade similar to those 

found in the Weißenfhofsiedlung exhibition's designs.

The interior of the Steiner House is shown in plan view.  Many of the same principles found 

in Mies' Weißenhof Apartments are at work here, however the plan is, overall, somewhat 

more complicated.

      Adolf Loos' Steiner house stands in contrast to Mies' Weißenfhof Apartments.  Loos was originally scheduled to be one of the architects featured in the Weißenhofsiedlung exhibition before tensions arose between Loos and the Werkbund over Loos' criticisms.  This difference in opinion is shown in the designs of Loos.  While the Steiner House features several features found in the Werkbund's work in Stuttgart, there are also several notable differences.  Like Mies, Loos' design pulled the house's kitchen away from prominence in the interior scheme.  The Steiner House also featured a highly simplified facade design.  Unlike Mies, Loos' design shifted vertical circulation into the interior of the space.  Circulation through living spaces is also pulled out to the spatial edges of the house, whereas Mies' circulation plan cuts straight through the living areas.  Also in contrast to Mies' ideas, the Steiner House's interior plan, while featuring a number of identical spaces in terms of size, pulls the important interior spaces to the four corners of the overall building envelope.

Sources:

http://www.greatbuildings.com/buildings/Steiner_House.html

http://www.greatbuildings.com/buildings/Weissenhof_Apartments.html

http://www.mimoa.eu/projects/Germany/Stuttgart/Weissenhofsiedlung

http://www.weissenhof.ckom.de/02_gebaeude/index1.php?kategorie=0&id=&flash=0