Architecture and Politics in Germany, 1918-1945

by Barbara Miller Lane

In the spring of 1933, the Nazi government began its campaign to eliminate "modern" tendencies in German art--with particular emphasis on architecture--and to eradicate what it chose to call "art bolshevism." The Bauhaus, by then an internationally famous center of avant garde design, was shut down. In a close analysis of intellectual, political, social, and economic developments, Lane shows that Nazi views on architecture were generated by a complex of historical factors. Far from being cohesive, Nazi cultural policy was largely the product of the conflicting ideas about art held by the Nazi leaders and their efforts to advance these ideas during internal power struggles.

Genres: Architecture

292 pages, Paperback

First published December 12, 1968

Reviews

[EunHye · Rating 4 out of 5]

A classics on the German modern architecture. The author nicely maps out the intellectual and cultural background of the Bauhaus architecture style and its associations with politics from 1918 to 1945.