Hans Scharoun

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Hans Scharoun
GERMANY

The essence of the art of architecture - as in all art - is to interpret the meaning in the life of humanity and its physical manifestations.

Hans Scharoun
1893 - 1976

Hans Scharoun grew up in Bremerhaven and studied architecture in 1912 - 1914 at the Technical University of Berlin - Charlottenburg. After the First World War he participated in a written exchange of ideas among an association of artists known as "The Glass Chain", which was initiated by Bruno Taut. He prepared numerous visionary sketches for cultural centres, theatres and cinemas.

Through his membership in the group of architects known as "The Ring" he came to know both, Hugo Häring as well as Ludwid Mies van der Rohe. The latter invited him in 1926 to contribute to the design of a home in the Weißenhof Estate, Stuttgart. This house was the first of a series of modern villas he designed in the thirties.

A profound influence on Scharoun’s way of thinking and creating had Hugo Häring’s theory of "organic building". In the same way as Häring, Scharoun also believed that the form of a building was not to be determined from without, but from within, arising out of the essence of its design purpose. Like a "living organ" the building should serve its function. His commitment to this ideal became apparent particularly in his later designs of villages, homes, schools and theatres, which show an ever increasing  liveliness of design.

After the Second World War Scharoun became the head of the municipal building department in Berlin and  together with a group of architects worked on a plan to rebuild the destroyed city. The highpoint of his work is the Kulturforum in Berlin, for which, together with Edgar Wisniewski, he planned the Philharmonie or Concert Hall, the Museum for Musical Instruments as well as the National Library.

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Romeo and JuliaRomeo and Julia Stuttgart, Germany, 1954-1959 
Secondary- and elementary schoolSecondary- and elementary school Marl, Germany, 1960-1971 
Philharmonic hall and chamber music hallPhilharmonic hall and chamber music hall Berlin, Germany, 1956-1963 and 1974-1987