Building a Socialist Germany: The Bauakademie and the Politics of Construction in the German Democratic Republic, 1947--1991 (2012)
Berez, Thomas M. (Author)
Kargon, Robert
Schoenberger, Erica
Katz, Richard
Johns Hopkins University
Kargon, Robert
Jelavich, Peter
Schoenberger, Erica
Katz, Richard
Leslie, Stuart
Jelavich, Peter
Edition Details: Advisor: Leslie, Stuart; Committee Members: Kargon, Robert, Jelavich, Peter, Schoenberger, Erica, Katz, Richard.
Physical Details: 450 pp.
Language: English
This dissertation contributes to the growing literature on the history of the East German built environment by taking an in-depth examination of the Bauakademie (Building Academy). As East Germany's premier research and development institution for all scholarly fields associated with construction, architecture, urban and town planning, the Bauakademie's work was viewed with great interest by both government and communist party officials. It was an academy which played an important role in the building of the first socialist state on German soil. Despite its importance, however, no attempt to write a history of the Bauakademie has yet been attempted. My account of the Bauakademie spans from the initial discussions concerning its founding in the late 1940s to its dissolution at the end of 1991. It connects the fields of the history of architecture and urban planning with the history of East Germany and the history of science and technology. It postulates that to understand how the East German built environment took shape, we need to understand the nature and dynamics of the scientific and technological research that was undertaken at this institution. I argue that contrary to typical portrayals of the Bauakademie as a "command center" for construction research, in which it supposedly served as a mere extension of the dictatorial regime, the academy actually operated on a meso-level between state authorities and practicing architects, urban planners, and civil engineers. The Bauakademie and its scholars were often caught between the aspirations of the regime and the everyday practices of these professional groups. Having to respond to pressures from both above and below caused the academy to redefine its modus operandi and its organizational structure on a number of occasions. The chapters divide the Bauakademie's history into five distinct periods defined by a particular vision (or sometimes competing visions) for how the academy should function. In each case, I demonstrate how the Bauakademie's organizational structure, its research ethos, and its scientific and technological investigations and results were shaped by its interaction with both the East German regime and the architects, urban planners and civil engineers who allegedly benefited from its work.
...MoreDescription Cited in Dissertation Abstracts International-A 74/06(E), Dec 2013. Proquest Document ID: 1288014566.
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