  Reconstruction of the Synagogue in Kaiserslautern © Photo: TU Darmstadt  Facade of the Synagogue in Cologne, Glockengasse (1861) © Photo: TU Darmstadt  Synagogue in Cologne: View of the dome © Photo: TU Darmstadt  Synagogue in Cologne: View of the interior © Photo: TU Darmstadt  Synagogue in Hannover © Photo: TU Darmstadt  Synagogue in Nuremberg (1874): Tower of the west facade © Photo: TU Darmstadt  Synagogue in Munich: View of the Aron ha-Kodesch © Photo: TU Darmstadt  Synagogue in Plauen (1930) © Photo: TU Darmstadt  Synagogue in Plauen (1930): View of the Aron ha-Kodesch © Photo: TU Darmstadt |
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Synagogues in Germany
A Virtual Reconstruction 17 May - 1 October 2000      Complete list of the reconstructed synagogues with illustrations An arson attack on the synagogue in Lübeck in 1994 motivated a number of students at the Darmstadt Technical University to get together to address and explore an important chapter of German history, particularly German building history. Using the CAD (computer aided design) procedure making it possible to simulate true-to-life three-dimensional conceptions and arrangements of space, they are reconstructing a few selected synagogues that were targets of Nazi violence. The reconstruction process is intended not only to create interest in valuable historical monuments, and in architecture now lost to us. The planned exhibition also recalls the diversity of Jewish life once existing in Germany - and its destruction. It thus makes an important contribution to the development of new and contemporary forms of restoring and renewing the culture of remembering. The exhibition in the Art and Exhibition Hall will display the results of reconstructing 14 synagogues which up to the time of their destruction were an integral part of the urban landscape of Cologne, Berlin, Darmstadt, Dortmund, Dresden, Frankfurt, Hanover, Kaiserslautern, Leipzig, Munich, Nuremberg and Plauen. The presentation is divided into three spatial units. In the entrance area, laws quoted in their original wording confront the visitor with the fact that the Jews in Germany in the thirties were continuously deprived of their rights. Legal discrimination and social ostracism culminated in a carefully-planned attack on the most striking landmarks of Jewry - several hundred synagogues and places of prayer all over the German Reich. The adjoining section will show the actual extent of the destruction. Some synagogues were torn down before 1938, their destruction publicly sanctioned in state ceremonies. After the ravages of the night of pogroms on 9-10 November 1938, only ruins were left of most Jewish places of worship. The ruins themselves were totally removed in most cases a few days later - at the expense of the local Jewish communities. Photographic material documents these events. The reconstruction of 14 selected synagogues forms the thematic and the dimensional focus of the exhibition. It features elaborate simulation-films about the three synagogues in Cologne (built in 1861 by Ernst Zwirner), Hanover (built in 1870 by Albert Schmidt) and Plauen (built in 1930 by Fritz Landauer); eleven other synagogues are presented in varying stages of reconstruction and highlighted by various technical aids and collateral material (video and slide projections, computer printouts). The fronts and interiors of the buildings can be explored during virtual computer-screen tours. Variable perspectives make it possible to study the architectural arrangement of space in its complexity and diversity. The virtual projections are augmented by background information on local history, architecture and liturgy, as well as by a few original objects that were preserved from destruction. An important objective of the exhibition is to explain and illustrate the reconstruction process itself. The exhibition area will include two workplaces for students, who will continue their work on the project. During the exhibition, the virtual reconstruction of the destroyed synagogue in Dortmund-Hiltropwall (built in 1900 by Eduard von Fürstenau) will "grow" on the spot before the visitor's eyes: historical source material (architectural blueprints, photos and sketches) will provide an inside look at the workshop techniques of this "work in progress" type project. Since the exhibition is designed to be experienced individually, tours will not be offered. The members of the CAD synagogue reconstruction team will be available to answer visitors' questions. An approximately 80-page catalogue to be published on the exhibition will include a detailed project description and textual and photographic material on the reconstructed synagogues. A documentary film which will be telecast by 3sat and shown at the exhibition sums up the results of the project and gives an in-depth treatment of some aspects of the virtual reconstruction. The exhibition is a joint cooperative venture by the Darmstadt Technical University ("CAD in architecture" section), the Federal Education and Research Ministry, and the Art and Exhibition Hall of the Federal Republic of Germany, Bonn. Press material about this exhibition in English, French, Dutch and German you will find HERE ready for download. Press email: Maja Majer-Wallat
Synagogen in Deutschland - CAD - TU-Darmstadt  Agnieszka Lulinska, Project Manager |
produced and copyright by kunst- und ausstellungshalle der bundesrepublik deutschland
