Bruno Taut Das japanische Haus und sein Leben (The Japanese House and Its Life) (1936)

Abstract

Bruno Taut was born in 1880 in Königsberg, East Prussia. His birthplace was a traditional medieval city; a vibrant port city that also gave birth to Kant. In 1902 he graduated from the Königsberg School of Civil Engineering. He was greatly inspired by Olbrich’s work in the Secession Movement while practicing in Hamburg and elsewhere. He struggled with the choice between becoming a painter or an architect, and eventually his paintings were integrated into the architecture. From 1904 to 1908, he studied under Fischer in Stuttgart. In 1909, he opened an architectural office in Berlin with F. Hoffmann. His achievements include the design, in 1913, of the “Iron Monument” for the International Architecture Exhibition in Leipzig, which established his name in German industrial circles. In 1914, Taut designed the “Glass House” for the Federation of German Workshops Exhibition in Cologne, a pavilion dedicated to Paul Scheerbart, a poet to whom Taut was devoted. His books include The City Crown, Alpine Architecture and The Dissolution of Cities, among others. He served as chief architect of Magdeburg from 1921 to 1924, returned to Berlin in 1925 and built many large housing estates there. In 1932, he worked on the Great Moscow construction project. The following year he went to Japan and worked in Sendai as a contractor for the Ministry of Commerce and Industry’s Industrial Arts Institute. In 1934, he resided at “Senshin-tei (Mind-Washing Arbour)” in the suburbs of Takasaki, and published Nippon. In 1935, he co-designed the Okura House in Azabu and Hyuga House in Atami. It was planned that he would go to the U.S. via Japan, but it was never realized. In 1936, he was transferred to Turkey, where he was in charge of schools, parliament buildings, and residences. He passed away in Istanbul in 1938.