Western modernity is inextricably linked to the European colonial project. There needs to be a renegotiation of this term and what is meant by it. How have colonial worldviews shaped our aesthetic perceptions and the way we think and talk about architecture and cities?
Cities like Casablanca or Algiers were initially seen as laboratories for modernity on colonial soil. Modernist concepts such as the architect Le Corbusier’s “Plan Obus” for Algiers ignored functioning residential structures and their inhabitants. These spaces have been treated as blank slates to be disposed of. Furthermore, the knowledge generated on the African continent later became the basis for aesthetic ideas and infrastructures in European cities. Concepts and practices of modern urban planning migrated not only from Europe and the USA to North Africa, but also back. While mostly European and North American architects debated the central role of modern architecture in congresses such as the CIAM (Congrès Internationaux d'Architecture Moderne) or the Bauhaus school, their ideas were significantly shaped by their travel experiences and research by Antropolog* Inside. This in turn created private and public spaces that were new to Europe.
In the workshop we want to walk together through the Hansaviertel, which is considered a showcase project of modernism in Berlin and is part of the International Building Exhibition Interbau from 1957 was carried out. In joint and individual reflection and reading groups, we would like to question the supposedly universal Western modernity and open up paths for further modernism.
Language: German
For: The workshop is aimed at anyone who is interested. No prior knowledge of architecture is required.
With: Ana Rodriguez Bisbicus & Sarah Naira Hachem Herfurth
