Beate Schnitter

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Beate Schnitter (born August 20, 1929 in Zurich ) is a Swiss architect.

Life and career entry

Beate Schnitter graduated as an architect from the ETH Zurich in 1953 and then worked in Amsterdam, Paris and Zurich. She is the niece of Switzerland's first independent architect, Lux Guyer , and took over her office in Zurich in 1955. Your home "Sunnebüel" in Küsnacht Itschnach is the work of Lux Guyer and was renovated by Schnitter.

Career and work

In 1958, as a young woman, Beate Schnitter took part in the Swiss Exhibition for Women's Work (SAFFA), where she helped design the shopping street, the exhibition “Die Linie” and the press pavilion. She designed numerous villas, holiday homes and apartment buildings. Important works are the Eiwog development in Stäfa or the Villa Gelpke-Engelhorn, both from the 1970s. The latter is currently threatened with demolition, the Zurich homeland security is fighting for the preservation before the administrative court. Her restoration of the Swiss Federal Observatory, created by Gottfried Semper in 1864 (1988–97), was also well received.

From 1988–89 she was one of three architects who created new works for the exhibition “SAFFA 1928, 1958 ... 1988” in the Architekturmuseum in Basel. Your memories of this exhibition were recorded on the occasion of the «créatrices. Women shape Switzerland »organized anniversary event« Three Generations ».

Cultural engagement

Also in 1958, Beate Schnitter was a co-founder of the Zurich working group for urban planning . Architectural consultant for homeland security and the inventory of protected sites in Switzerland. She is a member of the Swiss Association of Engineers and Architects and the Federation of Swiss Architects as well as the Central Board of the Swiss Heritage Protection .

At the time of the newly flared up women's movement around 1970, Beate Schnitter was one of the few people in her profession who spoke up and drew attention to the situation of women in the construction industry. She praised the “esprit de finesse” ( Blaise Pascal ) of women and stated that women architects are more aware of the needs of property ownership. They could also better understand the simultaneous and omnipresent everyday experience of housework and motherhood. She described the property of her apartment layouts to encourage movement while remaining flexible as “thinking all around” in architectural design.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Reaper, Beate. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland. Retrieved August 24, 2019 .
  2. ↑ Reaper, Beate. Ineichen, Hannes .: Beate Schnitter: Buildings and Projects 1955-2005 . Niggli, 2005, ISBN 3-7212-0487-5 .
  3. ^ Francine Speiser: About an endangered jewel. April 8, 2019, accessed August 24, 2019 .
  4. ↑ créatrices. Women shape Switzerland creatrices.ch
  5. ↑ SAFFA - Swiss Exhibition for Women's Work. Retrieved August 24, 2019 .
  6. ^ Francine Speiser: Beate Schnitter: An architect with “esprit de finesse” shows perseverance . Ed .: NZZ. July 19, 2019 ( nzz.ch [accessed August 24, 2019]).
personal data
SURNAME Reaper, Beate
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Swiss architect
DATE OF BIRTH August 20, 1929
PLACE OF BIRTH Zurich