Jean Chandler

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Six Behrens assistants at work: (from left) Mies van der Rohe , Meyer , Hertwig , Weyrather (behind), Krämer, Gropius (with plan), 1908

Jean Krämer (occasionally also written Kremer or Kraemer; born March 11, 1886 in Kastel near Mainz , † January 17, 1943 in Berlin ) was a German architect who was able to realize numerous buildings in Berlin and the surrounding area. He preferred elements of Expressionism with a focus on New Objectivity . Krämer became particularly well-known for his renovation and new construction work on various Berlin tram depots in the 1920s, which is why he is often referred to in literature as the “house architect of the Berlin tram”.

Life

After schooling studied shopkeeper from 1903 to 1905 at the School of Applied Arts in Mainz architecture . In 1906 he moved to the Düsseldorf University of Applied Sciences , which at that time was headed by Peter Behrens . During his apprenticeship, Krämer joined von Behrens' Berlin office and from 1908 became head of his studio.

After the end of the First World War , Jean Krämer opened his own office in Schöneberg in 1918 . Over the course of many years, plans for civil engineering, industrial plants, urban development complexes, apartment buildings, country houses, luxurious villas, administrative buildings, buildings for cultural and sporting purposes as well as complete interior fittings were created there. His creative focus was on factory buildings, residential buildings and sports facilities. An important principle of his architectural designs was the fitting of the planned buildings into already existing building complexes and streets. The clear and functional arrangement of the rooms inside a building with spacious adjoining rooms and entrance areas determined the external design of his buildings. With small decorative details, Krämer also succeeded in nuancing otherwise long rows of houses, for example with building projections or differently designed house entrances.

Krämer's studio, which he relocated to Charlottenburg, Oldenburgallee 60, in the 1930s, was able to realize innumerable buildings in the greater Berlin area until his death, many of which are now listed .

Jean Krämer was married and had a daughter.

Designs and constructions

A first order for the new office was the planning and execution of an industrial complex in Berlin-Tempelhof , Oberlandstrasse , for the North German cooler factory (1918/1919).

From 1920, Krämer took over the continuation of the housing estate that Peter Behrens had started for the working class families of the AEG locomotive works in Hennigsdorf near Berlin. In 1922 the buildings were ready for occupancy, and when they were built, Krämer proceeded according to the ideas of reform housing: “People who can live under orderly conditions and in healthy air perform better. […] From the point of view of the worker, such small apartments should be thought through. ”Despite the complex as a terraced house settlement, Krämer managed to loosen it up in such a way that the settlement took on more of a garden city character . This housing estate is also known under the name Rathenauviertel and is now a listed building.

In the period from 1923 to 1930, the office of Krämer received an abundance of orders, which therefore cannot be presented here in exact chronological order. Several projects were probably worked on and built in parallel.

The Jewish furniture manufacturer Norbert Wiener from Potsdam had the Krämer office design a three-story villa for him in 1922, which was built in the Neubabelsberg district at Augustastraße 40 (later Rosa-Luxemburg-Straße). It is part of a country house colony where other modern architects such as Max Landsberg were able to realize their ideas. Konrad Adenauer , who later became Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, lived in this villa from May 1934 to April 1935.

In the same year, Krämer built in Oberschöneweide , a later part of the Treptow-Köpenick district , a civil servants' residence for the Niles machine tool factory (Wilhelminenhofstrasse 85), an apartment building on Schillerpromenade 11/12 (1922/1923) and a new housing estate ( Gebag settlement ) for the non-profit housing construction company (Gebag) in the area Zeppelinstraße / An der Wuhlheide / Fontanestraße / Triniusstraße (1924/1925), which is now also called Fontanehof .

In 1924 the architects Jean Krämer and Johann Emil Schaudt won the competition for an extension to an exhibition hall, which they were then able to carry out. It was an exhibition hall of the Association of German Motor Vehicle Industrialists west of the Ringbahn and between Neue Kantstrasse and Kaiserdamm , which was built in 1914, but could only be used for the first time after the First World War .

In 1926, Krämer supplied the plans for a new hall on the site of the AFA battery factory (today: BAE batteries ) in Berlin-Oberschöneweide .

In Berlin-Wittenau , an elementary school building was built between 1928 and 1931 as a brick building with an arched floor plan based on designs by Jean Krämer and Hans Krecke . The secondary school, which has been located there since 2010, was named Jean-Krämer-Schule this year. When it was completed, the school was considered one of the most modern in Berlin. It was equipped with drawing and music rooms, a laundry room for housekeeping lessons, a teaching kitchen, rooms for technical and science lessons, a teacher and student library and two gyms.

Time and again, Krämer took on private contracts for residential buildings in Steglitz , Köpenick , Neubabelsberg or Wannsee .

Krämer also planned larger residential complexes in various districts of Berlin, including parts of the garden city on the Südwestkorso ( Rheingauviertel ) in Berlin-Wilmersdorf , in which a total of 14 well-known architects were involved.

Not all buildings from Jean Krämer's studio are shown here; there are other industrial and residential buildings in Berlin's list of monuments.

Max Osborn , a leading Berlin art and architecture critic in the 1920s, commented on Krämer's work: “The same man who is familiar with girders and iron girders and who calculates the boldest constructions is now eager to find houses like this from the To shape the facade down to the last door handle, to make it practical, elegant and lovable [...] "

In the time of National Socialism , Jean Krämer's architectural designs were less and less in demand, they did not correspond to the zeitgeist. He was able to complete the construction work he had begun, but could hardly carry out any major orders.

Working for the Berlin tram

After many tram companies in Berlin and the suburbs that were incorporated in the same year merged to form the Berlin tram , the stables and car sheds used by the numerous haulage companies now had to be modernized and a representative administrative building for the new company was sought.

However, the numerous projects for the overdue modernization of the tram operation could only be implemented after the hyperinflation of 1923 was over and the heavily indebted urban tram was dissolved and, with effect from September 10, 1923, the private-law Berliner Straßenbahn-Betriebs-GmbH BSBG took over responsibility. Most of these orders went to Jean Krämer, most of whom he carried out with the architect and civil engineer Gerhard Mensch .

Traffic tower on Potsdamer Platz , put into operation in December 1924

In 1924, on behalf of the BSBG, Jean Krämer designed a small traffic structure that is now known worldwide, the traffic tower at Potsdamer Platz , in order to get the regular traffic jams and delays under control. The design was based on the traffic light towers that had just been erected in the USA . This traffic tower was the first traffic light in Germany, with the three traffic light colors arranged side by side. On the night of October 2, 1937, the traffic tower was removed as part of the construction work for the Potsdamer Platz underground station . A replica made in 1997 was put back up almost at the old location in 2000. It is based on Krämer's plans, but no longer fulfills a standard function.

The old Tempelhof horse-drawn tram and tram depot between Friedrich-Wilhelm-Strasse 17-19 and Kaiserin-Augusta-Strasse 76/77 was redesigned by Krämer in 1924–1925 and equipped with a column-free carriage hall.

Müllerstraße depot after conversion for bus operation

The construction work also included the demolition of the former stables in Wedding (Müllerstrasse 77–82 / Belfaster Strasse / Londoner Strasse), which were supplemented in 1925–1927 by a modern tram depot with stylish residential buildings for the employees of the tram company and an administration building. Soon after the completion of the Müllerstrasse depot , the name “Tram City” became common for the entire facility. Decorative reliefs in the facades were made by Richard Bauroth . In 1958, the tram service was shut down and the facility was converted into a bus depot with a workshop.

Former tram depot Moabit, now Classic Remise Berlin

The Moabit tram depot (Huttenstrasse / Wiebestrasse 29/30 / Sickingenstrasse), which opened in 1901, was converted by Krämer in 1926. There, the richly decorated gable front in particular has been refined to make the facade more modern. In 1965, after the tram was shut down, the halls were used as a cultural center for some time. In the early years of the 21st century, a service center moved into the now totally refurbished building called Wiebehallen , where it offers classic car restorations.

The Britz tram depot opened in 1910 (Gradestrasse 4–17 / Holzmindener Strasse / Wussowstrasse) was rebuilt in 1925/1926 and 1928–1933 according to plans by Krämer. In this context, another residential complex was built around the depot area for the employees in 1927–1930.

Car hall of the former depot in Charlottenburg, 2013

The Charlottenburg depot at the corner of Knobelsdorffstrasse and Königin-Elisabeth-Strasse was built on the same model in 1927–1930 together with the architect Otto Rudolf Salvisberg . Again, a large housing estate was settlement Charlottenburg II created around the tram depot.

In addition, there were new buildings and renovations for

  • a workshop extension at the tram depot Niederschönhausen (1924)
  • the main building of the new tram operating company in Berlin-Mitte on Leipziger Platz with complete interior fittings (around 1925) and
  • the main workshop on Uferstrasse on the Panke ( Badstrasse / Uferstrasse / Gottschedstrasse; the Uferhallen ) (1926–1931) with workshop, warehouse, sawmill, staff rooms, power plant with boiler house.
Grandstand of the BVG stadium, 1927 by Jean Krämer

Krämer also planned sports buildings, the grandstand of the BVG stadium at Siegfriedstrasse 71 in Lichtenberg next to the large tram depot, which was completed around 1925, is well known. The other buildings on this sports site (outdoor pool with diving tower, gatekeeper and sanitary building) probably also come from Krämer's studio, because they were built at the same time.

literature

  • Architect Jean Krämer in Berlin. Special issue of the magazine "Neue Baukunst", 2nd year 1926, issue 18.
  • Max Osborn: Jean Krämer. Friedrich Ernst Hübsch Verlag, Berlin 1927. Rare monograph, concise cover design in the style of “New Typography” designed by Krämer himself
as a reprint : Gebr. Mann, Berlin 1996, ISBN 3-7861-1832-9 . edited by Roland Jaeger, with an afterword to the new edition by Piergiacomo Bucciarelli
  • Helmut Engel (ed.): Tram depot - market hall, a Berlin monument is changing. Berlin 1998 (on the history and conversion of the depot in Tempelhof)
  • Stanford Anderson, Karen Grunow, Carsten Krohn: Jean Krämer. Architekt / Architect und das Atelier von Peter Behrens / and the Atelier of Peter Behrens , Weimarer Verlagsgesellschaft, 2015. ISBN 3-7374-0226-4

Web links

Commons : Jean Krämer  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ C. Arthur Croyle: Hertwig: The Zelig of Design. (Teaser). ( Memento of June 6, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) (PDF; 9.3 MB) Culicidae Press, 2011, p. 102. ISBN 978-0-557-72969-2 .
  2. ↑ a b Stanford Anderson, Karen Grunow, Carsten Krohn: Jean Krämer - Architekt / Architect und das Atelier von Peter Behrens / and the Atelier of Peter Behrens .
  3. ↑ a b c d e page no longer available , search in web archives: "Berliner Kunstsalon", homepage of the Kunstsalon Rhein Ruhr, section houses for the tram. The architect Jean Krämer by Karen Grunow ; Retrieved February 16, 2009.@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / www.berlinerkunstsalon.de
  4. ↑ Kramer, Jean . In: Berliner Adreßbuch , 1940, I, p. 1561.
  5. ^ Susanne Lenz: The forgotten architect. In: Berliner Zeitung . 11./12. June 2016, p. 34.
  6. ↑ Monument North German Radiator Factory in Tempelhof
  7. ↑ Statute for the protection of the monument area of ​​the AEG settlement (so-called Rathenauviertel), 1993 ( Memento of 10 August 2016 in the Internet Archive )
  8. ↑ 9 views of the Hennigsdorfer Rathenauviertel at immonet.de  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.@1@ 2Template: dead link / expose.immonet.de  
  9. ^ Brandenburgische Denkmalpflege, No. 1 (1993), p. 48; PDF
  10. ↑ Architectural monument official residence in Oberschöneweide
  11. ↑ Schillerpromenade tenement building monument
  12. ↑ Oberschöneweide housing estate
  13. ↑ Fontanehof An der Wuhlheide 26-40, Fontanestraße 3-7, Triniusstraße 10-11a, Zeppelinstraße 73-87 ( memento from March 19, 2007 in the Internet Archive ), accessed on January 14, 2016.
  14. ^ Info from the district office of Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf; Retrieved February 17, 2009
  15. ↑ Homepage BA Reinickendorf; Retrieved February 16, 2009
  16. ↑ School building in Wittenau
  17. ↑ Brief information about the house in Wannsee, accessed on February 18, 2009
  18. ↑ Architectural monument Gartenstadt Südwestkorso
  19. ↑ Brief information and pictures of the Rheingauviertel in Wilmersdorf; Retrieved February 18, 2009
  20. ^ Christoph Bernhardt: Building site Greater Berlin. In: Google Books . Retrieved November 25, 2010 (p. 223 is not displayed).
  21. ↑ Production hall, factory gate and wall for AEG in Oberschöneweide
  22. ↑ Storage hall for the AEG cable plant in Oberschöneweide
  23. ↑ Residential buildings at Eisenzahnstrasse 19–27; 1929/1930
  24. ↑ Supplementary buildings for Bergmann Elektrizitätswerke in Pankow, Wilhelmsruh district (1936-41): administration, rubber factory, hall for ammunition production, wastewater lifting plant
  25. ↑ Monument Villa Weber at Ostendorfstrasse 60 in Köpenick
  26. ↑ Tempelhof tram depot monument
  27. ↑ Architectural monuments, depots and houses on Müllerstrasse
  28. ^ BVG depot Müllerstrasse at berlinstreet.de. Retrieved February 17, 2009
  29. ↑ The Tram City by Jean Krämer ; Excerpt from the book Der Wedding - on the way from red to colorful by Gerhild HM Komander; Online . Retrieved February 17, 2009.
  30. ↑ Tram depot Moabit
  31. ↑ archive Homepage Meilenwerk Berlin ( Memento of 7 January 2008 at the Internet Archive ). Retrieved September 16, 2012
  32. ↑ Homepage Schotterschnecke.de ( Memento of March 4, 2008 in the Internet Archive ), retrieved on September 16, 2012.
  33. ↑ Tram depot Gradestrasse
  34. ↑ Jean Krämer. In: arch INFORM ; Retrieved February 18, 2009.
  35. ↑ Housing complex with a former tram depot
  36. ↑ Extension to a tram depot in Berlin-Pankow, district of Niederschönhausen
  37. ↑ Historic tram depot in Wedding
  38. ↑ Grandstand of the BVG stadium
personal data
SURNAME Chandler, Jean
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Kraemer, Jean (alternative spelling); Kremer, Jean (alternative spelling)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German architect
DATE OF BIRTH March 11, 1886
PLACE OF BIRTH Mainz
DATE OF DEATH 1943