Mia Seeger

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Maria Margarete "Mia" Seeger (born May 9, 1903 in Cannstatt ; † May 14, 1991 in Stuttgart ) was a German cultural manager , exhibition maker , design theorist and author .

Life and accomplishments

She grew up in Jüterbog near Berlin, in Zabern in Alsace (today Saverne) and in Cannstatt. In 1921 she studied at the Württemberg State School of Applied Arts in Stuttgart a. a. with Ernst Schneidler and Albert Mueller .

From 1924 she worked for the German Werkbund and subsequently took part in important Werkbund exhibitions at home and abroad in a prominent position. As a result, she received in z. Sometimes friendly contact with the important representatives of modern design, including Ludwig Mies van der Rohe , the brothers Bodo and Heinz Rasch , Marcel Breuer , Walter Gropius , Ludwig Hilberseimer , Egon Eiermann , Hans Schwippert and Wilhelm Wagenfeld , whose work she helps internationally known close. She also made relevant contacts early on in politics and business.

In 1924 she worked on the exhibition “Die Form ohne Ornament” in Stuttgart. 1927 at the exhibition "The Apartment", which was shown in two locations parallel to the inauguration of the Weißenhofsiedlung in Stuttgart. In 1930 she was employed by Ludwig Hilberseimer, the artistic director of the German department of the International Applied Arts Exhibition in Monza . As an employee of the Deutscher Werkbund, she was involved in the preparations for the Kochhofsiedlung in Stuttgart. When Paul Schmitthenner took over the management of the project in 1933 and claimed that the Werkbund would hand over the files, Seeger refused to continue working on the project and became unemployed.

From 1934 to 1936 she worked as a freelancer in the collections department of the Stuttgart State Trade Office, which was then headed by Hermann Gretsch . In 1932 she worked on the exhibition "Der Wohnbedarf" of the Württemberg working group of the German Werkbund. For the magazine "Moderne Bauformen" in 1932 and 1935 she presented products under the heading "The new living needs". She summarizes the series in her book “Der neue Wohnbedarf - 321 selected industrial products”, in which she compiled functional and inexpensive consumer goods.

From 1937 to 1953 she was a lecturer and editor for the Julius Hoffmann publishing house in Stuttgart, a specialist publisher for architecture and building. In 1938 she was a contributor to the Deutscher Wareenkunde published by the Art Service , whose edition was published in 1939 on behalf of the Reich Chamber of Fine Arts. By Ludwig Erhard she was appointed managing director of the German Design Council for the years 1954–1956 . She organized numerous presentations of German design at international events such as the Triennale in Milan, as well as special shows in English and Swedish museums. From 1955 - partly with the same employees as in 1939 - Deutsche Warenkunde appeared as a picture index of the Deutscher Werkbund and with the support of the German Design Council, which she headed as managing director until 1966. In addition to organizational and supporting measures for contemporary design, Mia Seeger made a lasting contribution in 1986 by establishing her foundation, which bears her name.

The Mia Seeger Prize

Mia Seeger set up the foundation named after her in 1986. The purpose of the foundation is "to promote education in the field of design". The foundation focuses on supporting outstanding design graduate students. The Mia Seeger Prize is advertised nationwide. In addition, the Mia-Seeger-Förderpreis for financing industrial design projects is advertised. Applicants set their own tasks. Concepts that, in the spirit of Mia Seeger, contradict common clichés, are considered particularly worthy of funding. Monika Daldrop-Weidmann heads the board in 2009 , and Karin Kirsch is chairwoman of the advisory board . The Design Center Stuttgart runs the foundation's business.

Marion Ascherl was the first to receive the Mia Seeger Prize in 1988.

Honors

In 1963 she was awarded the Johann Heinrich Merck Honor of the City of Darmstadt.

In 1967 she received the Heinrich Tessenow Medal in Gold, an architecture prize that has been awarded since 1963. In 1981 she was made an honorary member of the State Academy of Fine Arts in Stuttgart .

In Stuttgart, a street was named after Mia Seeger. The promotion of young talent at the State Trade Office's Design Center bears its name, as does a hall in the Haus der Wirtschaft.

Publications (selection)

  • Mia Seeger: The new housing requirement - 321 selected industrial products; As a guide when shopping due to d. Werkbund exhibition "Wohnbedarf", 60 pages, Julius Hofmann publishing house, Stuttgart 1935
  • Mia Seeger (Ed.): Good furniture, beautiful rooms, 172 pages, Julius Hofmann publishing house, Stuttgart 1953
  • Mia Seeger; Stephan Hirzel (Hrsg.): Deutsche Warenkunde - A picture index d. German Werkbund / ed. with support d. Rates f. Shaping. Ed .: Heinzöffelhardt, four volumes as loose-leaf collection, Gerd Hatje Verlag, Stuttgart, published in 1955 (vol. 1), 1956 (vol. 2) and 1961 (vol. 3 + 4)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Karin Kirsch: Mia Seeger - A life in the pull of modernity . In: Birgit Knorr and Rosemarie Wehling (eds.): Women in the German Southwest, writings on the political culture of Baden-Württemberg . tape 20 . Kohlhammer Verlag, Stuttgart / Berlin / Cologne 1993, ISBN 978-3-17-012089-1 , p. 145-151 .
  2. ^ NN: Under the magnifying glass - The German department at the Monza exhibition in 1930. In: Die Form, journal for creative work . No. 4/1931 . Reckendorf-Verlag, Berlin, p. 154-156 .
  3. ^ Andreas Stephan: Mia Seeger - No book, theoretical diploma thesis. in the Industrial Design course, Hamburg University of Applied Sciences . Cassette 1, page 1. Hamburg October 12, 1987.
  4. ↑ Michael Lingohr: The last ideology-free bastion - The National Socialist attack on the household . In: Museum Association of the State of Brandenburg (Ed.): Denazified Zone? On dealing with the time of National Socialism in East German city and regional museums . transcript, 2015, ISBN 978-3-8394-2706-4 , pp. 97 .
  5. ↑ Mia Seeger: "The new living requirement"
  6. ^ German Design Council : Chronicle of the German Design Council (excerpt) In: Website see history
  7. ^ Design Center Stuttgart »Mia Seeger Foundation. Retrieved June 24, 2018 .
  8. ↑ http://heinrich-tessenow.de/medaille/02-preistraeger/ Heinrich-Tessenow medal
  9. ↑ Gabriele Katz: Stuttgart's strong women . Theiss, Darmstadt 2015, p. 141 .
personal data
SURNAME Seeger, Mia
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Seeger, Maria Margarete
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German designer
DATE OF BIRTH May 9, 1903
PLACE OF BIRTH Cannstatt
DATE OF DEATH May 14, 1991
Place of death Stuttgart