Mies van der Rohe Business Park
The Mies van der Rohe Business Park is located on the site of the former industrial building Ludwig Mies van der Rohe on the Verseidag .
The United Seidenwebereien Aktiengesellschaft for short VerseidAG was the amalgamation of various textile companies in Krefeld on the Lower Rhine . Since the company was founded in 1920, it has shaped the identity and the cityscape of Krefeld. The complex includes various buildings that u. a. by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, the last Bauhaus director and the Bauhaus student and architect Erich Holthoff. The buildings have been under monument protection since 1999 and are being restored and revitalized.
history
The textile and silk industry has a long tradition in Krefeld. Since the 18th century, the city has been known far beyond Germany for its silk. Even Napoleon Bonaparte and King Frederick the Great wore silk from the Lower Rhine. The architecture of the city was geared towards silk production right into the houses. Special long and narrow houses with large windows were built for the special hand looms. A large part of the Krefeld population was employed in textile production. The city's motto, “A city like velvet and silk”, still reflects this bond today.
VerseidAG, which is still known in Krefeld, was founded in 1920 after the First World War. Several textile companies in the city, from the surrounding area and from Thuringia joined forces to defy the economic and social uncertainties after the First World War. The managing directors of the new Verseidag were Hermann Lange and Josef Esters. Ten years after the founding, they commissioned the well-known architect of the new building, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, with the planning of a production and administration building for their company, with which they created an important architectural monument for Krefeld.
VerseidAG became the world's leading producer of ties and silk fabric by 1925 and employed 6,000 people by 1940. During the Second World War, the company headquarters and the industry were badly damaged. The company found it difficult to build on its earlier success and in competition with low-wage countries was finally almost ousted from the textile industry in 1970. It specialized in technical textiles and synthetic fabrics. Today Verseidag-Indutex is a producer of technical textiles and has mainly relocated its production abroad. The company headquarters are still in Krefeld, but no longer on the old company premises on Girmesgath. In 2010 production was stopped there and the company moved to a neighboring building, which was built by Erich Holthoff, an employee of the Verseidag construction department. Since then, the site and the buildings of the former VerseidAG have been revitalized.
architecture
From 1931 to 1935 the factory building for VerseidAG and from 1937 to 1939 a main administration building was planned by Mies van der Rohe, which however could not be realized due to the outbreak of war. Despite intensive scientific building research, many questions are still open.
Mies van der Rohe may have developed a master plan with different building complexes for the site of the former VerseidAG. In professional circles, this system is regarded as an inspiration for his later work on the campus of the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago . The site of today's Mies van der Rohe Business Park consists of seven buildings. a. can be traced back to Mies van der Rohe. The so-called HE building for men's lining materials (1931–35) and the adjoining shed hall for the dye works (1931–1935) are at the center of the facility and planned for it . In addition, there is the boiler house (1932), the inspection of goods with a clock tower (1932), the slaughterhouse (1935/36) and the gatehouse (1935/36). With the exception of the boiler house, these buildings are characterized by a white facade color that was untypical for factory buildings at the time. The light facade breaks with convention and gives the company a new, modern and aesthetic image. Mies van der Rohe designed the HE building with first two and later four floors, as well as the dye works hall with four and then eight sheds. The expansion of the building was planned at the beginning of the work.
Since 2010 the buildings have been restored and revitalized in accordance with the preservation order. In addition, a new building is planned that is based on the style of the architect. The complex of HE building and shed hall will be expanded by a second HE building opposite the first. This could correspond to the postulated Mies van der Rohe master plan and complete the mirrored building unit.
The buildings
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe's buildings, the HE building and the dye works, show a clear cubic shape. Large metal windows from Fenestra-Crittall create a light-flooded room for the best working conditions. A skeleton made of steel beams enables an open room layout. Only a few load-bearing supports interrupt the free interior space. On the outside, both buildings are finished with white structural plaster. A special positioning of the downpipes on the HE building is noticeable. The architect structured the building using special lines by arranging the windows and downpipes in a ratio of 1-2-3-2-1. In addition, the building is characterized by an extraordinary staircase that has been preserved in almost its original state.
The representative reception room is clad with fired Bockhorn clinker bricks and thus forms a contrast to the white exterior facade. This structured architecture, determined by its function, can also be seen in the concrete and scraped staircase. An upstand on the steps should prevent the cleaning water from running down. In addition, small cabinets are integrated on each floor, behind which there is a tap for the cleaning staff. The different floors in the HE building are multifunctional. The open room structure enabled various uses, from storage to representation and sales. For this purpose, small offices were separated with the help of subsequently added partition walls. Today, offices, but also larger conference rooms, are built on these areas according to the same principle. The shed hall of the dye works is also planned as an open and bright room. For the dye works, windows were used based on the model of the windows for the HE building in order to create a contrast between the light facade and the dark window frames and surfaces. This creates a clear appearance to the outside, as well as a greater incidence of light.
Erich Holthoff (* 1904) built the porter's lodge with adjoining conciliation. The porter's lodge relates directly to the HE building. Like the factory building itself, the long side facing the street is structured by horizontally arranged windows. This creates five fields that are divided into units 1-3-1 by the downpipes. Originally the house had a floor-to-ceiling entrance with a canopy on the short side. This was later rebuilt as a result of the bomb damage in World War II, so that another room was created in the entrance area. For VerseidAG, the building was a central meeting place for all employees. In the sizing room, where the silk threads were untangled during manufacture, there was also the VerseidAG canteen. Inside, the large wall painting by Fritz Huhnen , which depicts the city of Krefeld and was painted directly onto the plaster, is striking. It is still there today. Both buildings were restored in accordance with listed building regulations and are now used by the Interface company .
The boiler house with its clinker facade stands out from the white factory buildings. It was planned together with Mies van der Rohe and built in several construction phases by the construction department of VerseidAG. As with the other buildings, a steel frame construction serves as the basis. In the boiler house, it not only supports the facade and roof, but also the crane system on top. Again, the focus is on functionality. The location directly on the in-house railway tracks was also chosen because of its efficiency. With its compact shape and the horizontally arranged windows ( ribbon windows ), the building blends in with the overall appearance of the complex and at the same time creates a color contrast. It has been preserved in its original state to this day. In the future it will serve as an event hall for cultural events in Krefeld.
literature
- "The heritage of Mies." International committee for documentation and conservation of buildings, sites and neighborhoods of the modern movement, Lisboa, Journal 56 -2017/01. Cube. The Düsseldorf magazine for architecture, modern living and lifestyle, Düsseldorf, 04/18
Web links
- Website of Mies van der Rohe Business Park GmbH & Co. KG
- Description of the area and its history on www.rheinische-industriekultur.de
- Special publication on the company Interface in the Mies van der Rohe Business Park in cooperation with DETAIL (pdf)
- Avant-garde on the Lower Rhine, interview with Christiane Lange 100 years of Bauhaus, magazine