schindlers ark

University of Stuttgart - Faculty 1 Architecture and Urban Planning

Project idea

The history of the site is to be reappraised in the form of a museum memorial. Both the former textile factory of the Löw Beer family and the subsequent occupation under National Socialism are to be presented and brought to life as part of the memorial.
A new textile and creative area is being created in the southern part of the historic northern area, where the former industrial halls of the 1960s will be used to recreate and resettle the former importance of the textile industry in this location. New creative, commercial, industrial and socio-cultural spaces are forming a new town center for Brünnlitz, while the southern area of the former textile production site lies fallow and offers potential areas for future construction projects.

The existing buildings are to be retained as far as possible and, if possible, repaired so that the character of this historical site is preserved and not alienated, and an aesthetic, sustainable architecture is to be created with the idea of "appropriateness". All three historic buildings, in which the eight-month story of the Schindler Jews took place, serve to respectfully illustrate and exhibit the Schindler family and the events of the time during the Second World War on site.
No architectural reconstruction of the original building object is aimed for, as the fragmentation and wounds of the existing building fabric are respected as the new actual state. Damaged or obsolete architecture is usually renovated or removed, ruins are often seen as a sign of danger. However, this severely limits the possibilities for depicting temporality in architecture, which should not only be represented and reconstructed through a single layer of time, but should also take up potentials that have arisen through seemingly arbitrary building extensions, repairs and alterations and can offer new spaces of tension.

The aim is to enter into a new symbiosis with the existing building fabric, but not to merge with the existing structure, as the history must be preserved in its current state and the act of destruction must be preserved. A pure reconstruction would possibly blur boundaries and the temporalities would be lost.
"History is preserved in the imprint of what once was."
The architectural objects are seen as an organism that is worked on carefully and appropriately. In order to pursue the idea of conservation, it is important to record and examine the existing building and its damage and potential as closely as possible. The more damaged the condition, the more necessary the intervention. Stabilization is the first intervention to create functional interiors.

The historical significance of the rooms plays a fundamental role in Schindler's legacy, and the emotional sensitivity of the current generation is pushed into the background due to the temporal distance to the events of that time, while the death of contemporary witnesses also contributes to the atrocities being less tangible. Digitalization and artificial intelligence are intended to counteract this. This makes it easier for younger generations to better imagine the circumstances of the time. The architectural response to this problem is that the living and working spaces of the Schindler Jews are left raw and preserved. The "space remains space"-principle aims to have an effect on the visitor through its historical surfaces and materials and to keep a certain freedom of interpretation of what happened. In order to show respect for history, no original furnishings or objects are bluntly reconstructed. With the help of an audiovisual media guide, visitors are given the opportunity to experience the original character of the space.

Project description

In the following the curated exhibition and the interventions throughout the whole area will be explained. Due to the historically demanding emotionality, the exhibition needed a cautious concept for the architecture as well as the visitors emotional comfort. The exhibition is divided into three segments, based on the appropriateness of the communication of the history of the Schindler Jews.

First segment: "Arrival I Pick up I Journey through time"

Before entering the memorial site, the visitor is introduced to the content of the memorial and given both a physical and psychological introduction. An initial overview of the history of the site's development is presented, giving visitors the opportunity to slowly approach the theme.

Brezova nad Svitavou railroad station:
Visitors to the "Schindler's Ark" memorial are introduced to the theme of Schindler's legacy as soon as they arrive at the historic railway station, where the Schindler Jews arrived in 1944.The approximately 1 km long path to the memorial corresponds to the historic walk that the prisoners arriving at the time had to make to the Brünnlitz labor camp.

The historic entrance gate:
Visitors are led through the last relic of the original boundaries of the labor camp, the historic gate, to the important historical square.

The historical square:
The historical square describes the place where the Jews presented the golden ring to Oskar Schindler when he fled from the Red Army in 1945.The importance of the square is reflected in being the mediator between the three historical buildings that define the memorial museum. Visitors are free to visit the three buildings in any order they wish. In the middle of the square it is planned to install a big stumbling stone with all of the names of the survivors engraved in it.

The former factory building - entrance hall:
As an introductory space, the foyer offers an architecturally neutral arrival space. Only the rear wall behind the counter and the original supports hints at the original structure of the building. The floor, the other exterior walls and the ceiling are neutral elements. This creates a gradual confrontation with the existing building and provides visitors with a neutral emotional response.

Second segment: "Stay I Confrontation I History"

In the new memorial museum, situational learning is the main concept for the visiting exhibition. The location, the actors, exhibits and scenographic settings form the elements, the framework and the stages of situational settings. With the help of a new media guide, visitors are invited to actively engage with the respective historical situations, take up different positions and answer critical questions. Both on the grounds and in the exhibition rooms, they thus become investigators on the trail of situational events, whether in groups or as individual visitors, wandering between dialogues, contradictions and being actively involved in the discourse.

The former foundation hall - introduction to World War II:
The visitor is introduced to the content of the site and given both a physical and psychological introduction. An initial overview of the development of the history and historical context of the site is presented.

The former warehouse - relocation of Schindler's factory from Krakow to Brnenec:
Due to the lack of maintenance of the original storage rooms, a refurbishment of the building structure is necessary for further preservation. This intervention offers the opportunity to create neutral rooms in which exhibits can be placed. The focus lies on the construction of the Brnenec camp and the relocation of the Schindler Jews from Krakow. Individual biographies of the Schindler Jews are exhibited on the upper floor.

The former dye works - media hall:
Unlike the other buildings, the inserted textile hall from the 1960s is not historically charged. Thanks to this neutrality, it offers space for the projection of documentaries and the famous film "Schindler's List" by Steven Spielberg. The character of the industrial supporting structure and the dimensions of the hall intensify the experience of the film scenes and projections shown through sound and visuals.

Insight into the devotional room - Hortus Conclusus:
The transition from the media hall to the former production rooms provides a brief view of the prayer room.

The former production room for cartridge cases:
Thanks to the "space remains space"-principle, the former production hall is only furnished digitally. The analog space is curated purely through its historically untreated walls and ceiling. The floor as a neutral design element complements the existing structures around it. The original character is preserved and the temporality conserved.

The former spinning mill - Hortus Conclusus prayer room:
Due to the addition of the former dye works, it was necessary to insert a connecting link between the old production area and the dye works. The connecting structure was poorly executed due to rapid construction. The leaking saw-tooth roof with its glass skylights contributed to the growth of microorganisms and algae. The central location of this room in the middle of the conglomerate of individual building structures offers a place of escape, enclosed by four walls and open at the top, the prayer room is a place to contemplate and take a deep breath.

The former supply wing:
In the former supply wing, the health situation of the Schindler Jews in the camp at that time is thematized. The commitment of Emilie Schindler and her care for the forced laborers is also clearly emphasized, and as in the former camp rooms, neutral rooms are designed in which exhibits can be placed.

The former dormitory:
The "space remains space" principle means that the former dormitory is only furnished digitally. The analog room is curated purely through its historically raw walls and ceiling.The floor as a neutral design element complements the existing structures around it.The original character is preserved and the temporality conserved.This room represents the end of the tour, which can be exited via the original access staircase.

The former office building of the Schindler family:
The smallest of the three existing buildings was originally the Schindler family's office building. Oskar Schindler and his wife spent most of their time in this building when they were on site, and the house is dedicated to their biographies. The condition of the building is mostly intact, only the walls are being cleaned up inside and out and the roof is reconstructed.

The former SS administration building - open memorial echo room:
The partially collapsed, ruinous SS building will be completely gutted, leaving only the building envelope standing.The already missing roof and the structurally compromised condition of the interior structure contributed to the decision that reconstruction at this site is not appropriate or economical. The potential of the functional building envelope as a landscape fragment and relic represents a new space of tension. The gutting and uncovering of the interior is symbolic of the detachment from the violence of the SS, with only traces of foundations inside the shell hinting at former premises.

The historical bridge:
Walter Löw-Beer stood at this point on the Svitavy River in 1938, after the Munich Agreement had been signed the day before. As a result of the agreement, the borders of Czechoslovakia were moved and the area of Svitavy fell under the German occupation zone. On the other bank of the river opposite him stood German soldiers who asked him to come to their side of the river to discuss the agreement. If he had done so, they would have taken him to a concentration camp. He stood his ground and defended the area so that the German invasion could be postponed for three days and he and his Jewish family managed to escape. After their escape, the industrial area in Brünnlitz was occupied by the Germans. An information board is installed to show this context.


Third segment: "Conclusion I Lingering I Present"

Having stepped out of the exhibition and the memorial, visitors are given the opportunity to slowly disconnect from the content and spend time in rooms where they can, but do not have to, discuss what they have learned and seen. A place to linger is helpful in finding your way back to the present. In order to end completely in the present, the tour of the memorial is dedicated to the most recent period of the textile factory, in which the visitor can understand what happened to the site after the war.

The former combined heat and power plant - café:
Located in the middle of the northern area, the former combined heat and power plant is a structural high point that serves as a visitor information point and café in the redesigned area. The view of the memorial offers visitors a moment of reflection and contemplation as well as a chance to process what they have seen.The high point connects the memorial with the adjacent textile and creative area to the south.

The textile and creative area:
In the southern part of the historic northern area, a new textile and creative area is being created in the former industrial halls of the 1960s, where the former importance of the textile industry in this location is being reinterpreted and resettled. New creative, commercial, industrial and social-cultural spaces form a new town center for Brnenec.

Technical information

The architectural treatment of existing buildings represents a complex planning approach to the existing structure. In the case of buildings that have currently lost their function and are intended for reuse, a precise examination of the existing structure is required in order to ensure an honest exchange between old and new. This serves as an essential basis for every decision in the subsequent planning process, and building research provides important insights into the origins and history of a building. Not only the aesthetics, but also historically conditioned constructions or static, technical and craftsmanship qualities are to be worked out within the framework of building research.
The aim of this project is to map the three historic buildings from the NS era and to scientifically examine their materials, condition, statics and other aspects in order to ensure the best possible preservation of the existing structure.
All interior and exterior façades were mapped in detail and examined for their materials in a scientific material mapping process. In the plans provided, only the mapping of the exterior walls is shown as an excerpt from this work. It was determined that the following materials are present and can be worked with:

Brick masonry from 1820
Brick masonry from 1943
Brick masonry from 1960
Perforated brick masonry from1960
Quarry stone masonry
Tiles
Plaster layer
Lime plaster
Mortar layer
concrete


The planned construction of the memorial envisages preserving as much of the existing substance as possible and building on it. Incomplete brickwork will be extended with the same construction, but set off in color and with different brick dimensions to ensure a symbiosis, but not to cause a fusion. For reasons of building physics, the plaster will be removed, as it will peel off sooner or later and therefore preservation would not make sense - only in the former storage rooms in the east will the existing masonry be plastered with alkaline lime plaster, as this is more suitable due to its high alkalinity. In the entire existing building, all masonry joints will be extensively repaired to prevent further deterioration of the historic masonry and to close gaps.
As can be seen in the facade section, a new ceiling structure is planned under the prayer room to ensure extensive planting. For the media hall, textile elements will be added as cladding as well as window elements that can be darkened. For additional space for technology, a sustainable wooden stud wall is installed to provide an adjoining narrow room for cables and technology. A new roof ensures a weatherproof interior. A rainwater storage tank and several technical rooms and storage areas supply the building. In order to transport exhibits, a spacious freight elevator will be installed adjacent to the exhibition rooms. The entire exhibition is barrier-free.

Documentation

Show PDF 1Show PDF 2Show PDF 3Show PDF 4Show PDF 5Show PDF 6Show PDF 7Show PDF 8Show PDF 9Show PDF 10Show PDF 11Show PDF 12Show PDF 13Show PDF 14Show PDF 15Show PDF 16Show PDF 17Show PDF 18Show PDF 19Show PDF 20Show PDF 21Show PDF 22Show PDF 23Show PDF 24Show PDF 25Show PDF 26Show PDF 27Show PDF 28Show PDF 29Show PDF 30Show PDF 31Show PDF 32Show PDF 33Show PDF 34Show PDF 35Show PDF 36Show PDF 37Show PDF 38Show PDF 39Show PDF 40Show PDF 41Show PDF 42Show PDF 43Show PDF 44Show PDF 45Show PDF 46Show PDF 47Show PDF 48Show PDF 49Show PDF 50Show PDF 51Show PDF 52Show PDF 53Show PDF 54Show PDF 55Show PDF 56