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INVENTORY OF THE ERICH AND LUISE MENDELSOHN PAPERS, 1894-1992
880406
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Title: Erich and Luise Mendelsohn papers
Date (inclusive): 1894-1992
Number: 880406
Creator/Collector:
Mendelsohn, Erich, 1887-1953
Creator/Collector:
Mendelsohn, Luise, 1894-1980
Physical Description:
22.0 linear feet
(43 boxes, 2 flat file folders)
Repository:
The Getty Research Institute
Special Collections
1200 Getty Center Drive, Suite 1100
Los Angeles, California, 90049-1688
(310) 440-7390
Abstract: The archive, from the estate of Luise Mendelsohn, comprises the personal correspondence and documents of the Mendelsohn family.
Includes transcripts or originals of correspondence between Erich and Luise Mendelsohn (1910-1953) reflecting Erich Mendelsohn's
architectural, aesthetic, and political development. Other papers concern Erich's architectural legacy and include manuscripts
of Luise's unpublished autobiography and biographical notes on her husband, photographs of family life and architectural projects,
microfilm copies of typescripts and drawings, audiotapes of lectures, and five drawings by Erich's students.
Request Materials: Request access to the physical materials described in this inventory through the
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Language: Collection material is in German and English.
1887: Erich Mendelsohn is born on March 21st in the East Prussian town of Allenstein (now Olsztyn, Poland).
1907-1909: Begins his studies in national economics at the University of Munich; in 1909 transfers to the Technical University
in Berlin to begin his study of architecture, which he continues in Munich.
1910: Meets his future wife, Luise (Luise) Maas (born 1894), a young cellist.
1911-1914: Passes his final examination in architecture; designs costumes, stage sets, and window displays; begins his relationship
with the Expressionist artists Wassily Kandinsky, Franz Marc, Paul Klee, and Hugo Ball, and the astrophysicist Erwin Freundlich.
Marries Luise (Maas) Mendelsohn.
1915-1918: Volunteers for the Engineering Corps, serves at the Russian Front. Executes his first sketches for the Einstein
Tower. Birth of only child, Esther, on May 4, 1916.
1918-1922: Transferred to the Western Front in 1918. Returns to Berlin and opens his architectural firm; mounts his first
public exhibition "Architecture in Steel and Concrete," Paul Cassirer Gallery, Berlin, and executes his "Dune Architecture"
series and the Einstein Tower, Potsdam.
1923-1925: Lectures in Amsterdam, makes first trip to Palestine, the United States and Russia, and co-founds the Modern architecture
group, the "Ring."
1926-1929: Executes a series of major department stores, designs for competitions, and the Metal Workers' Union Administration
Building, Berlin.
1930-1932: Travels to Greece, Spain, England, and France. Executes the Columbus House, Berlin and becomes a member of the
Prussian Academy of Arts.
1933-1935: Leaves Germany for Holland, establishes "European Mediterranean Academy," forms a partnership with Serge Chermayeff
in England, and executes the De La Warr Pavilion, Bexhill, England, and Hebrew University, Jerusalem.
1936-1940: Executes several projects in Jerusalem, becomes a British citizen and volunteers for the British army.
1941-1945: Immigrates to the United States, lectures extensively, eventually settles in San Francisco and begins work on his
book, "Architecture in a Changing World, or a Philosophy of Architecture," and exhibits his work at the Museum of Modern Art,
New York.
1946-1948: Becomes a US citizen, executes several commissions, and is appointed lecturer in the Department of Architecture
at the University of California, Berkeley.
1949-1953: Executes architectural commissions in the US and dies in San Francisco on September 15, 1953.
1952: Publication of
Il contributo di Mendelsohn alla evoluzione dell'architettura moderna, by Mario Federico Roggero (Milan, 1952).
1954: Retrospective exhibition, "The Palestine Period in Erich Mendelsohn's Work," Milan Triennale.
1956: Publication of
Eric Mendelsohn, by Arnold Whittick (2nd ed., London, 1956; 1st ed. published 1940).
1960: International traveling exhibition, "100 Sketches," Venice Biennale, and publication of
Eric Mendelsohn, by Wolf von Eckardt (New York, 1960).
1967: Publication of
Eric Mendelsohn: letters of an architect, Oskar Beyer, ed., with introduction by Nikolaus Pevsner (London, 1967).
1968: International traveling exhibition organized by the Verein Deutsches Bauzentrum, and Akademie der Künste.
1969: Exhibition, "The Drawing of Eric Mendelsohn," University Art Museum, Berkeley, CA.
1970: Publication of
Erich Mendelsohn: opera completa, by Bruno Zevi (Milan, 1970) with biographical notes by Luise Mendelsohn.
1975: Sale of the Erich Mendelsohn collection of drawings and manuscripts to the Kunstbibliothek, Berlin.
1980: Death of Luise Mendelsohn, San Francisco, CA.
Open for use by qualified researchers.
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Erich and Luise Mendelsohn papers, 1894-1992, The Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles, Accession no. 880406.
Acquired in several acquisitions in 1988 from the estate of Luise Mendelsohn.
The Erich and Luise Mendelsohn papers (880406) comprise materials from the Luise Mendelsohn papers (880398) and the Erich
Mendelsohn papers (880406), together with five smaller acquisitions. The archive was processed and described by Scott Wolf
in December, 1996. In September 2009 item counts were added to the container list for boxes 3-6.
Scope and Content of Collection
The Erich and Luise Mendelsohn Papers include personal family correspondence, photographs, and documents from the estate of
Luise Mendelsohn, spanning the period from her early correspondence with Erich Mendelsohn in 1910 until her death in 1980.
Materials include letters and manuscripts by Luise Mendelsohn, her personal diaries, autobiography and correspondence with
scholars concerning exhibitions and publications on her late husband. Her personal correspondence with Erich Mendelsohn provides
rare insights into his architectural projects and his views on modern art. The papers of Luise Mendelsohn demonstrate how
she managed her late husband's architectural estate and maintained a broad correspondence with leading architectural historians.
This material also documents her contribution to architecture, in particular her support for a national museum dedicated to
modern architecture - a notion she credited to her husband.
Individuals represented in the Mendelsohn Papers include: Felix Ben Ari, Oskar Beyer, Ralph Beyer, William Bruck, Wolf von
Eckardt, Walter Gropius, Marianne Hahn, Hugo Häring, Armin Hermann, Richard Hunter, Erich (Eric) Mendelsohn, Luise Mendelsohn,
Maria Luise Esther Mendelsohn, Lewis Mumford, Dione Neutra, Victoria Ocampo, Ariel Parkinson, Thomas S. Politis, Giovanni
Ponti, Julius Posener, Nikolaus Posener, Mario Federico Roggero, Hans Scharoun, Hans Schiller, Joost Schmidt, Salmann Schocken,
Henry van de Velde, Arthur Voyce, H. Th. Wijdeveld, Arnold Wittick, Bruno Zevi.
The Erich and Luise Mendelsohn Papers are organized in 11 series.
Series I. Correspondence and manuscripts, Erich and Luise Mendelsohn, 1910-1953
Series II. Family correspondence and documents, 1903-1992
Series III. Manuscripts, lectures, and publications by Erich Mendelsohn, 1919-1955
Series IV. Collected documentation, articles, and publications about Erich Mendelsohn, 1924-1992
Series V. Correspondence and printed material related to exhibitions on Erich Mendelsohn, 1942-1980
Series VI. Luise Mendelsohn correspondence, 1924-1980, bulk 1953
Series VII. Luise Mendelsohn travel diaries, biography of Erich Mendelsohn and autobiography, 1934-1980
Series VIII. Disposal of the Erich Mendelsohn archive, 1966-1987
Series IX. Family and architectural photographs, 1894-1988
Series X. Audio and video recordings, microfilm and slides, 1952-1980
Series XI. Architectural drawings and exhibition poster, 1950, 1978
Feininger, Lyonel, 1871-1956
Gropius, Walter, 1883-1969
Kandinsky, Wassily, 1866-1944
Le Corbusier, 1887-1965
Lissitzky, El, 1890-1941
Mendelsohn, Erich, 1887-1953
Mendelsohn, Luise, 1894-1980
Mies van der Rohe, Ludwig, 1886-1969
Neutra, Richard Joseph, 1892-1970
Oud, J. J. P. (Jacobus Johannes Pieter), 1890-1963
Picasso, Pablo, 1881-1973
Poelzig, Hans, 1869-1936
Velde, Henry van de, 1863-1957
Wagner, Otto, 1841-1918
Worringer, Wilhelm, 1881-1965
Wright, Frank Lloyd, 1867-1959
Architectural criticism
Architecture, Modern--20th century
Architecture, Modern--Exhibitions
Expressionism (Art)
Futurism (Art)
Neo-impressionism (Art)
Asia--Description and travel
Europe--Description and travel
Presidio of San Francisco (Calif.)
Soviet Union--Description and travel
United States--Description and travel
Architectural drawings (visual works)
Audiocassettes
Diaries
Photographic prints
Photographs, Original
Sketchbooks
Videocassettes
Watercolors
Beyer, Oskar, b. 1882
Eckardt, Wolf von, 1918-1995
Hahn, Marianne
Hunter, Richard M.
Maas, Rosa, 1858-1941
Meier, Günter
Mendelsohn, Esther
Mumford, Lewis, 1895-1990
Pevsner, Nikolaus, 1902-1983
Ponti, Gio, 1891-1979
Posener, Julius
Roggero, Mario Federico
Velde, Henry van de, 1863-1957
Whittick, Arnold, 1898-1986
Wijdeveld, H. Th., 1885-1987
Zevi, Bruno, 1918-2000