GÜTTLER,
BLOBEL AND RUSSELL IN FAVOUR OF HISTORIC NEUMARKT - PRESS RELEASE Translation from German into English |
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INTERNATIONAL
PROJECT FOR THE TRADITIONAL
"What we want"
by
Hans Joachim Heihardt Proposals
from Robert Adams Architects We can recommend the website of the
Society for the Recreation of Historical Neumarkt Dresden. They have a
version in English.
The number of our registered members has
increased from 24 to 181 during the last nine months. The average age is
48 years, which is comparatively low. This means that our association is
younger and only a few of our members have experienced the old Neumarkt
before it was destroyed. Luckily Gunter Just’s expressed opinion, that
older people from Dresden in particular wanted to recreate historic image
of the tram outside Frauenkirche, was thus refuted. The worldwide charm of our association is to be
seen in the origin of our members from different parts of Germany and
Europe, but also from Japan, Australia, Namibia, the USA and Canada. The
fact that many of them come due to their academic or artistic work does
not mean a lack in resonance of this colourful citizenship. Not only a
clear expression of will in the public sector, but also the inquiry of DNN
of the autumn of 1999 and of the newspaper BILD of January 2000, with now
and again approximately 80 and 91 per cent approval from the population in
Dresden respectively to our concept. About our aims: Poorly informed architects and
journalists always attack us with groundless insinuations like the claim
that we wanted to build ”camuflaged fronts” with ”empathic
ornaments” and ”reject the spirit of the times.” What is true is
that we do not have any other goals than that of an expansion of the fixed
25 reconstruction projects of the town planning office on about one third
of all houses due to growing knowledge of documented condition of each
building during the latest years, which makes it possible. (However, as a
result of achievement of the volunteers that mainly consist of young
architects, art historians and monument caretakers of our association!) We
agree with officer in charge of construction, Gunter Just, who recently
said that he had nothing against 100 reconstructed Neumarkt houses. We
agree with his statement that our understanding hardly divorces only by
different stressing. In this we see the basis of a future cooperation on
our common cause. By the replies to be put up it concerns
scientific reconstruction, as in the old times, especially after the last
war of total extermination in all Europe, e.g. in Dresden by Zwinger,
Semper-Oper, Frauenkirche, Kanzleihaus (tribunal house) and Coselpalais.
Here architects of Dresden like Prof. Bürger, Dombaumeister Donath (Kanzleihaus),
Dr. Schöfer from Büro Kaplan (Coselpalais) and even a Already next year the scaffold of the lower
house body of Frauenkirche will fall. Then it will become obvious how
strongly the baroche central building demands its historic environment.
The 2005 finished traditional picture in Frauenkirche of Elbfront awakens
an attitude of expectation in all parts of the world, which cries for an
opportunity to fill the frame in question, to let the famous city
silhouette become not just a front, but also to recover the background, as
historic town and new, old citizen town. In this case this concerns only a
minority of the houses which are to be rebuilt, and even this small
segment of our city offers architects a lot of freedom in framing during
the symbiotic construction. Finally understood and looked upon as an
important partner we represent the foundation in order to promote the
reconstruction of Frauenkirche, whose board already by the end of December
decided the following on an unanimous vote, so phrased by one committee
under the leadership of Prof. Magirius. (Document 1) We agree on this statement. With this word,
which many has waited for for a long time, has the promotion organisation
Frauenkirche positioned the historic Neumarkt with its 6 000 members as a
strong and allied member of our association. Such partnerships offer
mutual benefits, and we are convinced that
they will win friends and symphatizers all over the world through
our common cause, as the historic Frauenkirche and the historic Neumarkt
belong together. Prof. Ludwig Güttler told us in this connection: ”The
reconstructed Frauenkirche only makes sense in its historic environment.”
A different point of view in front of the thousands of promoters of all
parts of the world is not to be justified. We thank Prof. Güttler and the
board for this clear word. Mrs. Ingrid Biedenkopf, a symphesizer as well,
is in favour of catching up with the advising potential of our association
in future as a support of the town management in this difficult process of
changing. We are willing and pass this request from Mrs. Biedenkopf
further on to Mr.Just, the planning committee and the shape commission
Neumarkt. But of great importance, because it belong to
all parts of the world, is foreign approval of the Precident of the most
important foreign Frauenkirche-Promotionassociations Dr. Alan Russel from
”Dresden Trust” of Great Britain and Prof. Dr. Günter Blobel from
”Friends of Dresden” from the USA for the (Document 2) This letter of one of our greatest benefactors
of the town does not need any more comments. – ”People from Dresden
have lost so much” – the architect Günter Behnisch claimed last year,
who is well-known internationally for modern construction of high quality
– ”let them rebuild a piece at Neumarkt!” And this, dear friends, is
what we are going to do. Translation from German into English GESELLSCHAFT HISTORISCHER NEUMARKT DRESDEN E.V. Hans Joachim Heidhardt WHAT WE WANT The foundation Gesellschaft Neumarkt Dresden e.V.
was founded in the spring of 1999
by a group of architects, historians, monument caretakers, art historians,
lawyers and other engaged citizens, who are convinced that: The
reconstructed Frauenkirche and the reconstructed Neumarkt belong together.
We therefore understand ourselves as partners and neccessary interest
group of the association to promote the rebuilding of Frauenkirche. To us
the thought of the rebuilt Frauenkirche is connected with the neccessary
imagination that its immediate visible environment should be rebuilt as
near as possible to the old Neumarkt. With the visibility of the historic Neumarkt
through thorough reconstruction (the limited notion has to be discussed)
– its old structures and street fronts inclusive its roof environment
could – and this is the one and only chance for this town – Dresden
win back its old historic heart as center of the citizen town.
It is therefore more important as the Altmarkt is lost and Dresden
city center will be rebuilt in a modern way. The foundation will give the many citizens of
Dresden and the friends of our town a voice, which refuses a free play
with modern construction ideas at the feet of Frauenkirche, who is worried
that wrong trend will continue, which places the wrong signals of
potential master builders in the historic center with the
”Advanta-Riegel” beside Zwinger and the weak shape of the architecture
at the southern side of Altmarkt. To our horror it is now planned to
rebuild the 300 houses of Neumarkt in a modern way, exclusive 15
reconstructed head buildings, which with less steel and glas may appear
old-fashioned to the ”beautiful, new world”. We, on the other hand, are in favour of a
different and today realistic concept. We want the general view of the old
Neumarkt to be rebuilt as one of the most beautiful old-town-centers of
Europe through an archeologic reconstruction of 70 to 80 documented, art
historic valuable old Bürgerhauses (civil houses) through plans, sketches,
original finding grounds and photos. Thus there will also be room for
careful shapes of modern construction in the symbiosis from old
reconstructed and modern elements. Sceptics ask: Who is going to pay the
bill? Who will use it? Are there any investors? We take this kind of
questions seriously, but look upon them as superficial and mean that they
have to recede into the background of the town rebuilding and culture
political centurial decision to win an unique cultural property. In the
meantime we have had We should not lose our unique chance to win back
a piece of historic identity of the town citizens through Neumarkt, for
our children’s and grandchildren’s sake. Let us give the new old
Frauenkirche its old environment, which also sets a aesthetic standard! We
must be consequent! We should let the beautiful inner city between
the rebuilt Residenzschloss (Residence palace) with its stable, the
rebuilt Kanzleihaus (tribunal house), the rebuilt Frauenkirche, the
rebuilt Coselpalais and the rebuilt Kurländer Palais have the historic
flair of Neumarkt back, which turns this city into a whole. To build provokingly modern is today possible in
most parts of Dresden and also wanted. On this half quadrat kilometer only
should architects not be given free hands, but consider themselves as
humble servants in a historic context. ”The citizens of Dresden have
lost so much ” – the famous architect Günter Behnisch claimed some
months ago – ”let them rebuild a piece at Neumarkt!”. We are
convinced that most of the population in Dresden want it this way and that
the citizen’s wish also will dominate in reconstruction of its historic
environment – as by the decision of the rebuilding of Frauenkirche ten
years ago. Declaration was made at an annual board meeting
in 1999 in the foundation, which is responsible of the rebuilding of
Dresdner Frauenkirche. |
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A
Vision of Europe |
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