Max Berg (17 April 1870 – 22 January 1947) was a German
architect
An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...
and
urban planner
An urban planner (also known as town planner) is a professional who practices in the field of town planning, urban planning or city planning.
An urban planner may focus on a specific area of practice and have a title such as city planner, tow ...
.
Biography
Berg was born in Stettin (now
Szczecin
Szczecin ( , , ; ; ; or ) is the capital city, capital and largest city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland. Located near the Baltic Sea and the Poland-Germany border, German border, it is a major port, seaport, the la ...
, Poland) in
Pomerania
Pomerania ( ; ; ; ) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The central and eastern part belongs to the West Pomeranian Voivodeship, West Pomeranian, Pomeranian Voivod ...
, then part of the
German Empire
The German Empire (),; ; World Book, Inc. ''The World Book dictionary, Volume 1''. World Book, Inc., 2003. p. 572. States that Deutsches Reich translates as "German Realm" and was a former official name of Germany. also referred to as Imperia ...
. He attended the
Technische Hochschule
A ''Technische Hochschule'' (, plural: ''Technische Hochschulen'', abbreviated ''TH'') is a type of university focusing on engineering sciences in Germany. Previously, it also existed in Austria, Switzerland, the Netherlands (), and Finland (, ) ...
in
Charlottenburg
Charlottenburg () is a Boroughs and localities of Berlin, locality of Berlin within the borough of Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf. Established as a German town law, town in 1705 and named after Sophia Charlotte of Hanover, Queen consort of Kingdom ...
(today
Technische Universität Berlin
(TU Berlin; also known as Berlin Institute of Technology and Technical University of Berlin, although officially the name should not be translated) is a public university, public research university located in Berlin, Germany. It was the first ...
), where he was taught by
Carl Schäfer who favoured
Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture is an architectural style that was prevalent in Europe from the late 12th to the 16th century, during the High Middle Ages, High and Late Middle Ages, surviving into the 17th and 18th centuries in some areas. It evolved f ...
. Berg was also taught by
Franz Adickes (1846–1915), an important urban planner.
In 1909 Berg was appointed senior building official in Breslau (now
Wrocław
Wrocław is a city in southwestern Poland, and the capital of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. It is the largest city and historical capital of the region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the Oder River in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Eu ...
, Poland), in
Silesia
Silesia (see names #Etymology, below) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Silesia, Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at 8, ...
. His most notable contribution to architecture is the Jahrhunderthalle (
Centennial Hall) built between 1911 and 1913 as part of a series of works commemorating the 100th anniversary of the
1813 War of Liberation against
Napoleon Bonaparte
Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...
.
The Hall, an important early landmark of European reinforced concrete buildings, survived World War II, and in 2006 was designated a
UNESCO World Heritage Site
World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...
.
Other works in
Breslau (Wrocław) include the market hall (a huge concrete structure of elliptical arches, but appearing more traditional externally) and a large office building on the SW corner of the
Main Market Square.
In 1925, the year he retired from his architectural career for Christian mysticism, Berg moved to
Berlin
Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
and then to
Baden-Baden
Baden-Baden () is a spa town in the states of Germany, state of Baden-Württemberg, south-western Germany, at the north-western border of the Black Forest mountain range on the small river Oos (river), Oos, ten kilometres (six miles) east of the ...
, where he died in 1947, aged 76.
See also
*
References
Literature
* Iwona Bińkowska, Marzena Smolak, ''Nieznany portret miasta.'' Wrocław 1997.
* Jerzy Ilkosz, Beate Störtkuhl (eds.), ''Wieżowce Wrocławia 1919–1932.'' Wrocław 1997, .
* Jerzy Ilkosz: ''Die Jahrhunderthalle und das Ausstellungsgelände in Breslau. Das Werk Max Bergs.'' München 2006, .
* Otto Schubert, "Berg, Max Paul Eduard". In ''Neue Deutsche Biographie'' (NDB). vol. 2, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1955, , S. 75 f. (Digitalisat).
* Eckhard Wendt: ''Stettiner Lebensbilder'' (= ''Veröffentlichungen der Historischen Kommission für Pommern.'' Reihe V, Band 40). Böhlau, Köln/Weimar/Wien 2004, , S. 56–57.
External links
*
**
biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Berg, Max
1870 births
1947 deaths
People from Szczecin
19th-century German architects
Concrete pioneers
People from the Province of Pomerania
Technische Universität Berlin alumni
20th-century German architects