Główne atrium, fot. Eva Kroecher, wikimedia, CC 2.0

Colourful brick expressionism in a Frankfurt factory

The Hoechst AG Technical Administration Building in Frankfurt is an excellent example of the unique German style of the 1920s. Architect Peter Behrens designed the office building according to the then new brick expressionism, which used bricks to create dynamic and ornate forms. From the outside, the Behrens-bau office building offers a subdued but varied façade complete with a large clock. The interior of the building, on the other hand, looks like a colourful canyon made of bricks. Remarkably, the fabulous office building survived the war and is still used as a headquarters today.

Expression of brick

The beginnings of the modernist movement in Europe can be seen even before the First World War, but it was the 1920s that allowed the new architecture to demonstrate its full potential. In Germany, modernism developed through the Bauhaus school with its emphasis on functionalism and the repetition of interesting forms. Significantly, the early modernists often rejected the need for classical ornamentation, which, however, did not always involve the creation of simple designs.

Brick Expressionism showed that classic red brick could create even the most impressive shapes. The dynamic forms of this style were mainly adopted in the industrial areas of Germany and the Netherlands because of their durability and low construction cost. A good example of brick expressionism is the Chilenhaus in Hamburg, which is a large, ornate and above all functional office building that still serves successive tenants today.

Industrial visionary

Peter Behrens was experimenting with modernist factory architecture even before the Great War. The AEG turbine factory, for example, of his design is an austere, utilitarian building that has become a model for the modern factory. Such a description would not be surprising if it were not for the fact that the factory was built in 1909. After the war, Behrens continued to experiment with industrial architecture, but this time his designs became colourful and ornate, and their forms were delightfully expressive. An opportunity to test the architect’s new ideas was a commission from the Hoechst AG chemical company in the industrial town of Höchst, near Frankfurt. Interestingly, a well-known invention of the company is the fluorescent and toxic dye of the same name.

The Behrens office building (Behrens-bau) is a display of the architect’s industrial fantasy. After all, the building could have been another simple industrial “box” or a historicising office building, yet the final design relies on coloured bricks. The façade draws attention to itself through three important elements.

Firstly, the large dark tower with its large metal clock sets the factory apart from the other buildings in the industrial park. Although clock towers in factories were common, few towers can match the one in the Behrens-bau. In addition, stepped serpentine frames span over the large windows and openings. Secondly, the brick jigsaw of dark and slightly lighter bricks creates simple but aesthetically pleasing patterns. Thirdly, the characteristic connecting bridge with its arch stretching over the street is reminiscent of solutions from lavish townhouses. An interesting detail of the connecting bridge is a small bay window.

photo by Eva Kroecher, wikimedia, CC 2.0
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Brick canyon

A low ceiling stretches along corridors from the entrance to the main atrium. The 15-metre high room is an unexpected and delightful display of the creativity of industrial architecture. Colourful columns made of clinker bricks rise upwards, which with their colours create a kind of artificial canyon. Shades of red, blue, yellow form tapering downwards, regular columns holding three large octagon-shaped skylights. Also noticeable on the sides are the subsequent floors of the building.

The office building also has its own exhibition hall, which currently houses a sculpture depicting a worker. In the past, the dye manufacturing part of Hoechst AG – I.G Farben presented its products there, so the exhibition hall had to be large and well-lit. Light streaming in through large windows illuminates the colourful hall, whose columns are made of green brick and whose floor is arranged in geometric shapes. The architect has spread such puzzles over almost the entire building. Interestingly, there was previously a memorial in the hall honouring the fallen of the Great War.

Corridors lined with dark panelling lead to the rest of the rooms. It is also worth looking at the glazed bricks of the floor, which are arranged in both herringbone and concrete geometric figures. Peter Behrens paid attention to small details such as handmade doorknobs or modernist lamps. Another interesting element is the paternoster (Our Father) lift, in which open cabins circulate in a loop along a chain.

Main atrium, photo by Eva Kroecher, wikimedia, CC 2.0

The dark past

The last rooms of interest are the marble hall and the auditorium. The marble hall was formerly a meeting room and gets its name from the travertine panels. Importantly, the white travertine resembles marble. From the marble hall, one could walk into the two-storey auditorium, where chemical experiments were presented on a brick platform. The walls of the auditorium were originally lined with intricate panelling, but an incendiary bomb that fell on the auditorium during the Second World War destroyed the original decorations. The post-war reconstruction was carried out in a simpler style.

After the war, I.G Farben was split into several minor companies and then handed back to the Germans. Although the building in Höchst was not the company’s headquarters, it is also worth mentioning the actions and fate of I.G Farben’s central management. Members of the management were convicted in Nuremberg for using slave labour and testing drugs on concentration camp inmates. Their explanation was supposed to be top-down coercion. As the German criminals were not properly held to account after the war, the executives sentenced to a short prison term either returned to work at the new I.G Farben or received lavish payouts. To make matters worse, I.G Farben was also the manufacturer of Zyklon B.

The Frankfurt Technical Administration Building of Hoechst AG is now the headquarters of one of the company’s successors. The building underwent a major renovation in the late 1990s and Behrens’ legacy is still admired today. His ingenuity and brick expression was a breath of fresh air in the architecture of office and industrial buildings. The colourful brick canyon of the main atrium is an aesthetic masterpiece done at low cost.

Source: Viefalt der moderne

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