Blame it on the Bauhaus? by Gail Tanzer

Author:Gail Tanzer
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: historical fiction
Publisher: Gail Tanzer
Published: 2022-08-10T00:00:00+00:00

Later in the day, one of Mies’ aides brought a note to each of us teachers announcing a required meeting in the theater for all students at 3:00PM. When I made the announcement to the class, the women groaned like they were going to the gallows. I didn’t blame them; this would not be an upbeat meeting. In the theater, I saw Ludwig sitting about seven rows ahead of me. Ertl and Bayer sat only three rows up. I glanced at them to see if they exchanged mischievous looks.

Mies stood by himself on the stage. When everyone sat down, he walked to the podium. “I am going to make this clear and simple, as hard as it may be to take. I think that by now you all know the bad news. The Dessau city council— with their new political party in the majority— voted to have us leave the Bauhaus.”

Everyone squirmed. Exclamations arose from a few students who probably hadn’t heard the news. Ertl and Bayer looked straight ahead, and I detected a smirk on their faces.

Mies cleared his throat and continued. “However, this is not completely the end of the Bauhaus. In the last couple of days, I have made numerous inquiries as to where we might create another Bauhaus. I’ve found a location in Berlin that’s acceptable to the Nazi party. However, the school’s name will have to change. The Nazis prefer to call it the ‘Freies Lehr- und Forschungsinstitut’ (Independent Institute of Teaching and Research).”

We sat still as stones. Does shock do that to you?

“The location I found is a factory in Berlin where they used to make phones. It can be re-purposed and, of course, improved by our excellent building department, but our budget will be very tight.” Mies didn’t seem to be the empathetic type, but he choked up as he continued, “I regret to say that we’ll have to let go of most of our students and a couple of the masters.”

I looked for Lilly Reich to gauge her reaction. She sat far ahead of me. Her head didn’t waiver. I’m sure she wasn’t surprised. Mies had probably told her all his plans.

A student had the courage to ask, “How will you decide who goes and who stays?”

Mies sighed deeply. “It will all be done based on seniority. Those who’ve been with us the longest will stay. Let me say this: even though most of you will not be able to earn your diplomas, you’ve all developed some degree of expertise in your field, depending on how long you’ve been here. You’ve studied under the greatest modern artists in the world. That should give you excellent credentials for wherever you seek work.”

He concluded, “We have three weeks to disassemble everything and move and then…” Mies looked like he wiped away a tear, “the city of Dessau can have their Bauhaus building back.”

Groans and tears sprung forth as the reality set in.

A student raised his hand and asked, “Why exactly did they vote to close us down?”

“I must be careful what I say.

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