At der Spiegel, an interview with Rem Koolhas on the topic of the disappearance of East Germany's buildings. It's (obviously) in German, but here are a few excerpts:
RK: ... when Germany was unified, in my opinion the tremendous potential of showing respect for the different cultural and social projects on both sides was thrown away. I am still very upset by the way that East German buildings are aggressively erased [his word is "extinguished"-h], especially when this happens in the name of History. It's absurd to eliminate the historical in the name of History.
Spiegel: How, in your opinion, did it come to this?
RK: It was due less to ignorance than to intolerance. There was a predominantly dogmatic way of looking at the city of Berlin, one which sought to rid the city of the remainders of the ideology that had been fought against in the Cold War. The dismantling of the Palace of the Republic was also an act of revenge for the dismantling of the (City) Palace by the Communists. For me, not saving the Palace of the Republic was a similar crime.
...
Spiegel: [what about the idea to rebuild the Hohenzollern's City Palace?]
RK: This is a sad idea at its core, but it has a lot of supporters. In Germany, the weight of history makes it difficult to make rational decisions. And naturally, the idea of reconstructing the City Palace is also an attempt to erase a historical epoch--and simultaneously to show the people in eastern Germany: your life was for nothing.
[via Ostblog.]
Posted by Heather at April 28, 2004 08:54 AM
Comments
I share his opinion and wrote about this a few months back in my own blog. http://www.livejournal.com/users/eternityfan/63475.html
Posted by: Melli at April 28, 2004 10:45 AM