Isaac Robert Toussie: Pardon Me But Did Somebody Mention The Reichstag?

The Reichstag, with its dedication of “dem Deutschen Volke” (meaning “to the German People” or “for the German People”), was the original home of German democracy, submits Isaac Robert Toussie. Fittingly, it was seriously damaged by World War II and left in a dilapidated state until the 1960s when the structure was used as a run-of-the-mill conference center, with its dome demolished and its historic interiors simply plastered over with asbestos paneling.

Triumphantly reverting to its role as the center of German parliamentary procedure with Reunification in 1990, plans were set in motion to restore its former architectural glory. An international design competition was held two years later, and it was during the second phase of selection that the internationally well regarded firm of Norman Foster was chosen in 1993 to work on the famous landmark. No mere rehabilitation, the winning concept called for a rethinking of what it means to concentrate power when democracy has been about the diffusion of power. Interestingly in this respect, the avant-garde artists Christo and Jean-Claude literally wrapped up the entire building in white cloth as so-called environmental art in 1995, which piece was titled Wrapped Reichstag.

During this time, work began that soon revealed traces of the past, somewhat in the manner of tree-rings that tell of famine, flood, or fire, such as nineteenth-century molding, imprints of the war, and graffiti by Soviet soldiers, in addition to what was left by builders from work done in the Sixties. It was then decided that such traces of the past should be left in place but somehow incorporated into the redesign to reflect the tumultuous career of German democracy, preserving them and making them distinguishable from one another to illustrate German history for visitors and legislators alike. The building was to be, in effect, a living museum of Germany itself, submits Isaac Toussie.

Four guiding principles informed the design from the very beginning, however: the importance of the Bundestag as a parliamentary forum (the building itself is known as the Reichstag but the institution debating within became the more democratic-sounding “Bundestag”); maximum transparency and public accessibility to the workings of government; extreme regard for the importance of history; rigorous environmental friendliness and sustainability. Thus, for example, all new construction has been made of glass so that the internal activities of government should be visible, and the building supplies much of its own heat and electricity through the use of solar panels and other such renewable forms of energy. It is without doubt a very significant piece of German Architecture says Isaac Toussie.

This writing has been posted merely for human interest-informational purposes only and should not be relied upon in any way by the reader.

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