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A23 - The white city Bauhaus architecture


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The Bauhaus style is a trend of modernist architecture that prevailed in the 1930-1960s. It was originally born in Germany but soon became widespread throughout the world. Its founders were Walter Gropius, Peter Behrens, and Hans Hopp. Among the most famous representatives are Le Corbusier, Mies van der Rohe, Jacobus Aud, and some others.

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Polo Polotsky (author)
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11.98 km
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2h 11 m
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9 Gordon St., Tel Aviv-Yafo –

This building was built in 1935 in International Style following plans by architect Dov Carmeli. The building, occupying two adjacent lots, contains two stairways sharing a single entrance lobby. The façades are minimalistic and clean; the interiors are spacious and have high ceilings.

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St. Ruppin 12 For those familiar with the recognizable design of Israel’s residential blocks, the architecture of Kiriyaty House on Ruppin Street may not immediately impress. However, the simple symmetry of the building spanning three blocks has been highlighted by the architect, Shmuel Mistazkin, for being one of the closest buildings in the city to truly embody the Bauhaus spirit, its horizontal balconies, and vertical stairwells perfectly emphasizing the careful geometrical proportions. Mistazkin is one of the last of the 1930s Bauhaus architects still active in Tel Aviv, and a well-circulated story tells of his entrance exam to Bauhaus University in Germany, during which he was instructed to make something useful with a piece of cloth. He fashioned a rope and claimed its purpose was to hang himself if his admittance exam was unsuccessful. As his prolific architectural output is a testament to, he never did have occasion to use it!

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Tel Aviv’s most unusual Bauhaus renovation is the fusion of original architecture with a spectacular high-rise structure, at 96 Hayarkon Street. The iconic original was built by Pinhas Bizonsky in 1935, shaped in a symmetrical ‘H’ structure, with beautifully curved balconies along the protruding ‘legs’ and arresting clean lines across the straight central wing. The impressive building has housed many an important cultural and political figure and is now under the ownership of entrepreneurs Shlomo Grofman and Zalman Shoval, each with their own connection to this piece of historic real estate. The new, ultra-modern addition towers at nine floors-high, above the original Bauhaus architecture that has been so meticulously renovated and reconstructed. The lobby of this outstanding building regularly hosts art exhibitions, celebrating the ongoing developments in the Israel design world. Another of Bizonsky’s creations is the more humble Reuven Rubin House, also now home to a permanent art collection.

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Frishman 35 In contrast to the private homes designed for the bourgeois emigrés, the Hod Workers’ Residence, designed by Arieh Sharon, himself from a socialist kibbutz upbringing in Palestine, was constructed with the ideology of the labour movement in mind. The concept of the commune building, and its physical manifestation on Frishman Street, encapsulate all the Bauhaus values of functionality, simplicity, universalism and equality. The building itself is more minimalist in style than other Bauhaus examples in the city, and consists of a long continuous structure around a courtyard and common garden. The apartment block’s original designation included a ground floor containing a dedicated social space, a kindergarten, reading rooms, a general store, a doctor’s clinic, and other essential communal spaces. Arieh Sharon inherited his commitment to ‘social architecture’ not only from his kibbutz but also from the social architect Hannes Meyer, under whom he studied at the Bauhaus University, before returning to make his mark on his homeland.

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st Frug 5 Down Frug Street lies the distinctive and aptly named Thermometer House, built by Yehuda Liolka. The peculiar slatted openings along the inside stairwell were an embellishment designed not for the aesthetic interest, but, of course, for functionality, allowing light to stream onto the staircase during daytime hours so as to preserve electricity by making the best use of natural light. The architect has also paid careful consideration to climate sensitivities and provided raised banisters along the balcony protrusions, serving both as a banister and as a much-needed shade for this social space, used throughout the day by residents.

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St. Ben Ami 14 This arc-shaped public building was designed with both careful purpose and creativity by Joseph Neufield. The façade reflects the function of each floor, from the sterile minimalist design of the laboratories and medicine store of the lowest two floors, to the slightly embellished, a deeper color of the upper floor, highlighting the importance of the management level. Unlike the plain white plaster characteristic of many Bauhaus buildings, the exterior of the center is coated with four different types, the colors working through white, a dusty sandstone and a pale rust. The building is striking in its novelty, and yet succeeds in channeling design principles through the more recognizable, shiny white, minimalist structures.

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The square, built in 1934, was part of the original urban plan by Sir Patrick Geddes, and was designed by architect Genia Averbuch. The idea to build a parking lot under the square went unrealized, and instead, a roundabout was fashioned around the square, at its center a garden with a fountain and shady seating areas. For decades the square was a popular location and one of the landmarks of Tel Aviv's historic "White City."

The square is a circular plaza and has been a focal point of Tel Aviv since its establishment in the 1930s, its location in the very heart of Tel Aviv being one of the reasons. Dizengoff Square is named for Zina (Tzina), the wife of Tel Aviv's first mayor, Meir Dizengoff. Its original 1930s design was called "the Étoile of Tel Aviv" due to the form of the square - a roundabout at the meeting of six streets.

Dizengoff Square at the Start of Renovations (January 2017)

The same spot as it stands in June 2018 In 2016 Tel Aviv municipality decided to bring the square back to its original design and move it back to the street level, causing a public controversy.[7]

The works on demolishing the heightened square began on January 8, 2017, and a ground-level road, similar in layout to the underpass under the heightened square, was opened on January 18. At that point, work began on tiling the sidewalk rim and paving a permanent circular road. The circular road, which maintains the second square's traffic directions, was opened – though in an unfinished state – on October 30, with the interchange-style road being closed, and demolished a day later to allow work on the third square's core to begin.

On June 2, 2018, all roadworks on the Third square's circular road were completed: its remaining closed section, running from Reines St. to Dizengoff St., was opened, and the crosswalks were brought closer to the square's core.

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A seven minute walk down the bustling Allenby St., heading west to Bialik St., a cove of architectural gems await. At the end of the picturesque cobblestone street lays the epicenter of the Bialik Square complex—Tel Aviv’s first town hall. The Beit Ha’ir, as well as the adjacent structures, are part of UNESCO’s White City world heritage sites and are a prime example of Tel Aviv’s unique take on the international style, with a mix of Bauhaus architecture and local motifs. Initially destined to be a hotel, Beit Ha’ir was designed by Moshe Cherner.

On the other side of the Bialek Square lies Tel Aviv’s Bauhaus Museum—not to be confused with the Bauhaus Center on Dizengoff. This museum sits on the ground floor of a classic international style building erected in 1934. Entrance to the museum is free, and it’s well worth a visit, but beware: it’s open only twice a week, on Wednesdays (11 a.m-5 p.m) and Fridays (10 a.m-2 p.m).

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Right next door is the short-lived home of Israel’s national poet, Haim Nahman Bialik. The Bialik House sits along the eponymous street and square and the great poet had the strange honor of living in a house and street that were named after him—with both bearing his name from the onset. Despite the best efforts by the municipality, the Hebrew wordsmith hated living in the city as the house became a site of pilgrimage for fans, and he quickly converted it to a cultural center and moved to the neighboring city of Ramat Gan, though city hall denied it for years. Built in 1925 by Joseph Minor, a student of Alexander Baerwald (who is best known for designing the Technion University campus in Haifa), the building is considered a classic example of the Hebrew style of architecture. Its interior is inspired by the arts and crafts movement and the structure also includes a tower, exquisite outdoor terraces, domes, pointed-arch windows and extensive tilework replicating the designs of Ze’ev Raban—an architectural trailblazer who studied at the Bezalel school, which forms the bedrock of Israel’s art and design scene.

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The Rubin House is the former residence of one Israel’s most famous early artists, Reuven Rubin. He was a Romanian-born painter who and leader of the first generation of Israeli artists to graduate from Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in Jerusalem, and spearheaded the Eretz Yisrael artistic style. The museum came about after Rubin himself signed an agreement in 1974 with the mayor at the time, shortly before he died, bequeathing his home. It’s a great way to see how art and architecture can mesh in this truly cultural city.

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65 Sheinkin St., Tel Aviv-Yafo – The Rubinsky House The year 1935 saw the beginning of the planning process of an impressive, modernist structure for Mr. Eliezer Rubinsky by the architects L. Kranowski and E. Marcusfeld (whose signatures appear on the plans); no documents were found regarding the involvement of architect Lucian Korngold (to whom the planning is attributed, probably erroneously). However, this fact does not detract from the building being one of the most important and prominent buildings in the International Style in Tel Aviv. The approval of these plans was accompanied by a struggle familiar to us from the Engel House (84 Rothschild St., planned by Zeev Rechter), due to the Tel Aviv Municipality’s initial objection to building on pillars; once it was persuaded to do so, the city even required that all the buildings built in Tel Aviv from the late 1930’s on be built on pillars. The building was erected as a residential building with spacious apartments and a luxurious lobby. However, it became well-known for the design of its different and distinct façades (facing Gilboa and Sheinkin streets). The whole building is coated with ground plaster (Kratzputz) with a sparkling mineral additive typical of the period and constituting one of the building’s identifying marks. This building attests to the fact that International Style architects in Tel Aviv used to decorate their buildings with modern-style decorations, something that went completely against the spirit of the Bauhaus founders and of the period. One may notice the awnings, the round windows, rounded terraces, hanging concrete beams and gutters serving more as ‘decorations’ than fulfilling some practical function.

Sderot Rothschild 14 A residential building whose horizontal lines flow from the vertical stairwell windows to both facades, characterized by its strong pattern of balconies and windows. Its overhanging roof and the use of different plaster finishes emphasize the horizontal lines.

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Sderot Rothschild 71 One of the most visually pleasing buildings is Ze’ev Rechter’s Krieger House on Rothschild Boulevard. Built in 1934, its lines are clean and controlled, and its distinctive features are the enveloping sunken balconies, which create dark recesses at defined places on the bright surface. The building itself has been carefully renovated by the Krieger family into a boutique hotel, preserving some of the original interior features, and sustaining the light and uplifting feel of the Bauhaus design.

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Maze 27 This building was originally designed by Josef and Ze'ev Berlin in 1931 as a three-story residential house. Its design combines elements typical of the International Style, such as elongated horizontal balconies and a continuous vertical stairwell window – made of metal and divided into rectangles – as well as formal elements.

In the 1950s, at the municipality's demand, the entire building was coated in sprayed stucco and the stairwell window was dismantled and sealed, gravely damaging the building's appearance.

The original facade was reconstructed according to photographic documentation. Two floors were added, one of which is set back from the facade.

A horizontal band of windows on the new fourth floor is in dialogue with the verticality of the reconstructed stairwell window – which has retaken its proper place in the overall design since the building extension's stairwell is situated in the rear of the building.

Strauss 3 Originally designed by Architect: Ze’ev Haller as a 3-story residential building in 1935, the design focuses on modernist elements such as emphasizing balconies and a unique continuous curved line. Later, Bar Orian architects preserved and extended the building by adding two additional floors, and renovating surrounding buildings to create an open public square.

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Nahmani St Hidden in the small King Albert Square in the heart of the Tel Aviv’s Lev Ha’ir district, the Pagoda House is hard to miss. Perched on the fork of Nahmani and Montefiore streets, this massive eclectic-style building was designed in 1924 by Alexander Levy and combines oriental and western motifs. It is currently owned by a Swedish magnate Robert Weil who is now once again revamping it.

The Pagoda House was the first private residence in the city to have an elevator, and it seems it’s been the envy of everyone in the city ever since. Photo: wikipedia

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Sderot Rothschild 61 This asymmetrical building is composed of three masses, each set back in relation to the other. In this way, the continuity of the street facade is broken and a large space remains for a garden in front of the building. The two corners are horizontally expressed in lines and masses.

The preservation project included adding a new floor, greatly set back from the facade and constructed in metal and glass. A flat roof – which functions as a floating, horizontal concrete pergola in keeping with the roofs in the building's envelope – concludes the new floor on the boulevard facade.

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Sderot Rothschild 46 The Russian Embassy House is—you guessed it—the former home of the Russian embassy in Israel. Also of the eclectic style, this city icon was built in 1924 by Yehuda Magidovitch, one of Israel’s most prolific architects, for the wealthy Levin family.

It soon became the Soviet Union’s mission in Tel Aviv, but fraught relations between the two countries eventually led it to be sold to Sotheby’s, the British auction house, and throughout the 90s it served as its showroom, earning it the name the Sotheby’s House. A decade ago, the house changed owners once again, being sold for a whopping 35 million shekels (US$9,610,968) to two Jewish philanthropists who now run their foundation from the exquisite structure.

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Allenby 110 Completed in 1926, Tel Aviv’s Great Synagogue is also the architectural brainchild of Yehuda Magidovitch and is considered an early example of how he peppered his eclectic style buildings with Art Deco themes. This storied building’s cornerstone was laid in 1913 but was only completed after the First World War with the help of donations from the wealthy Rothschild family. It boasts a beautiful dome and magnificent stained glass windows replicating some of those destroyed in European synagogues during the Holocaust.

The building’s outer facade was done by architect Ze’ev Rechter at the end of the 1930s as part of a masterplan to build an Italian-style plaza around the building.

Today, the area surrounding the synagogue is among the hippest in Tel Aviv, with a number of great bars and restaurants—all named after places in Egypt, as the street is called Mount Sinai after the desert peninsula where the Jewish people were said to have received the Ten Commandments—giving the local secular hotspot a light biblical twist.

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The Founders Monument and Fountain is located opposite the home of the first mayor of Tel Aviv, Meir Dizengoff, on 16 Rothschild Boulevard. The historic lottery for the distribution of plots was held on April 11, 1909, on the site. The founders’ monument was planned 40 years later and established in 1951, on Dizengoff’s birthday. The monument was designed by Aaron Priver. On one side of the monument is the list of 66 families who are considered to be the founders of the city. On the other side is a sculpture with three layers. The bottom layer depicts the sand dunes and wild animals which were in Tel Aviv before the city. The middle layer depicts the first homes, mostly one-story homes, in Tel Aviv. The top layer depicts the Tel Aviv of 1949, with specific landmarks, and the Tel Aviv of the future as envisioned at the time.

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The private mansion was commissioned in 1933 by one of the first Tel-Avivian photographers, Avraham Soskin, famous for his true-to-life documentations of everyday urban life in the Tel Aviv of the 1920s and 1930s. This very unique example of modernist architecture was built by Israeli architect Ze’ev Rechter. Although Richter was not originally from Germany, nor did he study under the German Bauhaus School, he is considered one of the most influential architects who designed some of Tel Aviv’s most iconic buildings. This building now restored and renovated is very impressive in its flowing, nautical, almost ship-like curves along its façade and balconies. Rechter was a pioneer in the Israeli- Bauhaus movement; he modified the European style to better suit Israeli climate and the Tel-Aviv city conditions. Small windows, narrow shaded balconies, and white or cream colors were used to keep the interior as cool and breezy as possible. The Soskin House incorporates all these aspects of practicality while remaining sleek, elegant and modern.

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Herzl 79 Situated at the corner of Herzl and Florentin Street, this building was designed for Zadok Ehrlich, one of the founders of the metal industry in the country.

Haller emphasised the building's horizontal dimension through the grey stripes that connect the windows and form a ribbon, and the vertical aspect was accentuated by the vertical "thermometer" window of the stairwell. The top-floor balcony and the roof pergola – typical of Modernist architecture in Tel Aviv – emphasise the corner.

All the building's details underwent thorough preservation and reconstruction. One entire floor and two partial ones were added to it.

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