America 1928 – Skyscrapers in Black and White
To mark the 125th anniversary of the birth of Walter Gropius, architect and founder of the Bauhaus, a special
exhibition entitled "America 1928" is to be staged by the Bauhaus-Archiv in cooperation with Wuppertal
University. Opening in the European Month of Photography (November 2008), the exhibition – which has
received generous support from HOCHTIEF – will be held in the Bauhaus-Archiv/Museum für Gestaltung
in Berlin. The exhibition lasts from November 19, 2008 to February 02, 2009. From February 09 to May 31, 2009
the exhibition will be staged in the Gallery of Wuppertal University, Hofaue 51-55. It features photographs
taken by Walter Gropius himself. Afterwards, the exhibition will move to the German Museum of Architecture
(DAM) in Frankfurt and to Columbia University in New York.
In 1928, Walter Gropius resigned from his post as director of the Bauhaus in Dessau. The same year, he and his wife Ise undertook a seven-week study tour of the USA. Gropius was particularly interested in the new techniques used in American residential construction, especially the steel structures of the New York skyscrapers.
During his stay in America, he took almost 400 photographs. These convey his impressions not just of American
architecture but also of the people, the countryside and culture of the USA. There are portraits of Hopi and
Havasupai Native Americans and pictures of the Grand Canyon together with photographs of the architectural masterpieces
by Frank Lloyd Wright and Richard Neutra. This photographic journey gives visitors a deeper insight into the "Father of
Modern Architecture", who had such a decisive influence on the evolution of 20th century buildings.
