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The Goetheanum

A Guided Tour through the Building, Its Surroundings, and Its History

Paperback
December 2010
9781855842496
More details
  • Publisher
    Rudolf Steiner Press
  • Published
    29th December 2010
  • ISBN 9781855842496
  • Language English
  • Pages 96 pp.
$25.00

The Goetheanum in Dornach, Switzerland, was conceived as a visible expression of Rudolf Steiner's spiritual philosophy—a living experience of Anthroposophy in the form of art. Steiner conveyed his ideas and concepts in many books and lectures, but the Goetheanum—with its pioneering concrete forms built in the 1920s—is a manifestation of spirituality in architecture, painting and sculpture.

This essential handbook, packed with color photos and illustrations, gives a broad background to Rudolf Steiner's architectural masterpiece and the work that goes on within it. Hasler explains how the present Goetheanum was built, and describes its recently remodeled great hall and stage, with its painted ceiling and sculpted walls. He details the building's context and landscape design, the other significant structures in its vicinity, and gives a description of the first, wooden, Goetheanum and its destruction by fire.

Today, the remarkable external contours of the Goetheanum contain theaters, studios, laboratories, offices, and libraries. Apart from its grand stages for drama and eurythmy, it serves as the headquarters of the worldwide Anthroposophical Society and the School of Spiritual Science with its sections for medicine, agriculture, education, the arts, science, and more. The Goetheanum is also home to numerous conferences, meetings, and events.

This beautifully produced book provides a marvelous visual and textual guide to one of the most original buildings of our time

Full colour thoughout.

C O N T E N T S:

Preface

The Goetheanum and the School of Spiritual Science
The Building
The Main Auditorium
The Ground Floor
South Wing and North Wing
Hidden Areas
Problems with Concrete
Landscape Design, The Felsli Spur, and the Memorial Grove
The Buildings on the Site
Later Buildings on the Site
The “Colony”
The First Goetheanum
The Representative of Humanity
The Models and Art Collection at the Goetheanum
Documentation at the Goetheanum

General Information
Suggested Further Reading
List of Illustrations

Hans Hasler

Hans Hasler, born in Switzerland in 1942, studied Slavonic languages, history and education, before becoming a school teacher. He was responsible for social therapy and education for special needs in the Medical Section, and later managed the Goetheanum Building Administration, where he oversaw redesign of the main auditorium. The present book is based on his profound knowledge of the building and its surroundings, as well as his many encounters through leading guided tours over the years.