Scharoun. School. Town.
Hans Scharoun's method of dealing with space in relation to children can be easily understood through the school in Westfalenstrasse in Marl, which he designed and which was completed in 1979: the rooms for the smallest children are straightforward and full of nooks and crannies. The classrooms for the upper years have a clear, rational design vocabulary. And successive meetings with those of the same age and finally joint experiences are applied again and again in this building. Learning from this building – this was the approach of an exhibition in 2008 and the school foyer.
THE SCHOOL BY HANS SCHAROUN
The school in Marl that was designed by the architect Hans Scharoun is rightly seen as one of the most important examples of modern post-war architecture in North-Rhine Westphalia. With the Marl school, Scharoun received an opportunity to realise an exemplary learning space: starting from the "nest-like" and "secret areas" for pupils in the first years through to the "rational" thinking rooms for the senior classes. What they all have in common is that they impart the feeling of being "at home". In the centre of the comparatively large school is a shell-shaped school hall, around which the "pupils' homes" are grouped.
A total of nine school architecture projects by Scharoun, and the Marl school in particular, together with their innovative space solutions were honoured in the framework of the exhibi-tion. It is made clear here that a high-quality school building provides optimal preconditions for teaching and social development.
THE SYMPOSIUM
The prelude was formed by the 1st Marl Symposium: "School as a Learning Space" in the school hall of the Scharoun-Schule. Psychologists, school educationalists and architects dis-cussed together the subject of schools as learning spaces and the interplay between architec-ture and education.
THE EXHIBITION
The exhibition "Other Spaces. Hans Scharoun's School Architecture" used the location as the biggest exhibit in order to thematise his school architecture with its innovative space solutions. Hans Scharoun's work was shown in nine stations – focussed on his creative architectonic work in the field of school architecture: plans, drawings, models and films that made clear his educational approaches were presented. Both completed buildings were shown and, for the first time, designs for schools that were never realised.
Parts of the "organically grown" ensemble, which was completed in 1970 and is classified as a building of historic importance, can no longer be used; the vibrant work of the town's music school is carried out in other parts.
THE EXCURSIONS
The programme was rounded off by excursions in the town under the title "Marl. How did a town come into existence?". Tthese were dedicated to the different phases in the town's ar-chitectural history and were aimed at all those interested in architecture and culture.
THE ORGANISERS
A joint event organised by:
- BDA Ruhr region
- Institute of Art History of the Ruhr-Universität Bochum
- Marl council / sculpture museum Glaskasten Marl / Marl music school
- M:AI Museum für Architektur und Ingenieurkunst NRW
- With the support of the Marl initiative ScharounSchule, the Academy of Arts, Berlin, and Vestische Straßenbahnen GmbH
