Munich: Amerikanerblock

1930 – 1931

Architect: Otho Orlando Kurz

Steubenplatz 1-2, Wendl-Dietrich-Straße 23-33, Gotelindenstraße 1-9, Arnulfstraße 214-224, Munich, Germany

The five-story flat-roofed apartment block was constructed from 1930 to 1931 based on designs by Otho Orlando Kurz. It closes off the Neuhausen housing estate in Munich, which was developed under the overall planning of Hans Döllgast, towards Steubenplatz.

Amerikanerblock

In 1931, the building had 210 apartments, each with living spaces ranging from 58 to 114 square meters.

A striking feature of the four-winged complex is the clinker-clad balconies that wrap around the partially rounded corners. The apartment block has a total of five stories, making it one story taller than the other buildings in the housing estate.

Erwin Kurz

Above the entrances to the houses on the north side of the complex are terracotta figures of musicians. They were designed by Munich sculptor and academy professor Erwin Kurz, the father of architect Otho Orlando Kurz.

The housing block is named after loans from the United States that were negotiated by then-mayor Karl Scharnagel to secure its financing.

The spacious courtyard of the Amerikanerblock has two entrances that can be closed by wrought-iron gates dating from 1930.

The depictions on the gate wings illustrate the four elements: air (zeppelin and windmill), fire (hearth, factory, and salamander), water (sea creatures and ships), and earth (Adam and Eve and plants).

The designs were likely created by Munich sculptor Erwin Kurz, who was repeatedly commissioned to decorate his son’s buildings artistically.

The Amerikanerblock is an example of the architecture of the New Objectivity and is a listed building.

Neuhausen Housing Estate

The Neuhausen housing estate was built between 1928 and 1930 by the Gemeinnützige Wohnungsfürsorge AG (GEWOFAG), a non-profit housing association, under the overall planning of Hans Döllgast.

Housing Estate

The housing estate consists of strictly arranged north-south rows of apartments. The housing estate is enclosed by a perimeter structure on its long sides, as well as by closed building blocks on the east side of Steubenplatz (the “Amerikanerblock”) and on the triangular area remaining north of Arnulfstraße. The artists’ courtyard, with studios designed by Uli Seeck, is also located there.

Inside the settlement, single-story buildings separate the apartment rows from the thoroughfares.

The nearly two thousand apartments in the Neuhausen settlement were designed primarily for the middle class and had an average living space of 71.4 square meters. More than thirty stores and four restaurants guaranteed local supply.

Architects

Several other architects were responsible for planning the individual residential rows, including Johannes Ludwig, Sep Ruf, Franz Ruf, Gustav Gsaenger, Martin Mendler, Otto Pixis, Wolfgang Vogl, Peter Danzer, Hans Haedenkamp, and Uli Seeck.

Many artists and craftsmen received commissions for work on GEWOFAG’s housing estates, including the Neuramersdorf, Walchenseeplatz, Neuhausen, Neuharlaching, and Friedenheim estates. Karl Preis, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Gemeinnützige Wohnungsfürsorge, promoted art as an essential part of the housing estates’ architecture.

Artwork

The spacious, green courtyards are adorned with fountains and sculptures by Emil Manz, Hans Stangl, J. Schwarzkopf, Ferdinand Liebermann, and Ludwig Müller-Hipper. Sepp Frank, Oskar Zeh, Erwin Kurz, and Erich von Kreibig installed frescoes, sculptures, and reliefs on the walls and entrances of the houses. Courtyard gates and window grilles were given an individual design.