The interior design was a matter of separate study. The new interiors, meant for a ”new user”, required special furnishing. Small flats of the ”Existenzminimum” type, supported at the time not only by the architects, but also the authorities88, could not have been furnished with traditional furniture (owned by many generations of German families) which was not adjusted to the size of the new interiors. They did not match the plain interiors created by the functionalists. Bright pastel interiors were to be a preferable background for austere furnishing in more intensive colours. The title of an article by Heinrich Lauterbach about the housing estate in Wrocław, An interior not overcrowded with furniture89, shows the exact character of those interiors. Built-in wardrobes, bookcases, kitchen cupboards or serving hatches were as obvious elements of a flat as the bathroom. The built-in furniture did not take up space in the rooms: they gave the impression that the flats were more spacious. Lauterbach believed that the better the flat’s layout is planned regarding the user's needs, the easier it is to design the furnishings. The problem was that at that time, the architects were designing for an unknown user, so they imagined an ideal user and their possible necessities. The fear of non-built and free space was overcome. It was believed that for young generations, that were used to sport and led active lifestyles, a free space in a flat was a must. A piece of furniture had to meet those needs and be in a place where it was actually needed; providing comfort and not taking too much space.
88
Many Wrocław architects designed both the flats and the furniture in them, attempting to fit them to the future users' needs in the optimal way. The ideal they were aiming for, were pieces of furniture produced on a mass scale90. An accessible piece of furniture, available to all, was to be easily substituted at any moment. The flat was shaped by the user who, according to their needs and financial capabilities, gave it a new, individual character. In almost all the model houses one could see light-looking chairs and armchairs made of bent steel or wood; instead of springs, straps of fabric spread on the furniture's frames were used, which ensured great flexibility in the seat.
89
90
Furniture by Josef Vinecký from the Academy of Art, designed for house no. 7 by Rading had a special advantage, namely, they fitted the small interiors excellently. They fulfilled their functions not ”filling” the interior. Everything in the detached house by Heinrich Lauterbach seems to float in
91
mid-air, wrote Edith Rischowski to show the character of the interior92. The architect designed the armchairs (in house no. 35) which were adjusted to the different needs
82 WuWA
5. The 1929 WuWA housing estate
92
Aussichten des diesjährigen Wohnungsbau – Forderungen für den Kleinwohnungsbau, ”Schlesisches Heim”, 1928, p. 171. During the third general meeting of the Construction Associations in Flensburg on June 12st–23rd 1928 it was settled that, taken into account the limited funds for housing development available in 1928 (1.8 billion Deutsche Marks, compared to 3.2 billion Deutsche Marks in 1927), only housing constructions with flats of small sizes have any chance of execution. Heinrich LAUTERBACH, Der unverstellte Wohnraum, ”Innen-Dekoration”, vol. 40, 1929, p. 418–420. ”Thonet” was a firm whose products were in common use in modern interiors. Thanks to the fact they appeared light and were simple and plain, they were perfect for a functional interior. Products of this firm were also used in Wrocław, for example, in house no. 31 by Hans Scharoun. Working for the Academy of Art, Josef Vinecký specialised in furniture design with the application of modern materials. Edith RISCHOWSKI, op.cit., p. 401.