East German Modern
Hans Engel in cooperation with Ben Kaden
Prestel, September 2019

Hardcover | 9-1/2 x 11 inches | 208 pages | 130 illustrations | English | ISBN: 978-3791385358 | $50.00

Publisher Description:
The buildings constructed in East Germany after the Second World War are often dismissed as drab, Soviet-style, prefabricated blocks of cement. But the architecture of the former German Democratic Republic was created with an eye toward modernity and efficiency, and heralded the birth of a pioneering country with a new economic and social system.

German architectural photographer Hans Engels traveled throughout East Germany to photograph iconic modernist buildings that survived demolition. From cinemas to high-rises, restaurants to museums, department stores to transit stations, these buildings have all stood the test of time. While the philosophy that drove their design may be outdated, their retro appeal is stronger than ever.dDAB Commentary: Earlier this year I reviewed a couple "subjective atlases of modern architecture" by photographer Nicolas Grospierre: Modern Forms and Modern Spaces, both published by Prestel. The two books are international in scope yet have a plethora of buildings from Poland and other Eastern Bloc countries, so they both come to mind as I flip through Hans Engel's East German Modern, which is more geographically precisely but has a very similar feel to Grospierre's books thanks to similar focuses on postwar Easter...