Copper houses

so yesterday i went to celebrate the anniversary of the Bauhaus school in Dessau. the famous building of the school first opened its gates in 4th dec. 1926 and was in use as a school for design until 1933, when he was shut down after the National Socialist came to power in Germany. the german architect Walter Grupios (1883–1969) was the founder and the first director of the school that was founded in 1919, originally in Weimar. Grupios was also the designer of an experimental and innovative housing solution made of copper.
in the beginning of the 30's he was hired to refine the existing models developed by the Eberswalde based firm Aron Hirsch and Son, a global player in the copper and brass industry. In 1932 he presented two prototypes displaying the slogan 'Sun, Air, and Housing for All!'. various domestic firms were interested, as well developers and planners in the US and the USSR. in 1932 the Hirsch company went bankrupt and the collaboration with Grupios was ended. but with the National Socialist in power, a new market for the copper houses arose - the Jewish emigrants to Palestine. in August 1933 the company put out a special catalogue, with models designed specifically for the Palestine market, called 'Haifa', 'Jerusalem', 'Tel Aviv' and 'Sharon'. the largest model, with a living space of 280 m2 was called 'Lebanon'. a branch of the German Copper House Company was opened in Haifa and at least fourteen houses found their way to the British Mandate of Palestine. when the National Socialists began to rearm, copper came to be in short supply, and its export was forbidden. it is said that the last copper house delivered was immediately melted down on arrival in Tel Aviv and that the value of copper was higher then the houses themselves.
the exterior walls and roofs of the houses were made of copper, insulation was provided by aluminum foil and asbestos (very healthy...), the framing was of wood. their interior walls were sheet metal ornamented with intricate patterns (perfect to hang your Chagall on...). they had nothing to do with the radiant, white modernism of the Bauhaus or the White City of Tel Aviv, on the contrary, they were almost black.
the exhibition Heimatcontainer - Deutsche Fertighaeuser in Israel runs in the meisterhaus Schlemmer in Dessau until 7th March 2010.
source: Housing.com