#Sports facility #Luckenwalde #Germany #1928
Rudolf-Breitscheid-Straße 72
14943
Luckenwalde,
Germany
Public transport: An den Giebeln
Access: Partly accessible
Today's use: abandoned
Description
The brick building is composed of a series of interconnected cubic volumes. Visitors enter the building via a staircase leading to the main entrance.
The compact structure is divided into two principal sections. The eastern wing contains the changing rooms as well as ancillary facilities, including the saunas. The flat roofs were originally designed to serve as sun terraces.
The western hall houses the swimming pool, which is enclosed by a light-filled reinforced concrete roof with clerestory windows. During the most recent renovation, the upper section of the hall was modernized.
The pool itself gradually deepens from the shallow non-swimmers' area to the deeper section, where bathers can no longer stand. A first-floor gallery surrounds the pool hall, with changing cabins arranged along its perimeter, mirroring the layout of the ground floor.
The building's vertical emphasis is provided by the prominent stair tower.
In front of the entrance, on a small forecourt, only a brick pedestal remains, designed in keeping with the architectural style of the bathhouse. It once supported the sculpture The Bathing Woman (also known as The Crouching Woman) by Hermann Nonnenmacher. The sculpture was classified by the Nazi regime as "degenerate art" and was removed and destroyed as early as 1933.
Description
The brick building is composed of a series of interconnected cubic volumes. Visitors enter the building via a staircase leading to the main entrance.
The compact structure is divided into two principal sections. The eastern wing contains the changing rooms as well as ancillary facilities, including the saunas. The flat roofs were originally designed to serve as sun terraces.
The western hall houses the swimming pool, which is enclosed by a light-filled reinforced concrete roof with clerestory windows. During the most recent renovation, the upper section of the hall was modernized.
The pool itself gradually deepens from the shallow non-swimmers' area to the deeper section, where bathers can no longer stand. A first-floor gallery surrounds the pool hall, with changing cabins arranged along its perimeter, mirroring the layout of the ground floor.
The building's vertical emphasis is provided by the prominent stair tower.
In front of the entrance, on a small forecourt, only a brick pedestal remains, designed in keeping with the architectural style of the bathhouse. It once supported the sculpture The Bathing Woman (also known as The Crouching Woman) by Hermann Nonnenmacher. The sculpture was classified by the Nazi regime as "degenerate art" and was removed and destroyed as early as 1933.
History
Luckenwalde Municipal Swimming Pool was built between 1928 and 1929. The plans were designed by Hans Hertlein, who at the time was one of the architects employed by theSiemens company. Right next to the swimming pool stood Siemens' power station, whose waste heat was used to heat and operate the facility.
Swimming operations ended as early as 1991, after a new thermal spa opened in the town. Although the building is a protected historic monument and has also been designated a National Urban Development Project, making it eligible for special government funding, its restoration is still an ongoing process.
Various local initiatives, together with the town, have already restored parts of the building, including the roof and the upper sections of the pool hall with its windows. However, many areas remain in need of renovation.
The long-term vision is to transform the former swimming pool into a cultural venue, one that we will hopefully be able to visit again in the future.
History
Luckenwalde Municipal Swimming Pool was built between 1928 and 1929. The plans were designed by Hans Hertlein, who at the time was one of the architects employed by theSiemens company. Right next to the swimming pool stood Siemens' power station, whose waste heat was used to heat and operate the facility.
Swimming operations ended as early as 1991, after a new thermal spa opened in the town. Although the building is a protected historic monument and has also been designated a National Urban Development Project, making it eligible for special government funding, its restoration is still an ongoing process.
Various local initiatives, together with the town, have already restored parts of the building, including the roof and the upper sections of the pool hall with its windows. However, many areas remain in need of renovation.
The long-term vision is to transform the former swimming pool into a cultural venue, one that we will hopefully be able to visit again in the future.
Sources
Sources
