Furnishing for Kass Country Residence, Berlin-Zehlendorf, 1932: Interior perspective sketch 1932

Curator: Here we have Hanns Dustmann’s 1932 interior perspective sketch, titled "Furnishing for Kass Country Residence, Berlin-Zehlendorf," currently residing at the Harvard Art Museums. Editor: It's stark, almost sterile. The lines are so clean, emphasizing the geometry of the space, but there is still life in the plants. Curator: Indeed, the sketch exemplifies the functionalist architectural movement. The clean lines, minimal ornamentation, and emphasis on practicality. It speaks to the evolving domestic sphere in Weimar Germany. Editor: Absolutely, but how does this proposed space accommodate the domestic worker? Where do they rest in this streamlined vision of modernity? Does the artist consider domesticity beyond the bourgeois family? Curator: A valid point. Dustmann's formal arrangement certainly invites further socio-economic questioning about space, class, and labor in the interwar period. Editor: Exactly, by examining these details, we reveal the implicit politics of design—and the way architecture shapes lived experience. Curator: I see it as a fascinating interplay of form and function, highlighting the artistic intentions of architectural design. Editor: And I see it as a testament to the selective representation of history—a potent reminder of whose stories get told through art.