Architectural history in the architecture academy: Wilhelm Stier (1799-1856) at the Bauakademie and Allgemeine Bauschule in Berlin

• Main Author: Eric Garberson
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Department of Art History, University of Birmingham 2019-12-01
• Series: Journal of Art Historiography
• Subjects: architectural history; art history; bauakademie; allgemeine bauschule; wilhelm stier; karl friedrich schinkel
• Online Access: https://arthistoriography.files.wordpress.com/2019/12/garberson.pdf

This essay extends the examination of the training, institutional appointments, and teaching careers of art historians in early nineteenth-century Berlin begun in volumes five and seven of this journal. It focuses on Wilhelm Stier (1799-1856), who taught architectural history at the Bauakademie, for a time called the Allgemeine Bauschule, from 1828 until his death. Although well known as a teacher and for his submissions to high-profile architectural competitions, Stier has received little in-depth study by historiographers of art and architectural history. His training and professional career are especially well documented in both official archives and his extensive personal papers at the Technische Universität Berlin. These documents clarify Stier’s relationship with Karl Friedrich Schinkel (1781-1841) and Schinkel’s role in shaping architectural training in Berlin, including the teaching of architectural history. The personal papers also reveal the large role played in Stier’s professional life by his wife, Caroline Oswald Stier (1804-1863).