The Dornach Building

GA 287

Foreword

From the preface to the first edition

The lectures that preceded these artistic considerations are published in the book “Wege zu einem neuen Baustil” (Paths to a New Architectural Style). They were intended to prepare readers for the special tasks now facing the artists working on the new building. One of them, who was heavily involved in the sculptural work, Mrs. Assja Turgenieff-Bugaieff, known for the colored glass windows she cut for the second building, for her work “Die Goetheanum Fenster-Motive” (The Goetheanum Window Motifs) and for her etchings, wrote down her impressions of that first period of work under Dr. Steiner's direction at my request. In their immediacy, they vividly reflect what each of Dr. Steiner's colleagues experienced in a similar way in their particular field of work. They still have the freshness of the moment as it was experienced then: the joyful atmosphere of anticipation, the happy beginnings of fulfillment, followed by the outbreak of the catastrophe of nations, the world war with its misery and hardship, the perseverance of those who remained on site working on the building.

We now present these memories as an addendum, together with the sparse notes from a carving lesson. This may serve as an example of the way Dr. Steiner approached the subject and brought it closer to the artists. The obituary preserves their intimate character and places them in the overall context of that period of work.

—Marie Steiner-von Sivers