bauhaus faces

TIBOR WEINER (AND THE RED BAUHAUS BRIGADE) | Daniel Talesnik


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A new episode of bauhaus faces is out now. This time, I’m joined by Chilean architect and historian Daniel Talesnik to explore the story of a remarkable group of Bauhaus students—through the life of one of them: Tibor Weiner.

Weiner was part of the circle around Hannes Meyer, the second director of the Bauhaus—a group often referred to as the “Red Bauhaus Brigade.” After Meyer’s dismissal in 1930, he relocated to the Soviet Union, and a number of his students followed, hoping to continue their work and ideals abroad.

In our conversation, Daniel traces what he calls the “Itinerant Red Bauhaus" or "The Third Emigration,” following these architects as their paths diverged across the Soviet Union, and beyond. At the center is Weiner’s own journey—from Moscow to Paris, on to Chile, and eventually back to his home Hungary after the Second World War. His story reflects the broader reality many of them faced: architecture not just as a discipline, but as a means of survival in a century marked by political upheaval.

Daniel and I will be back soon with a bonus episode, taking a closer look at other Red Bauhaus Brigade members Konrad Püschel (who was sent to North Korea), René Mensch (who ended up in Iran), and Philipp Tolziner (who was imprisoned for 10 years in a Soviet Gulag and then became one of the first monument preservationists of the Soviet Union).

You can find the episode now wherever you listen to podcasts—and if you enjoy bauhaus faces, please consider leaving a 5-star-review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts or sharing it with someone who might be interested.

SHOW NOTES

bauhausfaces.com | @bauhausfacespodcast | YouTube | Spotify | Apple Podcasts

[Daniel Talesnik: The Itinerant Red Bauhaus, or the Third Emigration, 2016

Daniel Talesnik: "Moving Away to the Other End of the World: Reflections on the Letters Between Tibor Weiner and Hannes Meyer from the DAM Archive", 2019

Tatiana Efrussi: _Hannes Meyer: Soviet Architect. Life and Work in the USSR, 1930–1936_, 2025](https://vernonpress.com/book/2222?srsltid=AfmBOorYsErRw9JadWblBKymuawZkcjLbhokMj7P6JvpzGc2_7LTe6Xl)

Astrid Volpert & Anja Guttenberger: "Gelobt, Verurteilt, Vergessen, Wiederentdeckt – 62 Bauhäusler*innen im Land der Sowjets", 2019

Philipp Tolziner: "Mit Hannes Meyer am Bauhaus und in der Sowjetunion", in: Hannes Meyer 1889–1954: Architekt, Lehrer, Urbanist, 1989, pp. 234-263

Tibor Weiner Papers at the Mai Magyar Építészet, Budapest

CHAPTER IMAGES

1/2 Portrait of Tibor Weiner, © Weiner Family Archive
3 Tibor Weiner & Philipp Tolziner: Community Dwellings for Workers in a Socialized State, 1930, in: Hannes Meyer 1889–1954: Architekt, Lehrer, Urbanist, 1989
4 Natja Catalan, Tibor Weiner, Philipp Tolziner, Konrad Püschel, Margarete Mengel, Lilya Polgar, Anton Urban – members of the “Red Bauhaus Brigade” in Moscow, unknown photographer, https://thecharnelhouse.org/tag/bela-scheffler/#jp-carousel-9752
5 Tibor Weiner, Konrad Püschel & Philipp Tolziner with Hannes Meyer (consultant): Competition project for the Palace of the Soviets, 1931, https://cloud-cuckoo.net/fileadmin/hefte_de/heft_39/artikel_Kazhar_Solkiewicz-Kos_Zadworny.pdf
6 Hans Schmidt: Design of Orsk, ca. 1933, in: Marco de Michelis/Ernesto Pasini: La città sovietica 1925–1937, Venedig 1976, https://architekturbasel.ch/hans-schmidt-ein-basler-architekt-in-stalins-reich/
7 Letter from Tibor Weiner to Hannes Meyer, 06.03.1938, DAM Archive
8 Tibor Weiner: Fire department in Chillan, Photo by Gonzalo Vargas Malinowski, https://www.dw.com/de/die-bauhaus-revolution-in-chile/a-42915382
9 Tibor Weiner: Dunaújváros, Hungary, © Intercisa Múzeum, https://www.diepresse.com/1350779/dunaujvaros-eine-ungarische-retortenstadt-fuer-stalin#slide-1-1
10 Portrait of Tibor Weiner in Dunaújváros, 1950s, © Weiner Family Archive

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bauhaus facesBy Anja Guttenberger