Man löse den Arbeiter nicht von der Masse. Gertrud Hermes (1872-1942). Or: Form follows function in the Bauhaus architecture of the School of Work in Leipzig
In 2001 Christine Zeuner published a German overview on Gertrud Hermes’ life and work and ends with the conclusion that Hermes can be understood as the first female professional adult educator in Germany. Unlike Anna Siemsen and others, she did not only support adult education: She gave up working as a regular teacher and led a folk high school in Leipzig as a full time adult educator since 1923. Hermes is well known in Germany, but little has been published in English about her so far. She is mentioned (Steele, 2007), p.163; (Samuel, 2013, p.142), and attributed as relevant for socialist approaches to adult education (Hake, 2017 p. 162). This essay tries to translate some of Hermes’ biographic and programmatic text for an international audience. Furthermore, the close connection between her biography, her program and the Bauhaus building in Leipzig, known as the “Schule der Arbeit/ School of Work” will be discussed. Few researchers and programmatic authors see their vision come to action. In this case, it results in a building. But is the building today all that remains?