Ernst Neufert’s famous Bauentwurfslehre provides a comprehensive overview of common attitudes on how a Western dwelling was perceived. The first edition was published in 1936 based on his lectures; by now the 35th edition of the book has been released. It has become the foundational work for standards in building and planning, used as the prime reference for questions on required space and the general configuration of internal arrangements within buildings. On around 700 pages the book covers dimensions of a wide variety of planned objects that reach across all areas of life, ranging from a dessert fork to gravestones, to large administrative buildings.

All proposals in the book are based upon the author’s personal experience and conclusions from his research; at the time, Neufert, a middle class German, was at the height of his career.

Neufert’s Bauentwurfslehre and similar works in the English speaking world, such as the American Graphic Standards, not only clearly indicate the functional assignments of every single room within a Western European flat, they provide distinct and detailed ideas on what kind of activities should be executed and, moreover, how they can be done. Measures and distances of furniture are coordinated with certain body movements while preparing food, sleeping, washing, or eating. Neufert’s research grew out of the functionalist concept of Normalmensch, applied in the twenties at the Bauhaus school where he studied. The functionalist hoped that a study of human physiology and anatomy could give architecture an objectively correct foundation, as opposed to the arbitrary conventions of earlier Stilarchitektur that only reproduced and perpetuated the oppressive structures of class society. Standardization (and the repetition of the standardized elements) was seen in this context as a means to the maximization of production at minimal cost but more importantly as a prime instrument for the democratic reeducation of people. Bruno Taut explained: “Just as the individual parts (of the house) coexist through their interaction with one another, so the houses coexists with its fellows. It is a product of collective and social intent. Thus repetition, far from being unwanted, is in fact the most important instrument of art.”(Pehnt 1979:198) “Not only was repetition regarded as an expression of the community spirit, it was also seen to be dictated by the principle of equality.” (Le Corbusier 1924:220) Walter Gropius stated that “repetition of the same things for the same purposes exercises a settling and civilizing influence on men’s minds” and that reiteration of “typical buildings notably enhances civic dignity and coherence.” For him, standardization was “always a formal denominator of a whole period.” (Gropius 1935:35)

In 1963 the first edition of the “Jianzhu She jizi liaojizi” was published in three volumes. A first impression suggests that the book is a translation of the German or American edition of Neufert’s Bauentwurfslehre, due to the visual language, layout, and content. A second look showed that this was not the case. In his book “Reconstuire La Chine,” the Chinese/French architect Hoa Leon recaps what he calls the “difficult years” after the Great Leap Forward, when the People’s Republic of China fell out with its Soviet brother state, and the period of industrial production came to an unplanned halt: “After work mania a phase of calm set in, allowing evaluation in the form of inquiring with users. Any building typology got thoroughly examined to determine its benefits as well as its deficiencies. At this time, many research centers of architecture that had existed for a long time were enforced to hold systematic research. Young architects studied all kinds of dwellings in the province of Zheijang, examining a few hundred dwellings. The finding of this survey was a common denominator in terms of a sense for a rational use of space.” These results were presented at a scientific research symposium in Beijing and thus “the break in construction work had bestowed us with an improved and elaborate Chinese Neufert.” (Hoa 1981:126)
(CL)

Sources:
Hoa Leon (1981): Reconstruir La Chine. Trente ans d’urbanisme 1949-1979. Paris: Editions du Moniteur.
Pehnt, Wolfgang (1979): Expressionist Architecture. Tr.J.A. Underwood
and Edith Küstner. London: Thames and Hudson.
Le Corbusier (1924): Vers une architecture. Paris: Les Editions Cres and Cie.
p.220 : “ tout le etudiants ont droit a la meme cellule“ -Therefore all cells must
be alike
Gropius, Walter (1935): The New Architecture and the Bauhaus. Tr.Morton Shand
GB: Charles T. Branford Co.