In her most recent monography, Despina Stratigakos, Interim Chair and Associate Professor at the University of Buffalo's Department of Architecture, demonstrates the elasticity and flexibility of the genre of biography. "Hitler at home" is no ordinary portrait but examines how Adolf Hitler and his propagandists worked intensely on manufacturing a counter-image to that of the screaming reactionary with no family life or traditional roots. The extensive remodelling of Hitler's homes in Berlin, Munich and Berchtesgaden were quickly identified as the means to recreate an image of the "Führer" that would be appealing to both a national as well as an international audience. During the 1930s, the world's most important newspapers and fashionable magazines played a major role in disseminating a sanitized image of Hitler, now widely portrayed as a warm and cultured man of the people. "Hitler at home" offers a new angle to the Nazi leader's preoccupation with using architecture and interior design of his domestic spaces to project his persona to the masses and unveils the long neglected influence of a powerful female figure on creating a reassuring image of Adolf Hitler. We approached Prof. Dr. Despina Stratigakos with our questions on Hitler's evolution of his representation to the people.
"Both of these representations bolstered Hitler‘s appeal"
L.I.S.A.: Professor Stratigakos, in your recently published monograph „Hitler at Home”, you set out to investigate how Hitler chose to present himself through his domestic spaces to a broad national and international audience. Whilst analyzing and deconstructing the “production and power” of the dictator’s homes, you warn of the seductive danger of these spaces as the images of Hitler’s domesticity were employed to make him appear likable and approachable. Where did this possible appeal lie?
Prof. Stratigakos: The power of Hitler’s domestic spaces, as they were presented to German and international audiences, lay above all in their ability to evoke empathy for the Führer. We know that Albert Speer’s monumental constructions in Nuremburg and Berlin evoked a sense of awe. These were the stage sets for the Führer who thundered from the podium, the absolute leader who commanded millions and moved mountains of stone. By contrast, images of Hitler at home, in seemingly down-to-earth settings and engaged in ordinary activities, such as having tea or playing with his dogs, inspired empathy. Both of these representations bolstered Hitler‘s appeal as a man both beyond and yet of the people, and each had its own architectural manifestation.