Leberecht Migge (1881-1935) an urban agriculture pioneer

When Modern Was Green: Life and Work of Landscape Architect Leberecht Miggeby. By David Haney. 2010

Leberecht Migge’s “Green Manifesto”: Envisioning a Revolution of Gardens

By David H. Haney
In Landscape Jrnl. 26(2):201-218 (2007)

Leberecht Migge’s “Green Manifesto,” published in Germany in 1919, represents one of the most overtly political tracts ever written by a landscape architect. In this document, Migge proposed that all social and economic problems of the German nation could be solved by creating as many gardens as possible, which included parks, but most importantly, small, intensive vegetable gardens where everyone could grow their own food. If “everyman” could be self-sufficient, then they supposedly would enjoy relative freedom from the domination of the capitalist system.

Migge’s vision was not of a nostalgic return to nature, but a synthesis of garden, dwelling, and communal space that embraced the latest developments in technology. Migge applied the principles of the garden and gardening to the whole country, proposing such forward-looking policies as regional and national resource management. This paper examines the background conditions which led Migge to make such broad claims of economic, political, and social importance for the garden, and considers some negative aspects of his position, specifically in light of colonialist nationalism.

This journal paper is only available on-line here at a cost. However, it is probably available at university libraries in print or electronically.

When Modern Was Green: Life and Work of Landscape Architect Leberecht Miggeby

By David Haney
Routledge
2010

From the Publisher

Today, contemporary landscape design is increasingly drawing from ideas of sustainability and ecological stability. Not in fact new, the foundations of this approach stem from early twentieth century Germany, where architects and planners were already beginning to use the design concepts which are now referred to as “green”.

This ecological school of thought was driven by modernist landscape architect Leberecht Migge (1881-1935). Working with significant modernist architects of the age – including Martin Elsaesser, Ernst May, Bruno Taut, and Martin Wagner – Migge was responsible for some of the most important housing and planning projects of the age; the mass housing settlements, or Großsiedlungen, of Frankfurt Main and Berlin.

The cover of Everyman Self Sufficient! (1918) by Leberecgt Migge. Source: Haney (2007).

Using “biotechnic” principles to integrally link dwelling and garden, Migge was able to recycle household waste to grow foodstuffs through the use of innovative infrastructure and open space planning. Also a skilled park and garden designer, he drew together green and architectural elements in his “garden-architectonic” approach.

David H. Haney’s book is the first to fully document Leberecht Migge’s life and work. Using Migge as a starting point, Haney addresses conceptual and theoretical aspects of German ecological design, challenging conventional assumptions about modernism and ecological design history. With 200 illustrations and photographs, When Modern Was Green is ideal for students and academics interested in modernism, landscape history and higher level German studies.

Biography

David H. Haney is a lecturer in the School of Architecture at the University of Kent, UK. He studied architectural history and theory in the Yale University graduate program in architecture, and received his PhD in architecture from the University of Pennsylvania. His research interests center on the relationship between landscape and architecture, and the history of ecological design. This work is the result of five years of research undertaken while living in Berlin.

The book is available here.

Re-envisioning the relationship between landscape architecture and the politicized food complex

By Jennifer S. Walker
2009
Master of Landscape Architecture Thesis
Graduate Faculty of The University of Georgia
222 pages

The built environment has a profound impact on society’s food systems by exerting influence on social, political, and economic discourse and by ordering spaces that inhibit/promote the production/consumption of food. Landscape architecture, as a discipline concerned with the design, planning, and management of the landscape, presents a significant potential for contributing to a food complex that is socially just, environmentally restorative, and furthers public health. The work of Leberecht Migge—an early 20th century German landscape architect who explicitly addressed the food complex—is presented and critically evaluated as a case study. A framework is proposed that situates the contemporary food complex as a multivalent phenomenon and describes its incorporation into the process and practice of landscape architecture through increased attention to landscape management and professional activities that involve mediation and advocacy in addition to design and planning.

This excellent thesis is available in its entirety here. Highly recommended! (Mike) Be sure to play with the different viewing modes before reading.