In Himmler’s article, he explores the relationship between politics and art to further understand Nazi culture and what made them so powerful. There was more to the story of Hitler’s plan to brainwash Germany than jumpstarting the economy. Clearly art and politics are intimately connected as the Nuremburg plans were established by thinking of aesthetic considerations. He finds a strong correlation between the national socialist architecture and the labor concentration camps. He finds that historians have underestimated the political significance of the Nazi architecture and have not critically analyzed how the work in concentration camps was connected to both the German “monumental building economy”(232) and how attitudes toward the laborers were heavily influenced by architectural goals. He says that “aesthetic choices and the actions of the architects can work as preconditions for some of the central decisions about oppression made by SS administrators” (231). Hitler was very focused on architecture which explains that the SS used the forced labor camps to process the high quality stone granite. Himmler investigates this further by pointing out that the granite is not only ideologically important but also was used to avoid expensive iron and steel. Politically, the granite was used as a symbol to pay homage to the Roman architecture in order to equate the Roman Empire with Hitler’s regime. Hitler’s architectural obsession did wonders for German economy as more buildings created gave more jobs to people in Germany and became crucial for economic re-stabilization for the country. The film Architecture of Doom, further highlights the connection between art and politics as it explores Hitler’s obsession with aesthetics while ruling Germany. The film focuses on the Third Reich’s use of artwork in transforming the ideology of Germany. The film shows how the Nazi regime used architecture to culturally revitalize Germany and work to represent the German spirit. The audience analyzes the Third Reich’s focus on cleanliness and purity with a heavy focus on eugenics. The pure and clean art replete with white monuments correlates with the Third Reich’s drive to wipe out the “weak” and non Aryan.
In Himmler’s article, he explores the relationship between politics and art to further understand Nazi culture and what made them so powerful. There was more to the story of Hitler’s plan to brainwash Germany than jumpstarting the economy. Clearly art and politics are intimately connected as the Nuremburg plans were established by thinking of aesthetic considerations. He finds a strong correlation between the national socialist architecture and the labor concentration camps. He finds that historians have underestimated the political significance of the Nazi architecture and have not critically analyzed how the work in concentration camps was connected to both the German “monumental building economy”(232) and how attitudes toward the laborers were heavily influenced by architectural goals. He says that “aesthetic choices and the actions of the architects can work as preconditions for some of the central decisions about oppression made by SS administrators” (231). Hitler was very focused on architecture which explains that the SS used the forced labor camps to process the high quality stone granite. Himmler investigates this further by pointing out that the granite is not only ideologically important but also was used to avoid expensive iron and steel. Politically, the granite was used as a symbol to pay homage to the Roman architecture in order to equate the Roman Empire with Hitler’s regime. Hitler’s architectural obsession did wonders for German economy as more buildings created gave more jobs to people in Germany and became crucial for economic re-stabilization for the country. The film Architecture of Doom, further highlights the connection between art and politics as it explores Hitler’s obsession with aesthetics while ruling Germany. The film focuses on the Third Reich’s use of artwork in transforming the ideology of Germany. The film shows how the Nazi regime used architecture to culturally revitalize Germany and work to represent the German spirit. The audience analyzes the Third Reich’s focus on cleanliness and purity with a heavy focus on eugenics. The pure and clean art replete with white monuments correlates with the Third Reich’s drive to wipe out the “weak” and non Aryan.
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