History of Deutsches Haus

Planning for a German Cultural Center at New York University began in the 1960s. At that time many American colleges and universities did away with course distribution requirements, and enrollments in foreign language programs were drastically reduced. Yet there remained a demand for information on cultural and political affairs. This was the birth hour of Deutsches Haus. Affiliation with NYU and location in the historic district of Greenwich Village would place Deutsches Haus in the center of a highly concentrated academic community; besides NYU, the largest private university in the country, The New School for Social Research, Cooper Union and the Center for Jewish History are nearby, and more than 100,000 students are within walking distance. From the beginning the intent was to make Deutsches Haus at NYU a cross-cultural meeting place open to students and to the public at large.

Fundraising started in 1966. The project quickly received the strong support of the cultural division of the West German foreign office in the form of a matching grant of $100,000; however, other contributions were slow in coming. Fundraising was greatly accelerated with the establishment of a committee under the vigorous leadership of Dr. Walter Casper. By 1976 enough money was on hand to start the project in earnest.

New York University provided the house in Washington Mews, just north of Washington Square in the Village historic district. It is the corner house of a cobblestone row of alley houses that had originally served as coach houses for the patrician mansions of Washington Square North. The house had previously housed laboratories of the first NYU Medical School, and later served as the art studio for Paul Manship, famous for his sculptures at Rockefeller Center. the building was carefully restored according to original 1821 plans. In 1984 the Fine Arts Federation of New York bestowed its annual award on John Brademas, then president of NYU, and Professor Volkmar Sander, the founding director of Deutsches Haus, for restoring the house to its present landmark condition.

Despite modest dimensions, Deutsches Haus includes a lecture hall, a conference room, a reception area, two classrooms, a reading lounge and several small offices. The first-floor lecture hall opens onto a shaded courtyard - an ideal space for open-air literary readings and performances.

Director

1978-1992 Professor Volkmar Sander (Founder and Director)

1993-1996 Professor Bernd Hueppauf (ex officio as Chair of the German Dept.)

1995-1996 Dr. Heidrun Suhr (Director, resignation due to illness)

1996-1997 Professsor Avital Ronell (ex officio as Chair of the German Dept.)

1997-1999 Dr. Rolf Buumer (Director)

1999-2003 Professor Bernd Huppauf (Director)

2003-2005 Professor Friedrich Ulfers (Director)

2005-present Dr. Kathrin DiPaola (Director)