Joseph Klarwein

Joseph Klarwein was born in 1893 in Warsaw

Klarwein was born in Warsaw in 1893. His father, Menachem, taught Hebrew and drew him toward Zionism. After the failed revolution of 1905 and rising persecution of Jews, the family fled to Germany.

He studied architecture in Munich from 1917 to 1919 but did not receive a degree. In 1920 he studied with Hans Poelzig in Berlin. From 1921 to 1933 he worked for Fritz Höger in Hamburg, where his designs, including the Church at Hohenzollernplatz in Berlin, appeared under Höger's name.

After the Nazis rose to power, he moved to the Land of Israel with his wife, opera singer Elsa Kühne, and their son Mati. He settled in Haifa, changed his name from Ossip to Yosef, opened his own office and taught at the Technion. He designed public and commercial buildings and master plans across the country, as well as private homes.

His design for the Knesset won the 1957 competition, and he worked on the project until its completion. He also planned Mount Herzl, the Hebrew University campus at Givat Ram and the government complex there with Richard Kauffmann and Heinz Rau.

In 1948 his wife and son moved to Paris. From 1960 he lived in Jerusalem, where he died in 1970. His archive is kept at the Central Zionist Archives.