Bauhaus essay

Dhirubhai Ambani Institute of Information and Communication Technology Essay on BAUHAUS : DESIGNED PRODUCTS AND KEYS IDEAS OF MODERNISM Supervisor Prof. Madhumita Mazumdar Project by P. Pavan Teja Masters of Design - 202014001

1 BAUHAUS - INTRODUCTION Bauhaus was an influential art and design movement of the early twentieth century widely known for its modern industrial, graphic and architectural design. The word bauhaus comes from a german origin meaning ‘to build’ and ‘house’. Th​ e Bauhaus school was founded by a German architect named Walter Gropius in 1919​. Bauhaus was influenced by art movements of that period like ‘Art and Craft Movement’ and ‘Art Nouveau’. One of the main intentions of the bauhaus movement was to unite fields like fine arts, design and technology along with the idea of combining painting, sculpture and architecture into a single form of expression. Bauhaus is often perceived as a thought or style but it is a design institute which brings together design and technology along with various arts of painting, architecture, theater, photography, weaving, typography, etc under one roof making it possible for all the creative forms taught by the extraordinary faculty. The Bauhaus school was known as the most influential modernist school of the early twentieth century, the school followed an original curriculum focusing on the practical skills, crafts, techniques and theoretical knowledge for both art and design students. Bauhaus school focuses on functionality along with the form which helped them become the first to understand the relationship between art and technology which led to the development of mass production of products to help reach the common people. Bauhaus design while maintaining functionality it embodies a futuristic look with clean geometric forms and balanced visual composition with materials such as glass, metal and wood.

2 Bauhaus school has a lot of iconic designs which stood the test of time and influencing and inspiring the younger design generations. HISTORY In the middle of the First World war in Russia in 1917, workers class and soldier soviets seized power which inspired the german to form communist factions which led to a similar revolution for germany. On January 19 of 1919, Weimar elections were held and the Weimar republic was established. This republic was formed as a democracy by the people. Even though the Weimar republic was a democratic, politically it couldn’t provide enough for the roots of any creative life and culture. However, there is little evidence which suggests that the Weimar republic was a part of a distinctive cultural period which was symbolised better in the bauhaus. This cultural diversity was a combination of artistic vision and reality and with the financial support of the provincial government, Walter Gropius opened an academy of arts in weimar where his vision of combining arts and crafts along with the removal of the class differences of technical ideas and practices. In 1920, Two important events took place which helped change the Bauhaus. First was the International conference of the Avant garde brought up the idea on purity of form and honesty of construction which helped establish a constructivist international in 1922 in order to help the constructivist artists as an international collective style. Second was an exhibition of Soviet design which focused interest not only in constructivism but also the social aims. Anti-communists and Socialist party began to control and influence Bauhaus in Weimer. Which led the school to shift to Dassau in 1925 where it ran until 1932 under the director Hannes Meyer. As the Socialist party was becoming more influential and interfering with school, School was shifted to Berlin in

3 late 1932, where director of the school Mies Van Der Rohe rented a factory building with his own money and used it as the new building as the new bauhaus. In Berlin the school operated for around 10 months and eventually closed down the Berlin school in 1933. IMPORTANCE AND INFLUENCE OF BAUHAUS The main objective of Bauhaus was to bring together art, design and technology. Unification of creative fields with technology and to reduce the differences between an artist and a technical practitioner. The machine was considered as a positive element for design especially product and industrial design. Use of technology for mass production of products like furniture in large quantities and cheaper production cost and make it available even for common people. Bauhaus had a distinctive ideology and practices which influenced the development of art, architecture, graphic design, furniture design, interior design, industrial design and also typography. Migration of bauhaus artists also helped spread these ideas even after the shutdown of the school. Bauhaus style is very unique and has influenced the modern world of design and architecture by applying the combination of art and technology, this helped Bauhaus outlast other trends in design and architecture. DESIGNED PRODUCTS OF BAUHAUS 1922: The Bauhaus Cradle was designed by Peter Keler in the early days of the German design school. This product is a typical example of the Bauhaus period due to use of geometric shapes with the furniture with playful colors and minimal form with functionality in play. This product is a combination of artistic and functional design. The design based on need and function embodies the idea of modernism.

4 1922: The Chess Set designed by Josef Hartwig is a typical example of timeless design of bauhaus with its modern style and minimal features using cubes, spheres and cylinders. The design of each piece indicates its manoeuvre. Individualism idea of modernism is seen here with the creation of individual characters of pieces despite their similar characteristics. This shows the skilled craftsmanship, creativity and innovation of the bauhaus movement. 1924: The Tea Infuser designed by Marianne Brandt. This product is an example of how a product or object of daily use can be designed using basic forms. Use of fundamental geometric shapes and forms for the minimalistic design and also combining functionality and aesthetic which is a key idea of modernism. It has a non drip spout, built in strainer and a heat resistant handle made of ebony. 1924: The Bauhaus Lamp designed by Wilhelm Wagenfeld and is known for its iconic design and this product was among the first objects to use the bauhaus’s technology system and use of precisely cut glass and metal for construction in its commercial product. This product is an example of form following function, the lamp has simple geometric shape which helps achieve the idea of modernism of minimalism, simplicity and great economy. This lamp is perceived as the icon of modern industrial design. 1925: The Wassily Chair is designed by Marcel Breuer, This chair design is probably the most famous of all the Bauhaus chairs.The design of the chair is an example of the bauhaus idea and implementation. The ideas of modernism such as the sleek and easily comprehensible design, the innovative use of materials and efficiency of manufacturing can be seen in this chair design. 1926: Nesting Tables designed by Josef Albers when he was made the artistic director of the furniture workshop at Bauhaus from 1926 to 1927. He

5 designed these tables as a study of modern design. Ideas of modernism can be seen in the minimalist style using acrylic glass and solid oak serves as an example for the bauhaus color principles which are taught in their preliminary course at Bauhaus. 1927: The Cesca Chair ​is designed by Marcel Breuer. This chair design is considered one of the best chair designs in the world. Use of tubular steel and by abandoning the traditional construction of a four-legs chair design has made a revolutionary impact and the design is still used for mass production of chairs even today. 1928: The Club Chair was designed by Josef Albers when he was made the director of the Bauhaus furniture workshop. This chair was originally designed for the house of Hans Ludwig and Marguerite Oeser in berlin. The design of this chair follows the ideas of modernism in minimalism and also the efficiency of industrial manufacturing with presenting the iconic design which has later influenced generations of designers in furniture design. The design of this chair allows it to blend in any type of house or studio. 1929: The Barcelona Chair designed by Ludwig van der Rohe and Lilly Reich. This was first developed for the German Pavilion at the International Exposition of Barcelona. The design of the chair was made to be bolted together but later redesigned to create a piece of seamless metal which later became iconic for its frame design. Unlike other bauhaus products which are made to be available for the common people, this was created especially for the spanish royalty. This was added in the list as it follows the ideas of modernism and is manufacturing even today with use of different steel configurations. The Gropius Armchair designed by the Bauhaus founder and german architect Walter Gropius. The Armchair was used by him as an armchair in his office at Dessau Bauhaus. The Gropius Armchair is known by architects

6 and designers and was studied heavily. This arm chair features a bold style, The seat looks blocky and made of fabric or leather with a base made of oak or walnut and is naturally stained ashh colors. This remains an iconic design and is still being manufactured today. This chair is an example of iconic and modern design in individualism. CONCLUSION Bauhaus - The idea to bring all creative fields and practices together under one roof and combining art, design and technology was a difficult goal to be achieved in the early twentieth century but Walter Gropius sensed the necessity for the idea to happen and to spread the teachings without any distinction between various fields of art and technology. This created a unique style for bauhaus and its design which eventually migrated throughout the world and is still used for design inspiration for the products and architecture and the consequences of bauhaus ideology is still seen and practiced today in contemporary design life. Looking at the current design sense of the world is mostly influenced by the bauhaus especially in the architecture and product design.