Zeitgeist: 100 Years of Bauhaus
The Bauhaus signet
If zeitgeist is ‘the defining spirit or mood of a particular period of history as shown by the ideas and beliefs of the time,’ then possibly nothing is more representative of that than Bauhaus. This year marks the centennial anniversary of the world’s most influential school of art, design and architecture in the 20th century. Founded 1919 in Weimar, Germany by architect Walter Gropius (1883–1969), Bauhaus was only active for only 14 years until 1933 as: the ‘State Bauhaus’ in Weimar; ‘School of Design’ in Dessau; and, as a private education institute in Berlin.
The Bauhaus building in Dessau / Photo: Hjochheim
Combining elements of both fine arts and design education, the Bauhaus’ core objective was to reimagine the material world to reflect the unity of all the arts. In executing this mandate, it pioneered a new way of living, shattering long-held distinctions between craft and art, and celebrating modern ideals of efficiency, industry and the purity of raw materials. The Bauhaus ultimately created a movement and had a profound influence on subsequent developments in art, architecture, graphic design, interior design, industrial design, and typography, which continues to influence, inform and inspire 21st Century design communities. Indeed, a timeless aesthetic.
How it all started
The German term Bauhaus—literally, "building house"—was understood to mean "School of Building.” Though it did not initially have an architecture department, its founder, architect Walter Gropius, intended to create a Gesamtkunstwerk ("total' work of art"), a place in which all the arts, including architecture, would eventually come together. The curriculum was structured such that students would be taught everything under one roof in a compulsory, multi-disciplinary foundation course known as the Vorkurs, after which students could move into areas of specialization.
From the outset, the Bauhaus attracted high-quality artists, architects and designers to its teaching staff, and among the first known recruits were Lyonel Feininger (1871-1956) and Johannes Itten (1888-1967). The latter a particularly colorful character who followed the esoteric Mazdaznan faith and so began his classes with gymnastics and breathing exercises. Some believe his employ was an example of the forward-thinking place Bauhaus was, where diverse opinions, theories and artistic styles were encouraged. Among a second wave of teachers hired in the early 1920s were Paul Klee (1879-1940), Wassily Kandinsky (1866-44) and Oskar Schlemmer (1888-1943). Klee was highly popular with students because of his ‘calm, thought-provoking way of teaching’ a manner that earned him the nickname ‘Bauhaus Buddha’. He was in charge of workshops for bookbinding and stained glass, and also taught design theory. He constantly stressed the affinities between building and picture-construction. A painting, he said, ‘is built up piece by piece, no different from a house’ — and a painter, like an architect, must ensure that his constructions are load-bearing and stable.”
Kandinsky moved to Bauhaus from Moscow, and taught mural painting and analytical drawing. He believed that although many people think there was no fundamental correspondence between color and form, squares were intrinsically red, circles are blue and triangles, yellow. This belief inspired the look of a number of products designed at the Bauhaus. Schlemmer was in charge of theatre workshops and crafted numerous avant-garde stage productions, most famously Triadic Ballet, in which dancers in geometric-shaped costumes made mathematically-inspired moves in a manner that resembled wireless marionettes. The piece would subsequently influence a host of performers after him, from David Bowie to Lady Gaga.
While these male icons and others (such as Josef Albers (1888-1976), László Moholy-Nagy (1895-1946) among others) are some of the most celebrated pioneers of modern art, female artists also taught, studied, and made groundbreaking work at Bauhaus. Although the school’s manifesto stated that it welcomed “any person of good repute, without regard to age or sex,” given the time period, its no surprise a strong gender bias nonetheless informed its structure. Female students, for example, were encouraged to pursue weaving rather than male-dominated mediums like painting, carving, and architecture. Gropius encouraged this distinction through his vocal belief that men thought in three dimensions, while women could only handle two! Regardless, Bauhaus women not only advanced the school’s historic mission of uniting art and function, they were essential in laying the groundwork for art and design innovations for weavers, industrial designers, photographers, architects, and more.
Just a few of several notable Bauhaus women include: Anni Albers (1899-1994), her early tapestries had considerable impact on the development of geometric abstraction in the visual arts, along with the work of several of her Bauhaus peers; Marianne Brandt (1983-1983), who became one of Germany’s most celebrated industrial designers, her early metal works earned her a space László Moholy-Nagy metal workshop at Bauhaus, where she succeed him in 1928; and, Gertrude Arndt (1903-2000), a weaver and self-taught photographer who created self-portraits titled Mask Portraits, which ultimately shaped her legacy.
Even works by women who were co-creators with Bauhaus men are today given rightful recognition, such as Lilly Reich (1885-1947), a close collaborator (professionally and personally) with Ludwig Mies van der Rohe (1886-1969) for more than ten years in the late 1920s and '30s. Two of their best known furniture designs are the Barcelona Chair and Brno Chair; among other collaborations. Reich also worked with Joseph Hoffman (1870-1956) on the design of the Kubus armchair and sofa. When van der Rohe became director of the Bauhaus School of Design & Architecture in 1930, Reich joined him as one of the few female teachers on staff. She taught interior design and furniture design.
As time evolved, so too did the Bauhaus. Where the initial focus was on producing hand-crafted, individual objects, by the mid-1920s Gropius declared it should concentrate on designs for industrial mass-production. What remained consistent throughout, however, was that students received a holistic, wide-ranging education. Eventually, Bauhaus had three different homes during it existence: it moved from Weimar to Dessau in 1925, and then to Berlin in 1932. Subsequently succeeding Grobius were architect-directors, Hannes Meyer (1889-1954) from 1928 to 1930, and finally Mies van der Rohe from 1930 until 1933. Under pressure from the Nazi regime as being “a center of communist intellectualism,” the Bauhaus was closed by its own leadership. Afterwards, school staff dispersed but continued to spread Bauhaus idealistic precepts as they left Germany and emigrated all over the world.
This year, museums, galleries, design centers and artistic communities around the world are marking the Bauhaus 100th anniversary by exploring its legacy, design aesthetics, and impact on all facets of the creative industries. Check your local listings for Bauhaus exhibitions and events happening your city.
— Christina Spearman