100 new Bauhaus objects
The Bauhaus Archive in Berlin holds the world's largest collection from the history of the form - which celebrates its 100th birthday in 2019. The archive presents 100 new objects in a special exhibition.
More than an idea
Walter Gropius founded the Bauhaus art school in 1919 - and it would prove the most important school of art, design and architecture over the next 14 years. In its short time in existence, Bauhaus influenced not only its own, but future generations. Its simple geometric forms - such as in this teapot designed by Marianne Brandt (1924) - remain influential to this day.
Where pictures meet words
Bauhaus presented itself not only through products and project, but with pictures and words. In 1919, Lyonel Feiniger designed the expressionist title page for "Cathedral," the inaugural Bauhaus manifesto - with the aim of drawing wide attention. A room within the exhibition is dedicated to the rise of Bauhaus as a popular form.
The art of architecture
"The ultimate aim of all creative activity is the building" - so proclaimed the Bauhaus manifesto. In Weimar, the architectural drafts of designers such as Fakas Molnar remained unrealized. However, moving to Dessau the school established its own construction department of architecture in 1926. The Bauhaus Archives dedicates a room to exhibiting such drafts and designs.
Form as the norm
The new Bauhaus program of 1923 adopted the stylistic elements of expressionism. The images and products were factual in design and construction. The art was influenced by industrial design and the artists created simple forms conducive to mass production - as shown here in Anni Albers' "Flügeldecke" design from 1926, rewoven in 1964.
Designed for the times
Practical, functional, high quality - that was the unofficial motto of Bauhaus creations. The archive showcases domestic creations from the Bauhaus movement, including rugs, lamps and furniture. As with this 1929 kitchen from Marcel Breuer - at a time when more and more women were choosing to pursue professional careers, furniture was designed to save time on housework.
Geometry in the nursery
From houses to toys. Developed by Friedrich Fröbel in the early 19th century, the building block design was expanded by Alma Buscher in 1923 to create this ship. She was responsible for the design of the nursery in the Musterhaus am Horn in Weimar - a Bauhaus architectural prototype. The Bauhaus Archive in Berlin has managed to secure the only large original toy from the estate of the family.
Color psychology
The Bauhaus movement not only set new standards for size and shape, but also invented an entirely new color scale. The poet Johann Wolfgang von Goethe experimented with color circles in his "Theory of Colors" to represent "human psychological and emotional life" - something Katja Rose draws on for her lessons in 1932 with students at the Bauhaus school.
Intimate portrait
A room in the newly redesigned collection portrays the social interaction of the Bauhaus. Lyonel Feininger's 'little ghosts' - a new addition to the exhibition - is an example. In exile, the painter wrote this card to Werner Jackson, who played in the Bauhaus band with Feininger's son, T. Lux. It comes from the estate of Werner Jackson.
The real picture
Although T.Lux, the son of Lyonel Feininger, saw himself foremost as a painter, he also was a respected photographer. Here, he captures the Swiss painter Xanti Schawinsky playing saxophone. Gertrud Arndt, known for her weaving, is also well known for her masked images taken with a timer. Photographs are a major component in the new acquisitions of the archive in Berlin.
The last turns out the light
While the famous Wagenfeld lamp was the first of its kind designed by the Bauhaus, this Bormann lamp of 1932 was the last. This new addition to the archives was designed in a metal workshop at the Bauhaus in Dessau and produced in a factory. Its special features include a cable encased in the metal tube which serves as the base and a shade loosely fitted so the light dispersion can be modified.
100 objects for 100 years of Bauhaus
In 1932, the Bauhaus moved to Berlin for one year before the Nazis had the school completely dissolved in 1933. A room in the exhibition is dedicated to the fates of the various Bauhaus students and practitioners. The archive collection has expanded so much that, to coincide with the 100th anniversary, the building will be extended.