the BAUHAUS:a short history 1919-1933

In 1919 Walter Gropius was asked to direct the Wiemar combined Schools of fine arts and arts and crafts. He renamed it “Das Staatliches Bauhaus.”

The program at the Bauhaus was based in the arts and crafts idea of “Gesamtkunstwerk.”

Originally the ideal of the Bauhaus was the medieval crafts guilds that surrounded the building of the great cathedrals of Europe—each craft received equal attention and respect and all worked together for the common good.”

Although it began with an emphasis on expressionism, for multiple reasons, within a few years it shifted toward the practical and industrial methods. The utopian craft-workshop ideals were combined with an interest in exploring new materials and new methods of manufacture.

Walter Gropius, Director: Founded 1919

Joost SchmidtBauhaus Poster1923

Bauhaus

The complete building is the final aimof the visual arts.

“The artist is an exalted craftsman. In raremoments ....work may blossom into art.But proficiency in his craft is essential to every artist. Therein lies a sourceof creative imagination. . . Let us create a guild of craftsmen withoutclass distinction. “

Lyonel Feininger - 1919 titlepage for Bauhaus manifesto shows a cathedral

Original Bauhaus Manifesto

Bauhaus

Teachers :

Johnneses Itten. Started foundation program,Color

Moholy-Nagy Foundations, Materials, Photography

Wassily Kandinsky Analytical drawing and Color

Oscar SchlemmerLife Drawing

Joost Schmidt Calligraphy , typography,theory of form

Herbert Bayer Typography and Graphics

Josef Albers Painting and color theory

Bauhaus

the MAJOR FIGURES:johannes itten

Bauhaus

Preliminary Course. started by Johannes IttenItten was the original director of thefoundation program -

Introduced student to new language of visionthrough direct experience and experimentwith proportion, scale, rhythm, light, shade.

Preliminary Course:

Diagram of the course of study at the Bauhaus

Bauhaus

Itten developed a “general contrast theory”as the foundation for creative expression.

It was conceived as a period of direct investigation during which studentsexplored the possibilities of new forms and new materials, rather than copy existing forms,

Preliminary Course:

contrast problem in preliminarycourse taught by Joost Schmidt

Bauhaus

A wide variety of materials were examinedand combined in a search for new expressive form.

Itten emphasized learning throughdirect sensory exploration as way todevelop creative sensibilities.

Preliminary Course:

Josef Albers begins his experimentand teachings on the Interaction of Color

BauhausPaul Klee

Preliminary Course:

Paintings by Wassily Kandinskyand Joseph Albers, both instructors in the preliminary program.

Also a basic contrast study (student project)

Bauhaus

Preliminary Course:

Mysticism: Itten emphasized the rebirth ofthe individual,combining studies witheastern forms of meditation and fasting.

Like Malevich and Mondrian, Itten studied Eastern philosophy, particularlyLao-Tse and writings of Tibetan monks.

(This is on conflict with Gropius’ideals of scientific objectivism and Peter Behren’s new objectivity)

Bauhaus

Under pressure from Walter Gropius, Itten stepped down from the foundation program in 1923, to be replaced by Lazlo Moholy-Nagy. Gropius’ ideal was more a unity of art and technology and he tried to put program on a more objective and scientific basis.

Preliminary Course:

Lazlo Moholy-Nagy appointed to directthe Preliminary course 1923 (replaced Itten)

The “model for preliminary investigation became more “technological research.

. . .geared to the inner forces and practical possiblities of the material and led to a more impersonal creativity” —Joseph Albers

Emphasis on economy “Minimum effort ... maximum effect”

Bauhaus

the MAJOR FIGURES:laszlo moholy-nagy

Note from a student: “none of us who had suggested Moholy liked his constructivism. This “Russian” trend created outside of the Bauhaus—with its exact, technical forms—was disgusting to us who were devoted to the extremes of German expressionism. But since constructivism was the newest of the new, it was, so we figured, the cleverest move to overcome our aversion

Moholy came as the “champion of youth” in contrast to the “old faculty members” Kandinsky, Feininger and Klee,

Bauhaus

Moholy-Nagy

In photography, Moholy-Nagy explored new points of view, light modulators, photograms, and photomontage

Bauhaus

Gropius Houses in DessauIn photography, he explored new points of view, light modulators, photograms, and photomontage

Gropius Houses in DessauIn photography, he explored new points of view, light modulators, photograms, and photomontage

Published Book: PAINTING, PHOTOGRAPHY AND FILM : 1925 “A manifesto of a futurist approach to a new art of light, a clean break with the past, a purist truth to the materials of the medium, providing a hope for new revelations about materials, creativity and environment”

(The Bauhaus did not accept his ideas of photography as an independent medium - this he carries with him to the NEW BAUHAUS where he started the first fine art photography program)

THE NEW VISION 1930

VISION IN MOTION , 1947(Published in Chicago

Book design using strong rectilinear grid elements - Title: “Painting photography and Film” (Other books by Moholy-Nagy include “The New Vision” and “Vision in Motion”)

bauhaus: Moholy-Nagy

Bauhaus

The technique of photomontage is used for many purposes in the 1920s— employed by Dadaist, Surrrealists, Constructivists and to make social comment

Hannah HochRaoul Hausmann John HeartfieldGustav Clutis

Bauhaus

What were the reasons for the shift from the emphasis on Expressionism and art as a spiritual and personal process

Functionalism, with an emphasis on machine aesthetics, new materials, economic integration, and mass production?

Question

Gropius designed the new building which opened in 1926, as a model for new industrial architecture.

They formed the Bauhaus Corporation tohandle business connections in product design, furniture, display design and graphics

bauhaus: the Dessau years 1925-1932 Political conservatives in Weimar forced the

Bauhaus to move to Dessau in 1925

Bauhaus

Gropius also designed functionalist-style houses for the faculty in Dessau

PAINTING, PHOTOGRAPHY AND FILM : 1925 A manifesto of futurist approach to a new art of light - a clean break with the past A purist truth to the materials of the medium, providing a hope for new revelations about materials, creativity and environment.

(The bauhaus did not accept his ideas of photography as an independent medium - this he carries with him to the NEW BAUHAUS)

Bauhaus

Theo Van Doesburg lectured at the Bauhausand held meetings with students and faculty, promoting the ideals of the Dutch De Stijl movement.

This cover design was done by Moholy-Nagy showing the extent of de Stijl influence.

cover design for i10 magazine 1927

Bauhaus

Collaboration between El Lissitsky andJoost Schmidt on a book called Photo-Eye

bauhaus- influences : El Lissitsky

Bauhaus

Exhibition design, 1930

exhibit for industrial assoc. of canned goods manufactures1930

integrated work of typography, sculpture and cabinet workshops using spatial grid

Joost Schmidt

Bauhaus

Maria Brandt : tea pot 1924from Bauhaus metal workshop. (example of geometric machined forms applied to functional object)

(Notice the difference between the economy of design in the Bauhaus design and the more ornate and complicated produce designs by Peter Behrens in his tea kettle and heater for AEG, 1907, shown here.)

Bauhaus: Dessau 1925-1932; Product design

Bauhaus

the MAJOR FIGURES:herbert bayer

Bauhaus

Herbert Bayer’s design and typographyCover for Bauhaus Magazine1928composed in front of cameraintegrating type and photo

Announcement for Schlemmer’s workshop

Bauhaus

herbert bayer: kandinsky exhibition poster, 1926example of principles of the new typography—particularly asymmetrical balance

herbert bayer or Laszlo Moholy-Nagy: design for Bauhausbucher, 1926

Bauhaus

Herbert Bayer: typographic innovations

Bayer's experiments with typography were an inspiration to generations of type designers including Paul Renner whose typeface futura is still extremely popular

He followed the dictum of eliminating all ornament and trying use only simple geometric shapes, and using the minimum number of geometric elements.

He believed in eliminating capital letters. A total renunciation of the calligraphic roots of letterforms.

Principles of his type design included•simplification in the interest of of legibility•clean proportions•elimination of serifs•adaptation to mechanical setting

In 1933 he was employed by Berthold type foundry and designed a more classical "bayer type" which was based less dogmatically on the above principles.

universal alphabet, 1925, reducing

letterforms to simple, geometric shapes

billboard, 1932Bayer’s work is so influential because he went on to apply his principles for many years in large scale advertising, exhibit and architectural design, as well as in experimental photography and painting.

Bauhaus

Bauhaus furniture design:marcel breuermies van der rohe

Bauhaus

In the furniture workshop, Marcel Breuer developed the use of tubular steel for furniture.

The work of both Breuer and Mies van der Rohe exemplify the modernist

aesthetic, combining elegantly form, function, and the intrinsic properties

of the materials.

(below) The Wassily Chair, named for Wassily Kandinski.

Bauhaus

The Barcelona chair design was created by Mies van der Rohe - for the German Pavilion ata trade fair in Barcelona. He designed the entire pavilion, including the furniture.

This is in keeping with the idea of total design integration that began with the arts and crafts movement, was practiced by Frank Lloyd Wright and was a guiding principle of Walter Gropius.

Bauhaus

Mies van der Rohe put his stamp on Chicago, designing the Federal Building and Post Office, and the apartments on Lakeshore Drive.

Examples of modernism, they use no decoration, depend on balanced proportions and space to achieve an aesthetic effect. The unbroken straight lines are accentuated by I-beams attached to the outside which reflect the internal structureMany of the chair designs are still in production.

Do you knowwho designed Federal PlazaIn Chicago?

Meis van der Rohe; steel chair and chaise lounge; (above) Mies van der Rohe. The Brno chair, (left) created for a home he designed in Brno, Slovakia. (again, total design)

Mies van der RoheBrno chair,Designed for a homein Brno, Slovakia.

bauhaus: Dessau 1925-1932

Bauhaus

By 1928, Gropius, Moholy, and Bayer have left.

Conservative government forces closure in Dessau in 1932

architect Ludwig Mies van der Roheassumed directorship and reopens in Berlin but is forced to close forlast time in 1933.

Final Years -

Bauhaus

Design Diaspora

Gropius and Breuer moved to USA and taught at Harvard, active architectural practice

Albers - taught at Black Mt. NC and later at Yale: published on his Interaction of Color color theory

Bayer moved to USA, worked in exhibition design and promotions for Knoll furniture

Moholy-Nagy started the New Bauhaus in Chicago (which became part of IIT. He promoted creative photography programs at masters level)

Tschichold moved to London and designs books for Pelican and promotes return to classical type

Max Huber returned to Milan

Max Bill returned to Switzerland - later designed program at Ulm, Germany after war

Mies van der Rohe, moved to Chicago, joined thefaculty of the IIT, and practiced design.

other

Bayer:exhibit on early Bauhausat MOMA, NY 1938 markings on floor guide viewer

Bauhaus

Mies van der Rohe put his stamp on Chicago, designing the Federal Building and Post Office, and the campus of the Illinois Institute of Technology (shown below)

Examples of modernism, they use no decoration, depend on balanced proportions and space to achieve an aesthetic effect. The unbroken straight lines are accentuated by I-beams attached to the outside which reflect the internal structure. Many of the chair designs are still in production.

Bauhaus

the New Typography: jan tschichold

applied and explained the principles of the New Typography1925

For Tschichold, the “declared aim of typographic design was the delivery of a message is the shortest, most efficient manner.”

(This is in keeping with the ideals of functionalism.)

new typography: jan tschichold

A manual for printers and designers, published in 1928, explaining the principles of the New Typography

The New Typography

new typography: jan tschichold

Principles of the new typography:

dynamic force should be present in each design

asymmetrical design (symmetrical design puts form over content)

contrasting elements

no embellishment; rejected decoration

Sans serif type in a range of weights and proportions allowed for an expressive abstract design

white space used as important element in determining structure and meaning

Designed based on underlying vertical and horizontal elements (a grid)

Rules, Bars, and boxes used for structure, balance and emphasis

Advertisment 1924

The New Typography

new typography: jan tschichold

Principles of the new typography:

dynamic force should be present in each design

asymmetrical design (symmetrical design puts form over content)

contrasting elements

no embellishment; rejected decoration

Sans serif type in a range of weights and proportions allowed for an expressive abstract design

white space used as important element in determining structure and meaning

Designed based on underlying vertical and horizontal elements (a grid)

Rules, Bars, and boxes used for structure, balance and emphasis

The New Typography

new typography: jan tschichold

Principles of the new typography:

dynamic force should be present in each design

asymmetrical design (symmetrical design puts form over content)

contrasting elements

no embellishment; rejected decoration

Sans serif type in a range of weights and proportions allowed for an expressive abstract design

white space used as important element in determining structure and meaning

Designed based on underlying vertical and horizontal elements (a grid)

Rules, Bars, and boxes used for structure, balance and emphasis

The New Typography

new typography: jan tschichold

Principles of the new typography:

dynamic force should be present in each design

asymmetrical design (symmetrical design puts form over content)

contrasting elements

no embellishment; rejected decoration

Sans serif type in a range of weights and proportions allowed for an expressive abstract design

white space used as important element in determining structure and meaning

Designed based on underlying vertical and horizontal elements (a grid)

Rules, Bars, and boxes used for structure, balance and emphasis

The New Typography

new typography: jan tschichold

Principles of the new typography:

dynamic force should be present in each design

asymmetrical design (symmetrical design puts form over content)

contrasting elements

no embellishment; rejected decoration

Sans serif type in a range of weights and proportions allowed for an expressive abstract design

white space used as important element in determining structure and meaning

Designed based on underlying vertical and horizontal elements (a grid)

Rules, Bars, and boxes used for structure, balance and emphasis

Cover for Elements of Typography 1925 The New Typography

new typography: jan tschichold

Principles of the new typography:

dynamic force should be present in each design

asymmetrical design (symmetrical design puts form over content)

contrasting elements

no embellishment; rejected decoration

Sans serif type in a range of weights and proportions allowed for an expressive abstract design

white space used as important element in determining structure and meaning

Designed based on underlying vertical and horizontal elements (a grid)

Rules, Bars, and boxes used for structure, balance and emphasis

The New Typography

Advertisment 1924 and

Cover for Elements of Typography 1925 Jan Tschichold

The New Typography

Interior pages for Elements of Typography 1925 the new typography: Jan Tschichold

The New Typography

Henryk Berlewi and Mechano-Factura; believed in the abolition of the third dimension in art, pure, flat shapes and geometry

The New Typography

Piet ZwartInfluential typographerphotographer and designer in the Netherlandsstressed functional designBased on the principles ofdeStijl but evolved a moreexpressive “field of tension”as he called it.

Made effective use ofvigorous contrasts of weights, sizes andalignments

The New Typography

New sans serif fonts werecreated to meet the demandsand restraints of the New Typography

Futura Paul Renner 1928

Univers Adrian Frutiger, 1954Systematic variations of font, Univers provides dynamic contrast in color, weight and emphasis while keeping simple unity and harmony.

Helvetica Max Miedinger and Edouard Hoffman, 1961

(Above) HelveticaEdouard Hoffman and Max Miedinger

(Above) Adrian Frutiger21 variations on the letter UUnivers font - 1954

The New Typography

Travel Posters by Herbert MatterSwiss, 1930s

The New Typography

Poster by Paula Scher, 1985)Poster by Herbert Matter, 1934

Contemporary designer Paula ScherBorrows heavily from the visual vocabulary of Constructivism and the New Typography ofthe 1920s and 30s)

The New Typography

The New Typography

Much of what is taught at designschools around the world as thefundamentals of typographicdesign draws heavily on theprinciples of the new typographyand its further refinements anddevelopments in Swiss modernism.

Projects from Bradley’s Art 205Typographic Design class

1. accepted the machine as in instrument of the artist

2. addressed the problems of good design for mass production; and bridged gap between artist and industrial system

3. brought together on faculty and in student body a notably distinguished concentration of talent

4. Its architecture at Dessau was some of the most influential of the century

6. developed and articulated principles of a modern aesthetic

7. Its influence on design teaching – particularly the foundation program - spread throughout the world.

Why is the Bauhaus important?

After World War Two, Jan Tschichold rejected most of theprinciples of the new typography and in his work for Pelican Books, looked back to moreclassical typography. He felt that the new typography was too dogmatic and that serif typewas more comfortable to read than sans serif. What do you think?

To do: Collect some samples of text material in both sans and serif type. Compare readability.

Does the context or the content affect the appropriateness of one or the other?