The Bauhaus and its Effects

The Bauhaus. Photo from Wikimedia Commons

One of the most famous influences on contemporary design was the Bauhaus. Opened in 1919 by Walter Gropius, it was a school dedicated to teaching both the fine and applied arts. The name Bauhaus itself comes from the word Bauhutte, a title for a medieval guild of stonemasons. Gropius wanted the school to break down the prejudice between the so called fine arts and the generally maligned applied arts, which were, and still are among many, considered inferior to painting and sculpting. The Bauhaus was also very much focused on a hands-on approach, and students were expected to produce well-crafted designs. Though the buildings separated into different fields of art, Gropius wanted to bring back that medieval guild atmosphere, and have everyone work on an equal level.

It’s interesting that though he took inspiration from such a premodern source, the products that came from the Bauhaus were revolutionary in their stream-lined, standardized, and mechanical forms. For instance, the International Style in architecture emerged from the Bauhaus, glass and steel brick towers which would dominate corporate architecture for decades. It’s a sort of paradox that such modern results would come from such an old system, but the Bauhaus and Gropius made it work.

Though the Bauhaus eventually was forced to close down, due to the pressures of an impending second world war, the designs it envisioned remained predominant. The unprejudiced mingling of fine and applied arts however, faded someone from the conscious mind. While modern artists had certainly become aware of the power of applied arts as a meaningful art form, Gropius had been unable to completely stop the supposed superiority of painters and sculptors.

However, with that said, in the last few years a new sort of Bauhaus spirit is emerging once again. I blogged in an earlier post about the design firm JMP Creative. While they do not focus so much on the study of art, they do reflect Gropius’ desire to have an even playing fields, a workspace where no one position is considered superior to another. Perhaps art school may remain divided, but young businesses, the new design thinkers, are following in Gropius’ footsteps.