Bauhaus’s modernist minimalism, a century-old classic

To summarize briefly, from a historical perspective, this is a diversified design school; from an industrial design perspective, this is a style that enables mass production; in the aesthetic context, he explained what less is better (less is better); in terms of influence, Bauhaus can be said to be the origin of modernism.

#Bauhaus#

German BAUHAUS transliteration: the German word for architecture (Bauhaus) is inverted. Its core proposition is to simplify the complex and achieve the unity of art and technology. It was proposed by the German modern architect Walter Gropius and founded the Bauhaus School in Weimar, Germany in 1919.

The semester officially started on April 1st. In Bauhaus academics, theory and practice are emphasized. The school offers 13 different workshops including printing/glass painting/metal/furniture joinery/weaving/photography/stage/book binding/ceramics/architecture/curating to cultivate students' precise practical skills.

On December 4, 1926, the Dessau Bauhaus school building designed by President Gropius was completed. The school building is simple but integrated with multiple functions. It is shocking with its large glass facade and zigzag shape. At that time, the art world showed a new concept of architectural space.

The design philosophy of Bauhaus

Form follows function, loyalty to raw materials, and less is more are the three design precepts of Bauhaus.

His establishment marked the birth of modern design education. Before the Bauhaus style, Gothic, Baroque/Rococo were popular, with strong religious overtones and a bit of aristocratic feel. Bustling patterns cannot adapt to industrial mass production. Then the Bauhaus advocated returning design to the design itself, emphasizing practicality and functionality, and creating simple products that can be used by people of all walks of life.

About the three development periods of the Bauhaus:

01#1919-1925 Weimar period

With Grobius as the principal During the "Utopia" period, at that stage, there were no artists or craftsmen who had both theory and design. The Bauhaus is equipped with a number of modeling teachers and technical teachers to teach at the same time, aiming to cultivate "all-round craft design artists".

02# Dessau period from 1925 to 1932

In the "Communist" period with Hans Mayer as the principal, his expectations for the Bauhaus were not only The demand of the whole people has replaced the demand of luxury, and it is intensively combined with the operation of factories. Under Meyer's leadership, the Bauhaus also made its first profit. However, Meyer's ultra-leftist, pan-politicized, and anti-art stance worsened his relationship with the faculty and the Dessau government, and the Bauhaus His social status is in jeopardy.

03#1932-1933 Berlin period

Ludwig Mies van der Rohe served as the principal. In 1933, teachers and students were arrested by the Nazi Secret State Police for criticizing the institution. On the grounds that the producers of "degenerate art" were forcibly evicted from the country and the school was occupied, on August 10, the Bauhaus was announced to be permanently disbanded on the grounds of economic difficulties.

The Bauhaus legend covering many great masters

1. The origin of the three major components

In today’s design teaching, there is a very important learning system , called the three major components, and this system was established by the Bauhaus, and the prototype was founded by John Eaton.

Eton was the first to create a modern basic course. There are two aspects of his course that are particularly important. One is to emphasize the in-depth understanding of colors, materials and textures, two-dimensional and three-dimensional or plane and The exploration and understanding of three-dimensional forms; the second is to find out the visual rules through the analysis of paintings, especially the rhythmic structure and structural rules, so that students can gradually develop a special visual sensitivity to natural things.

He is the first teacher in the world to introduce the color solid created by Munsell in 1912 into design teaching. He insists that color is rational. In fact, it can be deduced that design has a high degree of scientific nature. , he emphasized that students must first understand the scientific composition of color before they can talk about the free expression of color, and integrate the relationship between points, lines, surfaces, and shapes. His courses are the three major components that have been used in design education for generations to come.

2. Construction of a teaching system

The emphasis of this system is that "design teaching should be based on science, not art." Prior to this, the art school's teaching method used a single-column structure. This system method was described by Gropius: "A line cannot support a superstructure." Therefore, Bauhaus created its own system, using the three-pillar model.

3. Duesberg

Duesberg is the founder of the Dutch "De Stijl" and the founder of "Style" magazine. He and the first Bauhaus painter The first contact was a visit, during which he became very interested in Bauhaus.

The "De Stijl" established by Duesberg is also called the Neo-Plasticist school of painting. Its purpose is to completely reject the use of any concrete elements and only use pure colors and geometric images to express pure spirit. Moreover, Duesberg emphasized the use of straight lines in the early days, and later advocated the use of diagonal lines to create a sense of movement in the picture. In the future, whenever you see similar colors and lines, you will know that this is De Stijl originating from the Netherlands.

4. Moholy-Nagy and Jockey Club Brewer

Constructivism emphasizes movement in space rather than the sense of volume that traditional sculpture emphasizes. A sculpture made from pieces of metal, glass, wood, cardboard or plastic.

1) Moholy-Nagy

His courses are very popular among students because he is very good at inspiring students to think. He once had two very interesting projects. The first one asked students to use a piece of paper to make something that could stay in the air for the longest time, and tested it on the roof of the building. At that time, students worked all night long, some making airplanes, and some making various shapes, but the length of stay was not ideal.

The last student named Marcel Breuer took a piece of white paper and threw it out. It floated in the air for a long time without coming down. He won completely, A. Some students who had stayed up all night were so angry that they complained to Nagy that Marcel Breuer had not done any operation or design.

Nagy said that I just need to find something that can float for the longest time, and does not limit it in any form, so the meaning of Najib’s doing this is to let students know how to review the functional purpose of design and emphasize the function. guide.

The second topic is to use paper to make a chair that can bear the weight of a person. Similarly, everyone worked all night long to make chairs of various shapes, but the load-bearing effect was not good. Ideal, at this time, Marcel Breuer appeared again, took out a sack filled with scrap newspapers, threw it on the ground and sat on it, comfortable, A.

2) Marcel Breuer

He pioneered the design of steel tube furniture. Inspired by bicycle handles, he designed the world's first steel tube furniture, which aroused global interest. The trend of steel tube furniture.

5. Kandinsky

Kandinsky is regarded as a pioneer of abstract art and the founder of modern abstract art theory and practice. In 1922, when he was already old, he entered the He taught at the Bauhaus, and his understanding of color and form was very similar to that of Eton. However, Eton focused on the teaching of overall laws, while Kandinsky focused on the use of color in specific projects, which just complemented each other.

Kandinsky was born in Moscow in 1866. He was also an academic master. He became famous for his paintings. The sales price of his paintings reached 15 million US dollars. He once worked as a law professor and taught at the university. He resigned from his position after he was 30 years old and studied full-time. Paint and become a professional painter. During his time at the Bauhaus, Kandinsky also published his own basic course tutorials, such as "Points, Lines and Surfaces", which were eventually compiled into the Bauhaus series.

Finally, although the existence of Bauhaus was short-lived, it detonated modern art like gorgeous fireworks and brought new opportunities to art in the early 20th century.

Watches, home decoration, cups, chairs, daily necessities, buildings, etc. Today, a hundred years later, we can feel the shadow of Bauhaus everywhere, and it gradually penetrates into our lives over time. .