1. Bauhaus
The Bauhaus movement as I believe it was the turning point in the history of Art and design where
‘design’ is of importance. My strategy is to demonstrate that for a product to function well the
design is key.
The first decades of the 20th century was characterised by enormous social and political changes
with a radically changing lifestyle. Technology, manufacturing, science and art was the driving
force.
The Bauhaus was founded in 1919 in Weimar, Germany and was a school for combined ‘fine’ arts
and 'applied’ arts, to teach design principles for life.
The most symbolic Bauhaus building was in Dessau, illustration 1, which was designed by Walter
Gropius himself in 1925, including the mechanically opening windows shown in illustration 2. The
aesthetics of the building was industrial yet it was for academic learning of the arts and crafts.
Already he was combining art & industry.
Illustration 1 Illustration 2
The typography for the signage on the Bauhaus in Dessau, illustration 2, was designed by Herbert
Bayer in 1925 who was both a student and teacher at The Bauhaus. A simple, geometric sans-
serif font inspired by his views of modern typography.
2. The Bauhaus was influential in the Modernist movement. For designers and architects the modern
world gave a new and better way to do things ‘new ways of thinking’ The Bauhaus was a school
where people were trained to use their ability to get the maximum out of their skills. Gropius
proclaimed his goal as being “to create a new guild of craftsmen”. (Anon. designhistory.org. 2010)
Many great Figures studied and taught at the Bauhaus. In the beginning along with Gropius was
Johannes Itten, Lyonel Feininger and Gerhard Marcks and later came architects Ludwig Mies van
der Rohe, Marcel Breur, Hannes Meyer and Artists, Paul Klee and László Moholy-Nagy. The
Bauhaus movement created a magnitude of classic pieces and inspirational work in Europe and
around the world as many of these great figures had to emigrate after the Bauhaus was forced to
close in 1933 due to the political pressure from the Nazi movement.
Wassily Kandinsky taught basic design theory at the Bauhaus with association to form and colour.
Influenced by theosophy, his abstract artwork, illustration 3 and 4, shows his fascination for the
primary colours red, yellow and blue and the geometrical elements such as circles, half circles,
triangles, squares and simple lines. He believed these certain colours in relationship to a certain
shape represented how the reader would feel, making them have an emotional connection. I
believe he influenced colour psychology in design today.
Illustration 3. On White II, 1923 Illustration 4. Yellow, Red, Blue,1925
3. It can be said that the Bauhaus was the first modern art school. Art schools have been strongly
influenced by their teaching of design and still. The Bauhaus curriculum model, illustration 5 is still
used in education today. I know this because I am studying these basic design principles.
Bauhaus Curriculum Model, 1922 in German Translated into English.
Illustration 5
“The Bauhaus curriculum combined theoretic
education and practical training in the educational
workshops. It drew inspiration from the ideals of the
revolutionary art movements and design experiments of
the early 20th century. A woodcut [Illustration 6]
depicted the idealized vision of Walter Gropius, a
"cathedral" of design. ”
(Anon. designhistory.org. 2010)
Lyonel Feininger, Cathedral, woodcut,
Cover of 1st program of Bauhaus April 1919
Illustration 6.
4. When the School was initially opened Walter Gropius had a utopian vision, a perfect and ideal
unity. His aim of the Bauhaus was to bridge the gap in art and industry after world war I, by
creating quality products for mass production without losing style. “The artist” Walter Gropius
declared “possesses the ability to breathe soul into the lifeless product of the machine”. (Weber,
2009).
I believe that the ideals of William Morris within the Art & Crafts movement influenced Walter
Gropius. Morris imposed that creativity had a function and was to be done by a craftsman or
artisan who would be multi-skilled. Morris was the first to set up small factories with craftsman, one
person sitting down and creating. However, he rejected mass production in the midst of an
increasing industrialisation and continued with his handcrafted work. Inspired by nature, it was
very ornate and organic. The Art Nouveau movement that followed shared the same similarities,
but acknowledged the usefulness of mass production.
Gropius wanted the Bauhaus to build on Morris’s beliefs whilst embracing new technologies and
materials as he recognised their benefits for society. Gropius acknowledged that such a different
way of living needed a new design vocabulary that was appropriate to the modern world of
advancing technology. In Contrast to the Art Nouveau movement, the Bauhaus concentrated on
more simplistic forms with very little detail. By removing the ornate decoration on objects, they
could be made quickly and efficiently for less cost.
The Bauhaus changed their program in 1923 "art and technology - a new unity". (Anon.
Bauhaus.de. 2012)
This brought about the ‘idea of design’ that Form – Follows – Function. “Industrial potentials were
to be applied to satisfactory design, regarding both functional and aesthetic aspects. The Bauhaus
workshops produced prototypes for mass production: from lamps to a complete dwelling.” (Anon.
Bauhaus.de. 2012)
The Bauhaus creatives’ took all these concepts into consideration when creating their designs. A
designer’s best test bed for all new technologies is the ‘chair’.
Marcel Breuer a former student who returned to teach at the Bauhaus designed the ‘Wassily
Chair’ in 1925, illustration 7. The stylish design and innovative use of material ‘tubular steel’ was
revolutionary. Breuer adopted the ‘new way of thinking’ by means of design and acknowledged
form-follows-function. The steel was extremely lightweight and extensively stronger than wood.
Suddenly you had a good light weight material that could be moved and mass produced easily yet
was visually very exciting.
5. Illustration 7
In conjunction with the Wessily chair in 1926, Breuer designed a series of stools and tables shown
in illustration 7, he utilised the principle of a gravity defying cantilever construction by turning the
table on its side for his next chair design in 1928, illustration 8. Ludwig Mies van der Rohe another
Bauhaus master developed this design further in 1929, illustration 9.
Cesca dining room chair designed by Marcel Breuer, 1928
Illustration 8
6. Brno chair designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, 1929
Illustration 9
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe design style was very minimal having strong and simple ways to
communicate. He is most known for his architecture combining modern materials such as glass
and steel and the modernist classic ‘Barcelona’ chair in 1929. Illustration 10. Ludwig also
popularised the aphorisms “less is more” and “god is in the detail” which we still use today.
Barcelona chair designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, 1929
Illustration 10
7. These developments in design are what made the Bauhaus famous. By solving solutions with
design was important to the functionality of the product. This is evident today in something we see
and use every day and what most of us take for granted; Britain’s road and motorway signage
system, designed by Jock Kinneir and Margaret Calvert from 1957-1967. We use these signs on a
daily basis and we don’t even give a second thought to their design process, yet without them our
roads would be in utter chaos. As the design museum quoted “This was one of the most ambitious
yet effective design projects ever executed in Britain” (Anon. Designmuseum.org).
Before Kinneir and Calvert, road signs were confusing and difficult to read, illustration 11. They
had various symbols, colours and text in the different counties throughout Britain. It made it
dangerous with the increasing motorists’ on the roads. It was not about aesthetics but function.
They approached the problem from an information design perspective, making them clear and
simple giving a visual understanding in an instant, Calvert stated "It required completely radical
thinking. The information wasn't there in terms of reading distance, clarity and letter spaces. We
had to make up the signs and then test them. It was instinctive." (McClatchey, 2011)
Illustration 11 Illustration 12 Illustration 13
They devised two new typefaces ‘Motorway’ illustration 12 and ‘Transport’ illustration 13, was a
softer and curvier sans serif font which would be seen visually more pleasing and appealing. Many
signs previously were in uppercase, as shown in illustration 11 which were hard to read. Kinneir
and Calvert’s system used upper and lower case words, illustration 13, as research found that
your brain can form the shape of the word first which makes it easier to read in that split second.
That was fundamental. They were commissioned first to re-design the motorway signage which
was mainly type. The success of these saw them commissioned to do all of Britain’s roads
signage. For these they favoured pictograms, as a visual pictorial communication was quicker to
understand.
8. The illustrations in these signs were based on Calvert’s own life. The girl in the ‘School’ sign,
illustration 14, is based on a photo of her as a young girl. The sign shapes were based on
geometrical shapes and colours, illustration’s 14, 15 and 16, representing different instructions so
you are instantly alerted to the possible hazards or dangers ahead. This association with the
shape and colour is similar to Wassily Kandinsky theories which he taught at the Bauhaus.
Illustration 14 Illustration 15 Illustration 16
In conclusion the Bauhaus encouraged thought, in that the best design is invisible. The fact that
these road signs are still in use today shows they are a success, why because of the design,
because they fulfil their function so efficiently that we take them for granted, as though they are
invisible. Concluding that Design is important and that if you get form – follows – function correct
you have designed it well. Dieter Rams said it best ‘Design’ said Rams ‘should be as discrete as
an English butler’. (Rams, 2010)
9. References
Anon. (2010) History of Graphic Design: Chapter 8 Bauhaus. Last updated: 2010.
http://designhistory.org/Bauhaus3.html (accessed 10 February 2012)
Anon. (2010) History of Graphic Design: Chapter 8 Bauhaus. Last updated: 2010.
http://designhistory.org/Bauhaus3.html (accessed 10 February 2012)
Weber, N.F. (2009) The Bauhaus Group: Six Masters of Modernism. First Edition. United States:
Alfred. A. Knopf.
Anon. (2012) Bauhaus Archiv: Museum of Design. Last updated: 23 February 2012
www.bauhaus.de/bauhaus1919/index+M52087573ab0.html (accessed 24 February 2012)
Anon. (2012) Bauhaus Archiv: Museum of Design. Last updated: 23 February 2012
www.bauhaus.de/bauhaus1919/index+M52087573ab0.html (accessed 24 February 2012)
Anon. (2006) Designing Modern Britain. Last updated: 26 November 2006.
http://designmuseum.org/design/jock-kinneir-margaret-calvert (accessed 24 February 2012)
McClatchey, C. (2011) The road sign as design classic. BBC News Magazine. Last updated. 9
December 2011. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-15990443 (accessed 25th February 2012)
Rams, D. (2010) Genius of Design: Ghosts in the machine. BBC Documentary
Illustrations
1 The Bauhaus, Dessau, Germany, second location. (1925-1932)
2 Bauhaus Sign, Dessau. Typography designed by Herbert Bayer
3 Wassily Kandinsky, On White II, 1923
4 Wassily Kandinsky, Yellow, Red, Blue,1925
5 Bauhaus Curriculum Modle, 1922. In German and translated into English.
6 Lyonel Feininger, Cathedral, woodcut, Cover of 1st program of Bauhaus April 1919
10. 7 Marcel Breur, Wassily Chair, 1925
8 Marcel Breuer. Cesca dining room chair, 1928
9 Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Brno chair, 1929
10 Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Barcelona chair, 1929
11 One of the numerous British road signs predating the Kinneir-Calvert system
12 Jock Kinneir and Margaret Calvert, Motorway sign
13 Jock Kinneir and Margaret Calvert, Primary road sign
14 Jock Kinneir and Margaret Calvert, Children crossing sign, 1964
15 Jock Kinneir and Margaret Calvert, speed limit sign
16 Jock Kinneir and Margaret Calvert, direction sign
Bibliography
Books
Weber, N.F. (2009) The Bauhaus Group: Six Masters of Modernism. First Edition. United States:
Alfred. A. Knopf
Documentaries
Genius of Design: Designs for living. BBC Documentary (2010)
Genius of Design: Ghosts in the machine. BBC Documentary (2010)
Articles
McCarthy, F. (2007) The influence of Bauhaus. The Guardian. Published 17 November 2007.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2007/nov/17/architecture.art (accessed 13 February 2012)
McClatchey, C. (2011) The road sign as design classic. BBC News Magazine. Last updated. 9
December 2011. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-15990443 (accessed 25 February 2012)
Ross, S. (2009) Bauhaus: Ninety Years of Inspiration. Smashing Magazine. Published 2 August
2009. http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2009/08/02/bauhaus-ninety-years-of-inspiration/
(accessed 10 February 2012)
