Bauhaus Architecture

“A new architecture, the great building – these were the goals of Bauhaus education as formulated by Gropius in the Manifesto” (Droste, 2002, p.40). Geometric shapes and functional style the Bauhaus heralded the modern age of architecture and design. Founded in 1919 by Walter Gropius and directed afterwards by Hannes Meyer and Ludwig Mies Van de Rohe, the Bauhaus is today considered to be the most important schools of art, design, and architecture of the 20th century.

Dessau in Germany, a two hour train ride from Berlin; there in 1926 Walter Gropius built his higher academy for the arts “The Bauhaus”. For the inhabitance of Dessau, the building that rose up before the rise was a peculiar thing with its glass walls, right angles, and flat roofs.

Gropius wanted it to be the most powerful element of the project, the image would mark people. The technical school required by the city council with its class rooms. No grandiose walls, the student would be less exposed to the gaze of others as if hidden a little. Walls in corridors break up the work areas. The architectural style is clearly less complete and less prestigious than that in other parts of the building. In the collective area of the technical school, students and teachers meet. It’s a place for performance, leisure, and encounters. On the façade in the alternation of glass and concrete, Gropius shows that it’s a protected and a slightly private area different from the work areas. The housing for the students which included twenty four studio flats on four floors is the highest section of the building. The rooms extend out into tiny balconies that provide a feeling for additional space. There are no large glass surfaces and yet there is rhythm that allows this façade to play with shadows and light, black and white in the same way walls of glass. The school’s administrative departments as well as the director’s office also had to be at the center of the building in a raised position linking the two schools, the workshops and the technical

The load bearing walls are highlighted the pillars are strengthened and artistically designed. All the different areas communicate with each other. Everything was done to develop movement. The Bauhaus theater, a major element of the hall, is not a closed space. By simply opening a concertina partition, the canteen and theater become a single festive setting. Even the student’s studio apartments are collective. The tiny balconies that appear on the façade favor conviviality without promoting collectivism. The flat roofs would be used as terraces and meeting places (Elaine, 1997). The Bauhaus became self-sufficient. The quest for cleanliness, clarity, and liberality has triumph in the Bauhaus. The construction of each element is clear, no bolts are hidden all metal work is revealed. For Gropius this is a total architectural undertaking down to the door handles and light switches. Convinced that the home and furniture should have a sound relationship at the Bauhaus; they attempt to determine the form of each object according to its functions and natural constraints. The interior decoration was designed and built by the Bauhaus students. The metal workshop designed and manufactured all the lighting elements for the new