Bauhaus Movement Analysis

In this rationale I will be discussing the Bauhaus movement during its Weimar and Dessau periods and how political, social and economic factors aspects have affected this design school as a whole. I will also be comparing and analysing the characteristics and two examples (mention example) of each period to display my understanding by applying my knowledge to my redesigns.

Here are a few key concepts that will be mentioned in this rationale:

Bauhaus was an institution in Germany where artistic students could come together and be creative with fine art and craft. It began in 1919 after the First World War but was closed by the Nazi regime in 1933. The word Bauhaus stood for "house of construction".

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The creation of Bauhaus was created at a time where expressionism had turned to objectivity. (intext anonymous pdf). There was no longer an urge to create art that was unreal, instead designing in a way that served a purpose and more rational. Bauhaus was also influenced by constructivism that came after the Russian revolution which shows strongly in Weimar artworks. Bauhaus style was described as lacking a decorative feel but there is a clear communicative flow between form and function of a design. During the Weimar period the style was commonly known for the use of primary colours and geometric shapes such as circles and triangles, diagonal line and typography in unusual directions and simplified overall design. This design style is extremely similar to the constructivist style which influenced it (figure 5). This style still remained important to the movement but the move to Dessau created a shift in style, a style where type and function were dominant and technology and industry

Gropius seeked out someone new to run the newly introduced architectural programe at Bauhaus. Hannes Meyer was hired and later became the director when Gropius resigned in 1928. His way of directing the school brought forth a noticeable change. He ensured full cooperation with the industry, something that Weimar lacked, and many designs we sold which contributed to the survival of the school.

Under the leadership of Meyer he focused more on the technical side of art when running the school and his views being political at a school that was apolitical. Bauhaus gravitated away from the aspirations traditionally set out by Gropius. Even though he brought upon conflict he also introduced new courses including photography during this time. His ways of teaching resulted in designs being more realistic in nature. He was fired in 1930 due to his communist outlook which was detrimental to the school because of the political atmosphere of the time.

The way in which the Weimar Bauhaus closed down is similar to the way Dessau went down. The Nazi government rejected any sort of art in Weimar thus being the reason for the move to Dessau. However the same eventually happened to Dessau Bauhaus when the Nazi government gained more power in Dessau. Bauhaus school was completely closed down in 1933 due to the pressure of the Nazi