Bauhaus 100

The famous Bauhaus art school opened in Weimar in 1919 and during its short lifespan it moved to Dessau and then to Berlin. The demands of the Bauhaus founders to reform art as well as the living environment and their concept of a collaboration between all fields of art and crafts has extended far beyond the historical existence of the Bauhaus from 1919 until 1933.

The architecture, art and design created by the Bauhaus movement has had a lasting effect on architecture and living space around the world and to mark its centenary in 2019 there are events and exhibitions taking place all over Germany. Last weekend I took in three very different Bauhaus experiences in Berlin and revisited the pressing questions posed one hundred years ago by members of the Bauhaus School which remain so relevant today: How do we want to live? What do we want our homes to look like? White flat-roofed buildings and steel furniture still represent the epitome of everything we associate with the term ‘Bauhaus’, but it was so much more than modernist architecture and minimal design, it was also a school for ideas and a field for experiments. A few months ago, I was given the commission of translating the text of a stunning coffee-table book entitled “Bauhaus – Eine fotografische Weltreise” by Jean Molitor and Kaija Voss (Bauhaus – A photographic journey around the world) into English.

It was fascinating work; not only did I learn a great deal about the history of the Bauhaus, but I also enjoyed studying the wealth of remarkable photographs of Bauhaus buildings all over the world, in places as far-flung as Afghanistan, India, Africa and Cuba as well as in Europe and America. Berlin photographer Jean Molitor’s photographic journey is currently the subject of a temporary exhibition at the Willy Brandy Haus in Stresemannstrasse – an especially suitable building because of its Bauhaus-style design.

There are over one hundred large-format photographs on display arranged in themes including housing, municipal buildings, industrial architecture, cinemas, church buildings, educational establishments and luxury villas. You can also read essential information about Bauhaus history and design and watch video material of Jean Molitor’s travels. Some of his adventures proved to be quite dangerous; he even was arrested in Morocco and had his camera confiscated in Russia. There are so many fascinating and unique examples of Bauhaus architecture and it was difficult to decide on which ones to include in this blog. If you want to see more and can’t get to the exhibition (it only runs until 14th March) there are images online or you could buy the book mentioned above.

My next Bauhaus destination was the Bröhan Museum in Charlottenburg where I joined a guided tour through their current exhibition entitled “From Arts and Crafts to the Bauhaus”. The Bröhan has assembled a wonderful collection of 300 items of furniture, graphic design, metal art and ceramics from over 50 years of design history.

The exhibition clearly demonstrates the pre-history of the Bauhaus and contextualises it within the Europe-wide emergence of Modernism. It shows how the English Arts and Crafts movement, the Glasgow School, Vienna Jugendstil, the Deutscher Werkbund and the Dutch group De Stijl led to the Bauhaus in Weimar and Dessau. These photographs give a taste of the interesting exhibits, on display until 5th May. Entry to the Bröhan is 8 euros, but free on every first Wednesday of the month.

Of course, the home of the Bauhaus in Berlin is the Bauhaus Archiv by the Landwehr Canal near the Tiergarten. This iconic building, originally designed by Walter Gropius in 1964, is currently closed for renovation and extension. However, in the meantime you can visit the temporary Bauhaus Archiv on Knesebeckstrasse which features a model of the new building.

The temporary exhibition also includes an interesting tour through the history of the Bauhaus with photographs of its main players and the roles they played during its existence.

There is a shop selling a variety of Bauhaus design objects and I can recommend the Manufactum store next door, with its excellent bistro-style café for breakfast or lunch. For further information on Bauhaus centenary, just visit www.bauhaus100.com