Top of my list of things to see in Berlin was the Bauhuas Museum. I have always been interested in the modernist movement and it's impact on design, and was therefore looking forward to seeing the work produced here almost ninety years ago.
The Bauhaus appealed to the german population after world war one, as it was seen as a new beginning and a way of rebuilding a bankrupt Germany. However it's work produced there proved to cause quite controversial reactions. The actual building of the museum is Walter Gropius' late work and is a characteristic landmark of Berlin. Its unique shape is particularly striking when viewing the museum from outside.
The museum's bauhaus collection represents the entire range of the school's activities; art, architecture, metalwork, photography, furniture, textiles, and ceramics. Including pieces by famous teachers such as, Johannes Itten, Wassily Kandinsky, Josef Albers, and Oskar Schlemmer. The Bauhaus taught that an understanding of visual science would improve design. Focusing upon the formal elements of design in their work - colour, page layout, space, shape, line, texture and form. The work in the museum emphasises the Bauhaus' principles of form and function, they designed for a purpose and made art functional.
I found this very prominent in their furniture and product design which are made up from few, simple shapes with no added decoration, giving them a very modern and minimalist appearance. The posters created in the Bauhaus appealed to me most of all, due to the clever layouts, strong typographic influence and colour used. The poster by Joost Schmidt is a good example of this as it shows all the elements of modernism.
These principles the Bauhaus was founded upon can be seen so clearly in the work from the museum, and are what interest me most as I can reflect upon them in my own work. We are taught the same fundamental lessons in design as the Bauhaus taught so long ago and they still influence much of the art and design to present day.
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