The Bauhaus School of Form and Functionality

     The Bauhaus school was a influential movement that shaped what modern art is today because it allowed art to become interchangeable with mass production. It combined products we use in our daily lives and turned it into art that was not only aesthetically pleasing to the eye but has functionality. This allowed artists to create art with this intention and develop a form around that's practical yet original. Examples of the Bauhaus influence on contemporary styles of art include city skyscrapers, buildings with architectural decors, and furniture.
Things that we see today have both form and functionality but this craftsmanship wouldn't be possible if it wasn't for Walter Gropius, who founded the school in 1919 in Welmar, Germany.
     Walter Gropius was a German architect who's modernist vision who changed the way art was created through the Bauhaus school .He brought life back to Germany when the Bauhaus school included artists of different nationalities and techniques under one roof. He inspired them to create art that was more than just art. The original intention of the school was to combine the arts, crafts and architectural styles under one core curriculum that showcased the versatility of art.


     In 1924, the school is shutdown due to lack of funding and political pressure from the Nazi regime, who denounced the school for its degenerative art. In 1925, Gropius builds and relocates the school to Dessau, Germany where it shaped what modern art is today. The architectural style of the building was designed to have a futuristic look to it but still be sleek and modern. It represented everything Gropius stood for as an architect because it turned the Bauhaus school into a structure that had function and form. It featured low-bearing walls which allows you to look inside and outside of it whereas the corner of the building featured levity in the windows so that it forms a distinct shape, which is in reference to what we see buildings today.
     One artist who was heavily influenced by the Bauhaus movement was architect and urbanist, Le Courbuiser. He constructed buildings throughout France, India, and America that pushed the boundaries between art and architecture. In Villa Savoye, Courbuiser displays his five points of architecture which included reenforcing the structure of the building on concrete stilts. The interior of the space featured an open plan concept and a free facade which allowed it to mimic the outside space. This created a sense of flow and functionality between both spaces similar to what Gropius did with the Bauhaus school.
     Although the Bauhaus movement was short-lived it left a lasting impression on artists all over the world. It allowed artists to be artists and create art for a purpose. It gave them freedom to explore art through other fields of design that was pleasing to the eye from the outside looking in. The skyscrapers that we see today have a unique architectural style that's designed to illicit an reaction when you see it as it catches your eye. Its suppose to move you in a way artists were moved when they painted a canvas for the first time which is what I feel the Bauhaus school was all about.

Here is more information on the Bauhaus school and the foundation created in its name:
http://www.bauhaus-dessau.de/index.php?en

Works Cited
http://www.theartstory.org/movement-bauhaus.htm

http://www.bauhaus-dessau.de/index.php?bauhaus-1919-1933