Bauhaus Building, School of Modern Design, Germany
In general, design and ingenuity rely on individual people, more than schools and universities. That’s what I think anyway… However, I also, think that a well coordinated college/school, can teach and inspire ingenuity, design, and functionalism in a fairly balanced and practical way. It seems that one school has become famous for many of these aspects. This school, more than most, became known for it’s influence on modern design. Bauhaus is it’s name.
Honestly, I had never paid much attention to info on the school itself. I knew that many a retro/mid-century architect had been influenced directly by the school itself, or by a mentor who had attended the school. Other basics that I knew was that the school was in Germany. Also, thru the internet, I had come to know that many of the students and staff had focused on “modern” design.
On the “E-net” (see my post here for explanation) one day, specifically youtube.com, I found an interesting set of videos. There are 3 of them, and they are about the history of Bauhaus. Each video is about 15 minutes long, and it shows photos of the schools different locations, the students, and it explains a bit about the how the students felt about being able to express themselves for the first time in their lives. Most of us have grown up in societies that encourage the expression of ones self, and can’t comprehend how much that freedom of expression, for the first time, changed these students lives.
Another great part about these videos, of course, are the details they give on the students who’s works have become famous. Not to mention the eye candy that is shown thru out the videos. There a number of pieces of works shown, and it’s amazing to see how much the works from back in the 20’s – 30’s still influence the styles of modern design today.
Beyond just these videos, I’ve found a few other sources for Bauhaus info, and have included links below.
amidstmod 