Itten, Moholy-Nagy, Wagenfeld and Brandt, directors of the Bauhaus Metal Workshop
20/10/2019.
[1921-1933] 100 years of the Bauhaus
metalocus, JOSÉ JUAN BARBA
metalocus, JOSÉ JUAN BARBA
This year it is the centenary of the Bauhaus, an event to remember why this German school became so important, so decisive in contemporary culture.
The Bauhaus was organized with an academic structure in which the workshops were a fundamental piece. The school had several specialized workshops, some of which we have reviewed: the textile workshop and the carpentry workshop. Now it is time to learn more about the metal workshop.
This workshop was led by several masters: Johannes Itten (1920-1922), Lászlo Moholy-Nagy (1923-1926), Wilhelm Wagenfeld (1926-1928), Marianne Brandt (1928-1930).
The Bauhaus was organized with an academic structure in which the workshops were a fundamental piece. The school had several specialized workshops, some of which we have reviewed: the textile workshop and the carpentry workshop. Now it is time to learn more about the metal workshop.
This workshop was led by several masters: Johannes Itten (1920-1922), Lászlo Moholy-Nagy (1923-1926), Wilhelm Wagenfeld (1926-1928), Marianne Brandt (1928-1930).
"Coffee and Tea Set" by Marianne Brandt, 1924. Photograph by Lucia Moholy.
"Table Lamp" by Wilhelm Wagenfeld, Carl Jakob Jucker, 1923-24. Courtesy by MoMA.
Sintrax Coffee Machine by Gerhard Marcks, Wilhelm Wagenfeld. 1925. Courtesy by MoMA.
Josef Albers. Fruit Bowl, 1924. Bauhaus Metal Workshop, Germany. Medium: Silver-plated metal, glass, and wood. Dimensions: 3 5/8 x 16 3/4" (9.2 x 42.5 cm).
"Ashtray" by Marianne Brandt, 1924. Courtesy by MoMA.
Teapot by Marianne Brandt, 1924. Courtesy by MoMA.
Ceiling Lamp by Marianne Brandt, 1925. Courtesy by MoMA.
Table Clock by Marianne Brandt, 1930. Courtesy by MoMA.
"With all ten fingers" by Marianne Brandt, 1930. Courtesy by Bauhaus 100.
Metal Workshop at the Bauhaus in Weimar, summer 1923.
Theodor Bogler. Teapot, 1923. Bauhaus Ceramic Workshops, Weimar, Germany. Medium: Metallic-glazed earthenware and raffia. Dimensions: 7 5/8 x 8 1/8" (19.4 x 20.6 cm).
Bauhaus Metal Workshop. Table Lamp 1928. Bauhaus Metal Workshop, Germany. Medium: Aluminum and nickel-plated brass. Dimensions.- h. 16" (40.6 cm), base diam. 6 1/4" (15.9 cm) shade diam. 10 1/2" (26.7 cm)
Josef Albers, Tea Glass with Saucer and Stirrer, 1925. Bauhaus Metal Workshop, Germany. Medium: Heat-resistant glass, chrome-plated steel, ebony, and porcelain. Dimensions: .a (cup): 2 x 5 1/2 x 3 1/2" (5.1 x 14 x 8.9 cm) .b (saucer): 4 1/8" (10.5 cm) .c (stirrer): 4 1/4 x 7/16" (10.8 x 1.1 cm).
Tea Infuser (MT 49), by Marianne Brandt. Photograph by Lucia Moholy, 1924.
Marianne Brandt. Fruit Bowl and Fruit Dish, 1929. Bauhaus Metal Workshop, Germany. Medium: Chrome-plated brass. Dimensions.- .1 (bowl): 1 1/4 x 11 1/4" (3.1 x 28.6 cm) .2 (dish): 15/16 x 8 3/8" (2.4 x 21.2 cm).
Christian Dell. Table Lamp, 1926. Manufacturer: Schwintzer & Gräff, Berlin. Medium: Chromed metal. Dimensions: h. 12 1/4" (31.1 cm), base diam. 6 3/8" (16.2 cm); h. (extended) 15 7/8" (40.3 cm) shade diam. 5 1/2" (14 cm).
In 1919, Walter Gropius founded the Bauhaus and established teaching through specialized workshops, in order to create a "type of worker, unknown until now, that is suitable for industrial and artisanal activity".(1) In the guidelines set for Gropius, we can find a type of creative people who had to become the seed of practical activities and work for the industry instead of competing with it.
In the Bauhaus metal workshop, the art of metallurgy was practiced, the ability to transform the state of solid matter, thanks to a high temperature, and modify its shape. This experimental character is attributed to the work of iron, lead and noble metals, since today, the memory of these ancient methods of production, of manufacturing and artisan workshops is disappearing.
During the first five years, the metallurgy workshop had only a very small percentage of the necessary electromechanical tools. In addition, contacts with producing companies that could show interest in the school's designs were very scarce before the Bauhaus moved to Dessau. In the metallurgy workshop, the concept of self-limitation was used: instead of large runs, they produced prototypes, and mass produced pieces were used instead of unique ones.(2)
Johannes Itten (1888-1967) painter, designer, teacher and writer.
Johannes Itten
The workshop began increase its importance in 1920, under the direction of Johannes Itten. With him at the wheel, production consisted mostly of useful containers: jugs, samovars, candlesticks, teapots, boxes and boats. While Itten was "master of form", the workshop worked on unique pieces that reflected his interest in the fusion of elementary forms and symbolic content within a rational construction.
In 1922, Johannes Itten left the direction of the workshop in protest against the change in the creative policy that Gropius proposed from that moment onwards, shifting the objectives of the workshop towards productivity, in order to achieve the results the authorities demanded from the school.
Lászlo Moholy-Nagy (1895-1946) photographer, painter, teacher and art theorist.
Laszlo Moholy-Nagy
In 1923, the workshop changed completely when Lászlo Moholy-Nagy took over after Johannes Itten's departure. The new head placed special emphasis on the topic of lamps. Gropius found in Lászlo Moholy-Nagy a master of form with an idea that allowed to focus experimental workshops on the creation of models that could be destined for industral production.(3) The workshop members had to re-adapt to these new techniques and work proposed by Moholy-Nagy, orienting all the objectives towards serial industrial manufacturing.
“We have devoted little to ornamental objects because they cannot be considered part of the elementary needs.” (4)
Laszlo Moholy-Nagy
Moholy-Nagy felt a great fascination for the phenomenon of light, his interest and proposals reached a climax with the experiments of the "light-space-modulator". From this stage are his attempts to dematerialize his own paintings as well as the creation of structure for his devices through the use of prototypes.
In 1926, he opted for a path more focused on the "needs of the people", the conditions of the new home, and how its standardized components would condition users.
Wilhelm Wagenfeld (1900-1990) industrial designer and pioneer of modern design.
Wilhelm Wagenfeld
The direction of the metallurgy workshop would pass on to Wilhelm Wagenfeld in 1926, who along with Marianne Brandt were the most prominent members of the metallurgy workshop.
The Bauhaus was often labeled as a "cold" instutition. At the time, the innovations he proposed were probably seen with fear, because of the elimination of everyday ornaments, the "empty" arabesques and the pursuit of a totally different objective. However, saying that a dish is “design” means that it is an impractical object and its appearance differs from its function. Wagenfeld made very simple forks and knives, which are marketed today by the WMF company in a version that differs slightly from the original. These cutlery has a form that responds strictly to its function, in no case they appear as extravagant instruments.
Wagenfeld was the first to achieve concrete proposals based on "constructive" premises. To achieve this, he combined the formation of the metal with a screen made of opaline glass, which is much better at dispersing light.
In 1927, table, wall and floor lamps began to appear on the market, most of them are classics today and their updates are still for sale. If in Weimar the production of the workshop focused on a small amount of candlesticks, while there were long discussions about the light and the symbolism of candles in churches, now the debates were focused on rational clarity and transparency.(5)
After World War II, Wilhelm Wagenfeld's would change direction but he kept hinting at the spirit of the Bauhaus:
"Tin bowls and plates belong to opposite worlds, worlds that symbolize their form ... The spirit that inspires us has a decisive importance for us: we rely on it to create, and not on the materials. These are always mere means that allow us to reach our goal ”(6)
Wilhelm Wagenfeld
Marianne Brandt
Marianne Brandt
Marianne Brandt took over the direction of the workshop in 1928, for just one year. She made 28 lamps and conducted technical experiments on lighting. She used metals with technical applications that had displaced non-ferrous metals, so appreciated during the Johannes Itten era, while smooth surfaces replaced artisanal structures.
Marianne Brandt created a lamp whose ontology contains the principles of the scattering of light and the projected form, while the light source itself, the bulb, was in the foreground. The technique was overrated and the function of the object was debatable, because the incandescent bulb shone too brightly.
From 1930 all the workshops would be integrated into one with the arrival of the new director of the Bauhaus, Mies van der Rohe.
NOTES.-
(1) Jeannine Fiedler, Peter Feierabend. "Bauhaus". Barcelona: Könemann, 2000, p. 427.
(2) Ibidem (1), p. 428.
(3) Ibidem (1), p. 430.
(4) Ibidem (1), p. 433. "Deutsche Goldschmiedezeitung, 1928, nº 13, p. 124."
(5) Ibidem (1), p. 434.
(6) Ibidem (1), pp. 430-431. "Wilhelm Wagenfeld, Wesen und Gestalt der Dinge um uns, Essays aus den Jahren 1938-1948. Wropswede, 1990."
(2) Ibidem (1), p. 428.
(3) Ibidem (1), p. 430.
(4) Ibidem (1), p. 433. "Deutsche Goldschmiedezeitung, 1928, nº 13, p. 124."
(5) Ibidem (1), p. 434.
(6) Ibidem (1), pp. 430-431. "Wilhelm Wagenfeld, Wesen und Gestalt der Dinge um uns, Essays aus den Jahren 1938-1948. Wropswede, 1990."
More information
Johannes Itten
Johannes Itten (Switzerland, 1888 - Switzerland, 1967). He was a painter, designer, teacher and writer. Between 1904 and 1906, Johannes Itten was trained as a primary teacher at the Teacher Training Institute in Bern. He worked as a primary school teacher from 1908 to 1909. That same year, he enrolled at the École des Beaux-Arts in Geneva and studied there until 1910. Until 1912, Itten completed another degree in natural sciences and mathematics at the University of Bern and He received his diploma as a high school teacher. In the following two years, he studied at the Stuttgart Academy and became a member of the main student study of Adolf Hölzel. In 1916, Herwarth Walden organized a first individual exhibition dedicated to the work of Itten in his gallery Der Sturm in Berlin. That same year, Itten moved to Vienna and opened a private art school there.
Between 1919 and 1923 he was named one of the first masters of the Bauhaus in Weimar by Walter Gropius. In addition until 1923 he was also director of the preliminary course that he had developed independently for the introductory semester and teacher of the form of all the workshops, except the workshops of ceramics, binding and printing. He left the Bauhaus in March 1923 after disagreements with Walter Gropius and three years later founded the Itten School in Berlin.
In 1932, he was elected to direct Höhere Fachschule für Textile Flächenkunst (Advanced School of Textile Art) in Krefeld. In 1934, the Itten school in Berlin was closed by the NSDAP. In 1937, Itten's work was exhibited at the exhibition Entartete Kunst (degenerate art) in Munich. In the following year, he was dismissed from his position at the academy in Krefeld. Itten then moved to the Netherlands. In 1938, he became the director of the Kunstgewerbeschule (school of applied arts) and the Kunstgewerbemuseum (museum of applied arts) in Zurich. In 1943, he also became director of the Textilfachschule (textile school) in Zurich. In 1949, he was commissioned to design the Rietberg Museum for non-European art in Zurich. In 1955, Max Bill invited him to join the School of Design (HfG) of Ulm. Several retrospectives of his work were carried out at the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam in 1957 and at the Kunsthaus Zürich in 1964, among others.
The Darmstadt Professor awarded Johannes Itten an honorary doctorate in 1965. In 1966 he received the "Sikkens Art Prize of the Netherlands" and is now internationally recognized for representing Switzerland at the 33rd Venice Biennial.
Johannes Itten died in Zurich on March 25, 1967.
László Moholy-Nagy
László Moholy-Nagy (Austria, 1895 - Chicago, 1946). Photographer, painter, Bauhaus professor and art theorist. At the beginning of his career, Moholy studied law. Unfortunately, due to World War I, he had to abandon his studies. At the end of the war, he decided to dedicate himself completely to art, attending classes and studying the old masters such as Rembrandt, Paul Cézanne, Vincent van Gogh and practitioners of Cubism and Futurism.
In 1920, in Berlin, he began his career as a photographer together with his wife Lucía Schulz, doing various jobs. In addition, he was also interested in painting. He began to paint abstract canvases, in which geometric shapes and bands of color form architectural structures without a body in space. In 1922, he participated in his first exhibition at the avant-garde gallery Der Sturm in Berlin, which included works made from industrial materials.
In 1923, the Bauhaus appointed Moholy-Nagy director of the metallurgy workshop, until 1928. In this period he turned to the study of the effects of balance and pressure of materials and became the precursor of Bauhaus photography. He was also a pioneer in the Bauhaus series of books with Walter Gropius and collaborated with the designer Herbert Bayer on Bauhaus materials typography. In 1928 he resorted to more commercial artistic activities, such as advertising design, typography and stage design.
Later, in 1934, due to the rise of the Nazis to power, Moholy-Nagy moved to Amsterdam where he worked with artists and architects of De Stijl, experimented with color photography and gave frequent lectures.
In 1937, Moholy-Nagy moved to Chicago at the invitation of the Association of Arts and Industries, where he took the direction of a design school created by himself, the "New Bauhaus". Unfortunately, it did not succeed and it closed its doors the following year. In spite of it, it reopened the school in 1939, in this case called Institute of Design, that today is part of the Institute of Technology of Illinois.
Finally, Moholy-Nagy died of leukemia in 1946, in Chicago.
In 1920, in Berlin, he began his career as a photographer together with his wife Lucía Schulz, doing various jobs. In addition, he was also interested in painting. He began to paint abstract canvases, in which geometric shapes and bands of color form architectural structures without a body in space. In 1922, he participated in his first exhibition at the avant-garde gallery Der Sturm in Berlin, which included works made from industrial materials.
In 1923, the Bauhaus appointed Moholy-Nagy director of the metallurgy workshop, until 1928. In this period he turned to the study of the effects of balance and pressure of materials and became the precursor of Bauhaus photography. He was also a pioneer in the Bauhaus series of books with Walter Gropius and collaborated with the designer Herbert Bayer on Bauhaus materials typography. In 1928 he resorted to more commercial artistic activities, such as advertising design, typography and stage design.
Later, in 1934, due to the rise of the Nazis to power, Moholy-Nagy moved to Amsterdam where he worked with artists and architects of De Stijl, experimented with color photography and gave frequent lectures.
In 1937, Moholy-Nagy moved to Chicago at the invitation of the Association of Arts and Industries, where he took the direction of a design school created by himself, the "New Bauhaus". Unfortunately, it did not succeed and it closed its doors the following year. In spite of it, it reopened the school in 1939, in this case called Institute of Design, that today is part of the Institute of Technology of Illinois.
Finally, Moholy-Nagy died of leukemia in 1946, in Chicago.
Wilhelm Wagenfeld
Wilhelm Wagenfeld (15 April 1900, Bremen, Germany — 28 May 1990, Stuttgart, Germany) was an important German industrial designer and former student of the Bauhaus art school. Wilhelm Wagenfeld completed an apprenticeship at the design office of the Bremen silverware factory of Koch & Bergfeld during the First World War. In addition, he attended the local applied arts school from 1916 to 1919. Between 1919 and 1922, he received a scholarship to the State Design Academy of Hanau/Main and trained to become a silversmith. In 1923, he set up a workshop at the Barkenhoff in Worpswede with Bernhard Hoetger and Heinrich Vogeler. This is also the year that he began studying at the State Bauhaus in Weimar. During this time, Wagenfeld designed works such as his famous Bauhaus lamp in 1924.
After the dissolution of the Bauhaus Weimar on 1 April 1925, he became a member of the German Werkbund and accepted the position of assistant to Richard Winkelmayer, the head of the metal workshop at the State Academy of Crafts and Architecture in Weimar. In 1928, he took over the direction of Bauhaus metal workshops of which he was already an assistant, where he made designs such as the M15 tea service, with forms less hard than his previous works. From 1928 he worked for Schott & Gen. de Jena, making glassware, and a year later he founded his own design studio. He and many of the other teachers at the academy were fired in 1930 at the insistence of the NSDAP party, which was represented in the Thuringian Landtag.
Starting in 1930, this was followed by freelance work and a commission from the Thuringian Economics Ministry to supervise independent glassblowers. In addition, he was asked to begin teaching at the State Art Academy Grunewaldstrasse in Berlin-Schöneberg in 1931 and began working as a freelance employee of the Jena Schott & Gen. glass factory at that time. From 1935 to 1947, he was the artistic director of the United Lausitzer Glass Works (Vereinigte Lausitzer Glaswerke) in Weisswasser/Oberlausitz. In 1937, his work exhibited at the Paris World Exhibition was distinguished with the Grand Prix. The same award was bestowed on him in 1940 by the Milan Triennale.
Following his military service in 1944 and war imprisonment in 1945, Wagenfeld returned to Weisswasser. He subsequently received numerous appointments to academies. This included a lectureship at the Berlin Academy of Fine Arts through Hans Scharoun, as well as the directorship for the Typing and Standardisation Department at the Institute for Civil Engineering at the German Academy of the Sciences. In 1949, Wagenfeld was given a position as a consultant for industrial design at the Württemberg State Office of Trade in Stuttgart. Between 1950 and 1977, he collaborated with the Württemberg Metal Works (Württembergische Metallwarenfabrik AG, WMF) in Geislingen. He founded the Experimental and Developmental Workshop for Industry Models in Stuttgart in 1954, which existed until 1978. This is where designs were created for many industrial enterprises such as the Rosenthal-Porzellan AG, the Peill & Putzler Glashüttenwerke GmbH, the Braun Company and the Pelikan factory.
After the dissolution of the Bauhaus Weimar on 1 April 1925, he became a member of the German Werkbund and accepted the position of assistant to Richard Winkelmayer, the head of the metal workshop at the State Academy of Crafts and Architecture in Weimar. In 1928, he took over the direction of Bauhaus metal workshops of which he was already an assistant, where he made designs such as the M15 tea service, with forms less hard than his previous works. From 1928 he worked for Schott & Gen. de Jena, making glassware, and a year later he founded his own design studio. He and many of the other teachers at the academy were fired in 1930 at the insistence of the NSDAP party, which was represented in the Thuringian Landtag.
Starting in 1930, this was followed by freelance work and a commission from the Thuringian Economics Ministry to supervise independent glassblowers. In addition, he was asked to begin teaching at the State Art Academy Grunewaldstrasse in Berlin-Schöneberg in 1931 and began working as a freelance employee of the Jena Schott & Gen. glass factory at that time. From 1935 to 1947, he was the artistic director of the United Lausitzer Glass Works (Vereinigte Lausitzer Glaswerke) in Weisswasser/Oberlausitz. In 1937, his work exhibited at the Paris World Exhibition was distinguished with the Grand Prix. The same award was bestowed on him in 1940 by the Milan Triennale.
Following his military service in 1944 and war imprisonment in 1945, Wagenfeld returned to Weisswasser. He subsequently received numerous appointments to academies. This included a lectureship at the Berlin Academy of Fine Arts through Hans Scharoun, as well as the directorship for the Typing and Standardisation Department at the Institute for Civil Engineering at the German Academy of the Sciences. In 1949, Wagenfeld was given a position as a consultant for industrial design at the Württemberg State Office of Trade in Stuttgart. Between 1950 and 1977, he collaborated with the Württemberg Metal Works (Württembergische Metallwarenfabrik AG, WMF) in Geislingen. He founded the Experimental and Developmental Workshop for Industry Models in Stuttgart in 1954, which existed until 1978. This is where designs were created for many industrial enterprises such as the Rosenthal-Porzellan AG, the Peill & Putzler Glashüttenwerke GmbH, the Braun Company and the Pelikan factory.
Marianne Brandt
Marianne Brandt. (1893-1983), born in Chemnitz in Germany, was a Bauhaus trained designer and artist. She studied painting and sculpture at the Hochschule für Bildende Kunst Weimar (now the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar). In 1924 she attended the preliminary course at the Staatliches Bauhaus in Weimar. There, she worked with László Moholy-Nagy in the metal workshop, which she eventually became director of in 1928. By this point, she had already designed the first lighting fixtures for the Bauhaus Building in Dessau. Brandt left the Bauhaus at the end of 1929, having worked at the architecture office of Walter Gropius, collaborated with Hin Bredendieck, as well the companies Kandem in Leipzig and Schwintzer & Gräff in Berlin. She lectured at the HfBK Dresden and worked at the University of Applied Art in Berlin until 1954.
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