17 June Home Design History: The Bauhaus June 17, 2024 By Melisa Rana Home Decor home exterior, living room, real estate 0 HOME DESIGN HISTORY: THE BAUHAUS June 17, 2024 | Home Decor | real estate, home exteriorliving room The Most Influential Art School For Home Design Every decade, homes seem to take on a whole new look. Is minimalism the new trend? Are we heading back to cozy cottage-core vibes? And who decides whether our living rooms are pleasantly retro or out-of-date? Interior design philosophies and architectural styles cycle in and out of fashion, but one early twentieth-century art movement has shown a staying power that separates it from the pack. Of course, we’re talking about what was probably the most impactful art school in history when it comes to the way the modern home looks: the Bauhaus. What exactly has made Bauhaus designs so impactful, and where can its influence still be seen today? Let’s take a jaunt down memory lane to find out! What Was the Bauhaus? First established in Weimar, Germany, the so-called “Bauhaus” was an art school masterminded by Walter Gropius in part to combat the unique challenges of its day. World War I had ravaged Western Europe, and people like Gropius were seeing an increasing divide between the fine arts and the applied arts. Society needed to rebuild, and for the fine arts to be part of that reconstruction, Bauhaus artists developed innovative and simple designs that could be mass-produced. Gropius and the Bauhaus championed one German concept that very appropriately used far too many letters, Gesamtkunstwerk, which translates to “total work of art.” With this philosophy, teachers at Bauhaus tied together many different artistic movements to create iconic architectural designs, household objects and objects, typography, and furniture. The art school that started in Weimar moved around Germany until it was shut down in 1933, and its disciples scattered around the world to places like the US (namely, Chicago and Harvard, Massachusetts), Canada, France, and Israel. The Bauhaus movement popularized using industrial metals (namely, tubular steel) and rejected the overly decorative movements that preceded it, like the British Arts and Crafts movement and Neo-Gothicism. The Bauhaus movement made way for minimalism and modernism, which still defines the way many of our homes look today—both inside and out! The Bauhaus Influence on Interior Design Furniture developed in the Bauhaus was known for using basic geometric shapes (mostly squares, triangles, and circles) and primary colors (reds, blues, and yellows). The Nesting Tables, originally developed by Josef Albers, for example, were just a set of four tables descending in size for easy storage that was considered revolutionary at the time due to their artful simplicity. Possibly the most recognizable piece developed in the Bauhaus, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe’s Barcelona Chair, does a good job of showing the school’s far-reaching influence. The Bauhaus philosophy of tubular metal bending for the chair’s framework is on full display here, which limits the need for welding as much as possible and creates a very smooth and clean overall look. Many of the furniture pieces developed through the Bauhaus movement are sought after and used in homes to this day, particularly in homes that embrace mid-century modern or minimalist designs (and many, many office spaces). The Bauhaus Influence on Architecture When it comes to exteriors, although Bauhaus buildings weren’t necessarily as uniform as their interior design counterparts, Bauhaus architecture similarly emphasized rationality, simplicity, and basic geometry. The highest concentration of strictly “Bauhaus” architecture is found in Tel Aviv, Israel, within the so-called White City, which was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2003. Here, we can see the common Bauhaus architectural characteristics of limited industrial materials, limited color, and a tendency towards asymmetry. These designs have been radically influential on the designs of office buildings and apartment complexes, in particular, but Bauhaus innovations have also influenced things like open floor plans, accent walls, and flat roof designs in residential contexts. The Bauhaus movement caused an enduring shift in what homes can look like, adding a unique piece to the tapestry of cities and neighborhoods all around the world. In whatever strange and wonderful ways the homes of tomorrow will wow us, you can be certain that they’ll be able to trace their lineage back to one strange art school in Weimar. Whether your roof is flat, pitched, or cantilevered, you can trust your local, certified NPI inspector to build assurance in your home purchase. Schedule your next buyer’s home inspection with NPI today! Comments are closed.