Main entry:

Oswalt, Philipp, (author)

Title & Author:

The Bauhaus brand 1919-2019 : the victory of iconic form over use / Philipp Oswalt ; [translation, Steven Lindberg, Christina Oberstebrink].

Publication:

Zurich : Scheidegger & Spiess, [2020]
©2020

Description:

334 pages : illustrations (chiefly color), facsimiles, portraits ; 28 cm

Notes:
Includes bibliographical references.
1919-1925 From the founding to the virtual brand -- 1925-1933 Crisis and relaunch -- 1933-1989 Posthumous streamlining and cold war -- 1990-2019 Touristification -- Product labelings -- Trademark registrations -- Trademark transfers -- The word mark. A dynamic logo -- The name on the building. A promotional facade -- The Schlemmer head and the Bauhaus stairway. An image of the new human being -- Square, triangle, circle. The ur-formula of design -- The Wagenfeld lamp. A functional object as a visual icon -- The Bauhaus style. The intention denied -- The Bauhaus city Dessau. An international brand in the German provinces -- The White city Tel Aviv. A German-Israeli fiction -- Is the Bauhaus relevant? An argument for bidding farewell to the undead Bauhaus.

Summary:

The Bauhaus was distinguished neither by function nor by use but rather by symbolism. Whether the work was a square, triangle, or circle, or Wilhelm Wagenfeld's lamp, Oskar Schlemmer's Kopf, or white cubes with flat roofs, the Bauhaus created iconic visual symbols and a style that is neither functional nor social but visually striking. Walter Gropius, founder of the Bauhaus, from the outset sought to develop the school into a brand--and he succeeded. More than eight decades after its forced closure, the Bauhaus is more present than ever in consumer lie, politics, and culture alike. It has become a participative brand that escapes centralized control entirely, forged collectively by countless designers, manufacturers, and consumers. Yet its founders' initial pledge for functionality and social commitment remains unfulfilled. In this stunning and pugnacious book, Philipp Oswalt, former director of Foundation Bauhaus Dessau, explores the development of the Bauhaus brand and its use around the world, illustrated with some 950 images that highlight the vast range of Bauhaus appearances across the past century.

ISBN:

9783858818560 (paperback)
3858818569 (paperback)

Subject:

Bauhaus History.
Bauhaus Influence.
Bauhaus
Art schools.
Écoles des Beaux-Arts.
art schools (institutions)
History.
Influence (Literary, artistic, etc.)

Form/genre:

History

Added entries:

Lindberg, Steven, (translator)
Oberstebrink, Christina, (translator)

Victory of iconic form over use

Holdings:

Location: Library main 308801
Call No.: BIB 254132
Status: Available