Two exhibitions
dal 29/10/2004 al 9/1/2005
Segnalato da
29/10/2004
Two exhibitions
Museum fur Gestaltung, Berlin
The first comprehensive presentation of works that resulted from Werner Schriefers' role as an educator. Selected from a group of approximately 1500 student works given to the Bauhaus Archive by the professor-artist, who died in February of 2003, these objects demonstrate the full spectrum of his teaching. The core of the show Gifts from the Bauhaus consists of gifts that were given to Walter Gropius, the first director of the Bauhaus, during the annual celebrations of his birthday on 18 May.
Light, Movement, Number, Space
The Basic Course of Werner Schriefers
Werner Schriefers, a student of the Bauhaus master Georg Muche, developed an obligatory basic course for first-semester students at the Werkkunstschule (Academy of Applied Arts) in Wuppertal beginning in 1949. The course's purpose was to equip students with skills that they would not typically learn at a traditional fine arts school. Schriefers wanted to sharpen the students' critical perception and their ability to evaluate visual images - in accordance with Rudolf Arnheim's thesis of 'visual thinking'. With this teaching approach, Schriefers revived the tradition of fundamental art instruction first introduced at the Bauhaus by Johannes Itten in his 'Vorkurs' (preliminary course) and further developed by László Moholy-Nagy and Josef Albers.
In contrast to the often one-sided emphasis on purely creative art at other schools, Schriefers' teaching integrated knowledge from the fields of sociology, architecture, industrial design and film. As an active member of the design society 'Industrieform', he collaborated closely with the academy's workshops and encouraged his students to participate in competitions and trade fairs.
This is the first comprehensive presentation of works that resulted from Werner Schriefers' role as an educator. Selected from a group of approximately 1500 student works given to the Bauhaus Archive by the professor-artist, who died in February of 2003, these objects demonstrate the full spectrum of his teaching.
Experiments with the medium of collage - the disintegration and systematic restructuring of chosen pictorial materials - form the focal point of the exhibition. Three-dimensional constructions and modular building systems, but also drawings, typography and photographic studies document the students' progression toward the 'perception and understanding of visual images', which Schriefers ultimately reduced to the basic terms 'light, movement, number and space'.
Opening times: Daily, except Tuesdays, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Period: through 30 November 2004
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Happy Birthday! Gifts from the Bauhaus
25th Anniversary of the Bauhaus Archive at Berlin-Tiergarten
Our museum building, which was designed by Walter Gropius, opened in December of 1979. Housed in this notable work of modern architecture for the past 25 years, the Bauhaus Archive has established itself as a major landmark on Berlin's museum landscape.
We are celebrating this 'birthday' with an exhibition that reflects the special nature of the occasion. This is the first public presentation of objects which were exchanged as gifts among teachers and students at the Bauhaus for birthdays, Christmas holidays, weddings, farewells and other occasions. Painted, drawn, cut and glued, they were hybrid creations positioned somewhere between art and handicraft. The presents could be ironic, silly, nonsensical, even kitschy – but there were also great artworks among them, as one might expect, considering the creative potential at the Bauhaus.
In spite of the fragility of many objects, a surprising number have been preserved. Most of them entered the collection of the Bauhaus Archive as gifts, once again, from private individuals. They offer fascinating and amusing new insights into the lives of the 'Bauhäusler' – for almost any event could inspire a small present, even Frau Gropius' successful operation after a bout of appendicitis, or her husband's broken ankle.
The core of the show consists of gifts that were given to Walter Gropius, the first director of the Bauhaus, during the annual celebrations of his birthday on 18 May. A special highlight is the famous 1924 birthday portfolio by Bauhaus masters. Many other treasures from our collection will be on view. Due to the very personal nature of the objects, most of them have rarely, if ever, been on public display before: more than one hundred works by Josef Albers, Herbert Bayer, Marianne Brandt, Lyonel Feininger, Wassily Kandinsky, Paul Klee, Gerhard Marcks, László Moholy-Nagy, Georg Muche, Xanti Schawinsky, Oskar Schlemmer and others. Several artists outside the Bauhaus, such as Max Ernst and Kurt Schwitters, are also represented with congratulatory gifts.
A catalogue (the perfect gift!) is being published in conjunction with the exhibition. It contains 240 pages and includes colour illustrations of the complete works shown in the exhibition. The catalogue is available for € 19.90 at the Museum sales desk, and for € 29.90 in bookstores.
Duration: 30 October 2004 through 9 January 2005
Opening hours: daily 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., closed Tuesdays
Image: Paul Klee, Aus der Mappe der Bauhausmeister zum Geburtstag von Walter Gropius am 18. Mai 1924, Tempera auf Papier,Bauhaus-Archiv, Berlin
Museum fur Gestaltung
Klingelhoferstrasse 14, Berlin