Nicholas Weber

‘Architects, sculptors, painters, we all must return to the crafts!’ declared the architect Walter Gropius in his Bauhaus manifesto. Founded as an art school in 1919 and forced to close in 1933 by the Nazis, the Bauhaus established itself as a major influence on 20th-century art and design that continues to this day. The Bauhaus opened in Weimar, the progressive heart of Germany’s postwar republic. Under its first director, Walter Gropius, students were taught by some of the most celebrated artists of the time, including Paul Klee, Lyonel Feininger and Wassily Kandinsky. The school moved to Dessau in 1922, under its radical new director Hannes Meyer, and to Berlin in 1932 under architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. In 1933 the Gestapo forced the Bauhaus to close for the last time. This volume uncovers the sources of inspiration that brought the Bauhaus into existence, from medieval cathedrals of Europe and Hokusai prints to William Morris and Arts and Crafts. Each of the various workshops and courses at the Bauhaus is explored in detail, illustrating the extraordinary wealth of experimentation in every field: ceramics, woodwork, metalwork, textiles, glass-painting, sculpture, mural, printing and binding, typography and publicity, theatre, architecture and photography. This essential and accessible guide to the Bauhaus, its history and turbulent political context, provides the key to understanding why it is recognized as the most durable and influential source of modern ideas about art, design and craft. Table of Contents Essays • Sources and Inspirations • Workshops and Lessons • In the Heart of Bauhaus Bauhaus Lives On

A spectacular and unprecedented visual biography of the leading pioneers and protagonists of modern art and designJosef - painter, designer, and teacher - and Anni Albers - textile artist and printmaker - are among the twentieth century's most important abstract artists, and this is the first monograph to celebrate the rich creative output and beguiling relationship of these two masters in one elegant volume. It presents their life and work as never before, from their formative years at the Bauhaus in Germany to their remarkable influence at Black Mountain College in the United States through their intensely productive period in Connecticut. Accessibly written, the book is packed with more than 750 artworks, archival images, and documents-many published here for the first time-all tracing the remarkable lives and careers of this legendary couple. Dispersed throughout area series of short essays on artists that focuses on the Alberses relationship with a number of important artists and architects of the 20th century, like Ruth Asawa, Marcel Breuer, Merce Cunningham, Philip Johnson, Paul Klee, Jacob Lawrence, and many more. The beautifully cloth-bound package utilizes an elegant color palette and design that speaks to the work of both artists. This comprehensive visual biography showcases the artists' rich and dynamic lives, and their infinite influence on each other, as they shared the profound conviction that art was central to human existence.