Today sees the launch of the Barbican’s big summer exhibition and a very good one it is indeed. How better to celebrate the season than with beaches, bbqs, beer and Bauhaus? Now, I’m not going to make out that I’m an art-aficionado (that would surely be foolhardy), so don’t read on if you want a big intelligent, art-critique of the show. But what I can bring you are the best bits of the interior product design by some of the biggest Bauhaus names featured in the exhibition. That’s no bad thing, eh? Most of the names, no doubt will be or should be familiar but fear not, there is always plenty of time to learn if you’re new. The exhibition spans from the birth of Bauhaus by architect, Gropius and covers; craft, the influence of geometric form, typography, architecture, fashion, textiles, etc. etc.. Nicely laid out with a section to pique everyone’s personal interest, this isn’t one to shy away from. Go crazy with an healthy dose of lines and squares and finish it off with a look at the carefully selected and nice products in the shop. A look at these coming soon. (Plus, don’t forget to have lunch in the super now-not-so-new Foodhall by the lake.)
Coming in at the top, although in no particular order, is 1.) Theodor Bogler with one of his classic teapots from 1923. Glazed- metallic earthenware, Manufactured by Bauhaus Ceramic Workshops, Weimar, Germany, 2.) Josef Albers’ nesting tables, 1926. Materials: frame solid oak, table tops lacquered acrylic glass. Manufacturer: Vitra, 3.) Table Lamp Nr. 934 by Heinrich Siegfried Bormann, design for the Kandem tubular steel table lamp, 4.) Marianne Brandt’s ashtray for Alessi, available in stainless steel (69€) or brass (75€), 5.) Anni Albers fabric by Knoll Textiles, from 1951, 6.) Coffee Table by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, 1927, dimensions: 71 x 52.5, Base in chromium-plated tubular steel. 15 mm glass top, 7.) the Wassily Chair (or Model B3) by designer Marcel Breuer, Dimensions: 79cm w x 70cm d x 72cm h
Bauhaus: Art as Life
3 May 2012 – 12 August 2012
Barbican Art Gallery, London
Standard: £10 online/£12 on the door
Concessions: £7 online/£8 on the door
13 – 17s years: £6 online/£7 on the door
Children aged 12 and under: Free
images with thanks to: 1.) MOMA, 2.) Bonluxat, 3.) Grassi Museum, 4.) Connox, 5.) The Josef & Anni Albers Foundation, 6.) Steeldomus 7.) Design Tavern
