“The Development of Modernism ……”
The picture below shows a visual chart that
I prepared regarding five designers (from five different art movements) who
were all involved in the development of Modernism.
Before creating this visual chart, I was
imagining somebody reading a book about “Modernism” for the very first time – a
book with just text. So I wanted to
create visuals to help the reader understand better the contents of the
book. The central bottom part of my
chart reveals an open book showing text regarding Modernism and someone reading
it. I found this picture when I searched
the internet. Then, using pieces of
white card, I made a small book. I
stitched the pages together in the middle, with the picture that I found on the
internet at the top, and using double-sided tape I stuck the book to the chart. This is a closer look to my little book:
The size of my chart is A2. I used various websites to find images
related to the 5 designers of my choice and their work. Then I typed brief information regarding
them/their styles. I prepared five
sheets of white card (approximately A4 in size) and I stuck the images and the
information on them – one piece of card for every designer. When I finished sticking them, I cut around
the images so as not to leave any blank space of card around them. Then I placed them on an A2 white card, and I
stuck them on it clockwise, starting from William Morris (Arts & Crafts)
and ending with Alvar Aalto (Organic Design).
I stuck them at different levels (using 2, 3, 4 and 5 layers of
double-sided tape), like five steps going upwards, to show the development of
Modernism. I also prepared some arrows
(out of white card), drew on them patterns that remind me of the particular
movements/styles that the 5 designers were associated with, and then I stuck
them in a way that also show the development of Modernism. At the end, I used yellow acrylic paint to
create borders around the images pertaining to the 5 different designers, to
separate them slightly, and to make it easier for the viewer to see the
difference between them.
The designers that I included on my chart
are:
1.
William Morris (1834-1896)
- He was the greatest proponent of the Arts & Crafts Movement (1850-1914);
- He favoured craftsmanship;
- Simplicity, practicality and the beauty in handmade products were very important to him;
- Only wealthy people could afford the products, since they were individually made;
- His reforming ideas during the Victorian era - utility, simplicity, suitability rather than luxury, producing objects of good quality, and using design as a democratic tool to change society - had an important impact on the early beginnings of the Modern Movement.
↑ The above image shows part of my chart that refers to William Morris and the British Arts & Crafts Movement
2. Richard Riemerschmid (1868-1957)
- He was one of the founder of the Deutscher Werkbund (1907-1935);
- His approach to design involved bringing harmony between the artistic efforts of the Arts & Crafts Movement and the industrial mass production of the Modern Movement;
- He wanted high-quality products, yet he knew that industrial production was essential because it would lower the cost of products, making them affordable to many;
- His designs for industrial production were distinguished by their realistic, yet elegant forms, and they were extremely influential.
↑ From William Morris
to Richard Riemerschmid and the Deutscher Werkbund ↑
3. Walter Gropius (1883-1969)
- When he was a member of the Deutscher Werkbund, he sided the members who favoured craftsmanship because he preferred the individualism and personal creativity in design, not mass production;
- The steel and glass model factory that he designed for the “Deutsch Werkbund Ausstellung” in 1914 was a powerful demonstration of the Modern Movement;
- After the First World War, he realised that industrial production was necessary;
- He was the founder of Bauhaus (1919-1933) – promoted functionalism, industrial production techniques and state-of-the-art materials;
- His modern designs were also revealed in the architectural work that he produced after he emigrated to Great Britain in 1934 and to the United States in 1937.
↑ From Richard Riemerschmid to Walter Gropius and the
Bauhaus ↑
4. Le Corbusier (1887-1965)
- He was one of the most influential designers/architects of the 20th century;
- He had a new approach to modern design;
- He had an affection for Classical Greek architecture;
- He was attracted to the concept of the machine and wanted to transform the humble house into an industrialized product;
- His concept of the house as “a machine for living” included tubular steel furniture such as the chairs that he designed in 1928, with two other designers - they were a perfect example of the International Style (1920-1980).
↑ From Walter Gropius
to Le Corbusier and the International Style ↑
5. Alver Aalto (1898-1976)
- He was one of the founding fathers of the Organic Design (1930-1960);
- Thanks to him and to other Scandinavian designers, Modernism did not lose its moral bearings in the 1930s, when International Style designers started going to extremes and were giving a bad reputation to the Modern Movement;
- He initiated a humanizing form of Modernism;
- He inspired a new generation of Modern Movement designers.
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