Modernism was born out of the necessity to go against the norms that had become before it, not only traditionally in terms of arts and crafts but also in acknowledging the role the designer held in society. ¹The core Modernist movement is widely believed to have been most influential between 1914 and 1939, historically known to have included the First World War and ended in the beginning of the Second World War. Many designers and intellectuals saw the end of the First World War as inspiration for a change and the need for things to be done differently to avoid this sort of devastating experience occurring again. Artists and designers now had the drive to change the world, wanting to create something new and glamourous with the potential of appealing to everyone. These creative’s believed in causing disruption, by moving beyond what had become expected of the arts they hoped to inspire people to be inspired and take note and go against the status quo.  ² The Bauhaus school of art, design and architecture, set up by Walter Gropius following the First World War in Weimar Germany, is considered one of the most important schools of thinking of the Modernist Movement. The school embodied the values of the modernist movement, aiming to teach students the skills needed to become specialists in their chosen field and how to utilise the improving technology and manufacturing methods of the time in order to create communication design that was most appropriate for its function. The school also used Architecture as the basis of all studies with all students graduating with a Degree in Architecture and a specialism in their chosen field.

1925 – Bauhaus School and Faculty, Housin, Dessau, Germany – Gropius (Image taken from – http://www.squidoo.com/gropius )

Gropius was trained in architecture and was a strong believer that form should follow function. This is the notion that only what is aesthetically necessary in order for the design to work should be presented.  I think this is most evident in the architecture he designed inspired by the shift in industry and manufacture following the First World War. Gropius believed in cheap, clean, functional design and this is especially evident in the Dessau Bauhaus School. The design is logical and considered but can still be looked at as something sculptural which accurately reflected Gropius’ intentions of combining arts and crafts with industrial process and mass production.

(1929-1931) Villa Savoye – Le Corbusier (Image taken from – http://www.e-architect.co.uk/paris/villa_savoie_corbusier.htm )

In much of Le Corbusier’s work, his architectural work in particular, he believed in utilising the technology and techniques that were emerging at that time such as using reinforced concrete as a structural tool and very much believed saw this as a suitable way of building and designing buildings for that era. Often this resulted in large housing schemes that could be made quickly and efficiently but that would last in the wake of the First World War.

1931 – Thomson – A. M. Cassandre (Image taken from – http://www.cassandre-france.com/cassandre-france.com/GALLERY/Pages/GALLERY_POSTERS.html#4)

Similarly to Gropius, Cassandre was interested in the technological advances of the time and more so how this could be relevant to the public, particularly the consumer. As you can see in this poster Cassandre’s graphics were very bold, geometric and even mechanical in their composition and layout. Cassandre was considered part of the Art Moderne movement, later to be known as Art Deco, which was generally considered a more commercial outlet on the Modernism movement inspired by simple elegance with purpose. ³ Cassandre saw posters as the perfect outlet for his design as it went hand in hand with the introduction of mass production in this era. This allowed his work to be seen and appreciated by the public rather than those select members of society fortunate enough to visit a gallery. ⁴ As was popular of the Modernism era the type is also Sans Serif, which was often seen as a rejection of traditional methods in type and used to improve legibility.

1923 – Mz 601 – Kurt Schwitters (Image taken from – http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/01/arts/design/kurt-schwitters-exhibition-at-princeton-museum-review.html?pagewanted=all)

⁶ Schwitters was classically trained as a painter but was inspired by the Dada movement, in particular how it separated art and life by ignoring rational thought, following his stint in the First World War. Schwitters was unlike most Dada artists in the sense that he was not interested in rebellion, more so in appealing to a wider audience. As you can see in Mz 601 Schwitters was interested in assemblage and combining found objects with constructivist and functional composition to form design that would have an impact on people.

1937 – Running Water – Rural Electrification Administration – Lester Beall (Image taken from- http://www.moma.org/collection/browse_results.php?criteria=O%3AAD%3AE%3A409&page_number=4&template_id=1&sort_order=1 )

⁷ Remington (1992) stated Beall was an American Modernist Graphic Designer who sought much of his inspiration from the European Avant Garde design movement and utilized the characteristics of the modernist movement in much of his work. This is especially evident in this series of posters aimed at encouraging rural American households to adopt the emerging household innovations of the time. I am particularly fond of his ability to combine simple, bold graphics whilst delivering a commercial message that evokes a response from the viewer.

I consider much of the inspiration for the Modernism movement to have been born as a reaction to the First World War in the sense that people felt under pressure to ensure that such a devastating event didn’t occur again. Prior to the First World War art movements had typically followed on from the one before it in a fitting sequence, ‘the movements of the seventeenth, eighteenth and nineteenth centuries being seen, in one way or another, as part of an unfolding tradition.’ However Modernism seemed to break this pattern with its inspirations being drawn from a variety of eras and aiming to appeal to a variety of wider audiences. Artists such as Beall showed this and felt the need to make a positive change by encouraging people to accept the modern technologies in order to benefit themselves. Beall managed to source his inspiration further than what was happening in America at the time, ‘Hauck showed Beall valued copies of the Bauhaus books and publications of the avant-garde which he had brought back with him.’ (Roger Remington, http://www.aiga.org/medalist-lesterbeall/ 1992) And from studying the values and ideology of the Bauhaus movement he was able to move away from classic commercial American Graphic Communication and adopt the mindset that a design solution is born out of the problem, ‘That form must follow function’.

Le Corbusier was also a designer who believed in design that was made for purpose without added embellishments that were not functionally relevant to the point in the Villa Savoye where he no longer deemed walls necessary, ‘ the free plan, unencumbered by structural partitions; the similarly free facade; and the strip (continuous, horizontal) windows, which provide maximum illumination to the house.’ (Le Corbusier, Toward an Architecture, 100 Artists’ Manifestos: From the Futurists to the Stuckists) It was these principles that Corbusier formed his 5 principles of modern architecture following experimenting with forms made from reinforced concrete and concluding what was most functional, as Corbusier often saw it through the eyes of the average man, ‘ Man sees architectural things that are 1 metre 70 from the ground. We can reckon only with goals accessible to the eye, with intentions that take the elements of architecture into account.’ (Le Corbusier, Toward an Architecture, 100 Artists’ Manifestos: From the Futurists to the Stuckists) Again you can see design that was made for people to use, live in and interact with. It was this sort of mindset and relationship between designer and the public that allowed people to have an opinion and therefore react to what was going on around them.

I like to think that I would agree with this school of thought. It is common to wonder how your work will be received and whether or not it will function as you intended. The modernist mindset was often to cater for a particular need in the most efficient way in accordance with the most suitable process. ⁹ There are many designers who have continued along these lines of thought, such as Dieter Rams (1980’s), who outlined his understanding of design in his ‘Ten Principles of Good Design’, explaining how good design should be useful, innovative, aesthetically pleasing, honest and thorough down to the last detail. Despite Rams working career being over 50 years after the movement you can see just how powerful Modernism was and has it has continued to resonate with many designers and consumers to this day.

⁸ However Modernism was to come to an end in accordance with the beginning of the Second World War. As Leaders such as Hitler came to power, art movements and often the people seen to be most influential in these movements were discouraged and often censored out of the mainstream. Throughout history art movements have commented and reacted to politics and vice versa however this did not sit well with Hitler who wanted nothing but graphics that he approved of to infiltrate the public and so the free thought and experimentation that Modernism had thrived on was to become discouraged and even outlawed. In a way you can see how art movements run in cycles. Many saw the Second World War as a sign that Modernism had failed, by the repeat of a World War people questioned to what extent had Modernism changed the way in which people had progressed.

I don’t consider Modernism to be able to be gauged or evaluated in terms of its successes. Historically it was absolutely necessary and those involved took it into their own hands to ensure progression was made and projected to the masses. My main criticism would be that it was such a broad movement that it is difficult to put so many different types of expression under one umbrella although I hardly consider this a problem considering most studies of Modernism considered Architecture as a starting point upon which to build knowledge on other areas of design, something I consider to be a positive rather than a negative and a means of learning that is still very valid today.

Bibliography.

Websites

1 Art History Resources (2010) [Online]. [Accessed 29 December 2010]. Available from World Wide Web:

http://arthistoryresources.net/modernism/roots.html

2 1919 Gropius, founds Weimer Bauhaus [Online]. [Accessed 29 December 2011] Available from the World Wide Web:

http://www.seedesign.info/index.php/the-modernist-era/36-bauhaus-a-the-new-typography

3 Cassandre, A.M (1960) [Online]. [Accessed 30 December 2011]. Available from the World Wide Web:

http://www.cassandre-france.com/cassandre-france.com/VIEWS_on_Posters.html

4 Avant Garde Typography (2011) [Online]. [Accessed 30 December 2011]. Available from the World Wide Web:

http://www.designhistory.org/20th_Avant_Garde_Typograhy.html

5 Le Corbusier: Architect Biography [Online]. [Accessed 30 December 2011] Available from the World Wide Web:

http://architect.architecture.sk/le-corbusier-architect/le-corbusier-architect.php

6 Liukkonen, Petri & Pesonen, Ari [Online]. [Accessed 2 January 2012]. Available from the World Wide Web:

http://kirjasto.sci.fi/schwitt.htm

7 Remington, Roger (1992) [Online]. [Accessed 2 January 2012]. Avaliable from the World Wide Web:

http://www.aiga.org/medalist-lesterbeall/

8 Art History Resources (2010) [Online]. [Accessed 5 January 2010]. Available from World Wide Web:

http://arthistoryresources.net/modernism/politics.html

9 Rams, Dieter, (1980) Dieter Rams: Ten Principles for Good Design [Online]. [Accessed 5 January 2012] Available from the World Wide Web: http://www.vitsoe.com/en/gb/about/dieterrams/gooddesign

Books

Le Corbusier (1961). The Modulor. London. Faber and Faber Ltd.

Droste, M (1 Aug 2006), Bauhaus, Taschen 25th Anniversary Edition (1 Aug 2006) Taschen.

Remington, R with Bodenstedt, L (2003) American Modernism, Graphic Design, 1920 to 1960. New haven CT. Yale University Press

Le Corbusier (1927).  Toward an Architecture. 100 Artists’ Manifestos: From the Futurists to the Stuckists (Penguin Modern Classics) 2011