Deutscher Werkbund

Mies van der Rohe in the Weissenhof Estate

(1927)

The Deutscher Werkbund (English: "German Association of Craftsmen"; German: [ˈdɔʏtʃər ˈvɛrkbʊnd]) is a German association of artists, architects, designers and industrialists established in 1907. The Werkbund became an important element in the development of modern architecture and industrial design, particularly in the later creation of the Bauhaus school of design. Its initial purpose was to establish a partnership of product manufacturers with design professionals to improve the competitiveness of German companies in global markets. The Werkbund was less an artistic movement than a state-sponsored effort to integrate traditional crafts and industrial mass production techniques, to put Germany on a competitive footing with England and the United States. Its motto Vom Sofakissen zum Städtebau (from sofa cushions to city-building) indicates its range of interest.

History

The Deutscher Werkbund emerged when the architect Joseph Maria Olbrich left Vienna for Darmstadt, Germany, in 1899, to form an artists' colony at the invitation of Ernest Louis, Grand Duke of Hesse.^[2] The Werkbund was founded by Olbrich, Peter Behrens, Richard Riemerschmid, Bruno Paul and others in 1907^[2] in Munich at the instigation of Hermann Muthesius, existed through 1934, then re-established after World War II in 1950. Muthesius was the author of the exhaustive three-volume "The English House" of 1905, a survey of the practical lessons of the English Arts and Crafts movement. Muthesius was seen as something of a cultural ambassador, or industrial spy, between Germany and England.

The organization originally included twelve architects and twelve business firms. The architects include

Mies van der Rohe

, who served as Architectural Director.

Key dates of the Deutscher Werkbund

1907, Establishment of the Werkbund in Munich
1910, Salon d'Automne, Paris
1914, Werkbund Exhibition, Cologne
1920, Lilly Reich becomes the first female Director
1924, Berlin exhibition
1927,
Stuttgart exhibition (including the Weissenhof Estate
)

1929,

Breslau exhibition

1934, Werkbund declare dissolution

1947, Reestablishment

100th anniversary

The Verband Deutscher Industrie Designer (Association of German Industrial Designers, or VDID) and the Bund Deutscher Grafik-Designer (Federation of German Graphic Designers, or "BDG-Mitte") held a joint meeting to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Deutscher Werkbund. A juried exhibition and opening was held on 14 March 2008.^[4]^[5]

Museum der Dinge

The collections and archives (Werkbundarchiv) of the Werkbund are housed at the Museum der Dinge (Museum of Things) in Berlin. The museum is focused on design and objects used in everyday life in the 20th century up to the present. Among other exhibits, it includes a Frankfurt kitchen.

Members

References

^ "CMOA Collection".
^ ^a ^b Wendy Moonan (7 December 2007), German Design for an Industrial Age The New York Times.
^ Joan Campbell, The German Werkbund: The Politics of Reform in the Applied Arts (Princeton University Press, 2016)
^ Werkbund Museum
^ VDID Events page Archived 17 July 2007 at the Wayback Machine

External links

Official website
Werkbundarchiv: Museum der Dinge – official site

[1] "CMOA Collection".

[German_Design_for_an_Industrial_Age-2] Wendy Moonan (7 December 2007), German Design for an Industrial Age The New York Times.

[3] Joan Campbell, The German Werkbund: The Politics of Reform in the Applied Arts (Princeton University Press, 2016)

[Musuem-4] Werkbund Museum

[VDID-5] VDID Events page Archived 17 July 2007 at the Wayback Machine

[1]

[2]

[4]

[5]

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