Browsing the Bauhaus
John Hill
19. August 2016
Photo: Harvard Art Museums
The Harvard Art Museums, which holds a 32,000-strong collection of objects relating to the Bauhaus, "the 20th century’s most influential school of art and design," has unveild a digital catalog ahead of the legendary school's 100th anniversary in 2019.
Although Germany's Bauhaus was only active from 1919 to 1933, its influence "has been far-reaching, extending into the ways we teach, learn, and live even today," per the Harvard Gazette. The connection to Harvard is particularly strong, since Bauhaus founder Walter Gropius, who designed the school's namesake home in Dessau in 1926, emigrated to the United States in 1937 and chaired the Harvard University Graduate School of Design from then until 1952.
The website devoted to the Bauhaus archive, which is accessible to students, scholars, and the general public, is made up of five parts: Chronology, Holdings, Essay, Resources, and Credits and Acknowledgements. Holdings is where the collection is found, browsable by categories such as Painting and Sculpture, Furniture, Typography, and Architecture. The last, most relevant here, has a staggering 7,271 works that can be browsed and searched by keyword, type, date, and other criteria. The archive is sure to keep the most ardent fan of the Bauhaus busy for days!
