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Bauhaus Dream-house

Modernity and Globalization

By Katerina Rüedi Ray

Published April 16th 2010 by Routledge – 228 pages

Series: Architext

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Description

A highly original and innovative study that brings critical social theory to bear on the ideas of architectural and design education at the Bauhaus – tracing the spread and influence of these ideas worldwide.

Developed in post WW1 Germany, the principles of Bauhaus architecture and design were transferred by some of its leading figures to architecture schools at Harvard, Chicago and the IIT. Yet in the postwar era, they also became increasingly influential in architecture schools in Western and Central Europe, Japan, South America, Africa and the Middle East. This book provides a critical examination of the profound social, cultural and spatial consequences of these developments and the erasure of class, race, gender and culture which the ‘modernisation’ of design embodied.

Written to appeal to an extensive readership, not only in the fields of architectural and design education, but in architectural history and in critical pedagogy more generally, it is also for teachers and students in German art and cultural history and the many architects worldwide who continue to be fascinated by the ideas of the Bauhaus.

Reviews

'At the same time as filling out the general knowledge gleaned from the corpus of texts on the Bauhaus that preceded it Bauhaus Dream-House is a dramatic reminder that the fourteen year troubled existence of this school generated ideas that were powerful enough to maintain their relevance on a global stage' – International Journal of Education through Art

“…this book can appeal to an extensive readership not only in the field of visual arts education but also in history, pedagogy and even business. Anyone who is curious about the phenomenon of the Bauhaus will also find this book fascinating.”

– Leonardo

Contents

Introduction. Prologue 1. Tracing-house 2. Dream-house Part 1: Weimar Republic, 1919-1933 3. Charnel-house 4. Ware-house Part 2: Europe and Beyond, 1919 – 1968 5. Club-house 6. School-house. Conclusion: House-of-the-Father

Author Bio

Katerina Rüedi Ray is Professor and Director of the School of Art at Bowling Green State University. Former Director of the School of Architecture at the University of Illinois at Chicago, she studied at the Architectural Association and University College London and has taught, published and exhibited extensively in Europe and the USA.