Dinner in Kreuzberg

On Saturday, we walked and talked and spent most of the afternoon at home. We later in the day met up with an old friend and her husband (who we had never met) at their garden space in southern Kreuzberg. They bought along an old friend with his family who are from the northern part of Holland. The common language of the evening was English, since this is more universal for the Dutch than German. We spoke little about the Bauhaus and more about Obama's visit, his chances for success and whether he will survive past his first term if elected.

Although I have not formed an essential thesis about the Bauhaus, I found several items of interest and have come away with a continued belief that this art movement touched nearly every type of artistic production, although I haven't really found any specific art making practice or pedagogy that points to propaganda or political production. No political posters, no film work, no paintings of capitalists with their hands on a stack of money. However, what is apparent is the interesting disparity or contradictions in the different artists, designers and architects that taught in Weimar, then Dessau. Kandinsky, Schlemmer, Albers and particularly Itten held up the fine art aspects of teaching and often became a counter-point to the architects and handwork teachers that drove the commercial art aspects of the Bauhaus. Although not entirely a new notion, the team teaching aspect of the artist and craftsman teaching somewhat side by side helped create a dynamic that would point the student toward artistic but usually functional commercial production usually. But the Bauhaus would often find pupils working as painters, sculptors or set designers and not part of the "bau" or for commercial success.

A Geman Bauhaus link: Bauhaus Store
Tagline: "Wenn gut's werden muss" (When 'good' is a must?). From a utopian art movement to an online store of cheap household products. From a product brochure: "Bauhaus (1919-33) has become a byword for the synthesis of art and technology, functional aesthetics and forward-looking teaching methods. All over the world, Bauhaus design has come to epitomise modernity."

Berlin Archives

After waking up late (the Berliners stay up late - and let everyone know it), Urs and I went off to find the Bauhaus Archives and Museum. We walked, we took a train, we walked, saw Bauhaus influenced objects - fire hydrants, trash cans, Ikeas - we made it to the museum around noon. Since I only had an hour at the Archives (it closes at 1), I spent the hour there, working through the Table of Contents of a book I did not know existed - "Teaching at the Bauhaus" by Rainer Wick. It has the most detailed information about the Bauhaus' pedagogy, even discussing the Bauhaus practice during the war (not as non-existent as some believe) and a surprise collaboration with the Allies at the end of the war (more on that 'myth' later). I went through the museum with the English language head set. The exhibition was interesting and touched upon the pedagogy of Itten, Kandinsky and Klee. The museum did its best to balance fine art production with its "form follows function" commercial production.

Urs and I spent the afternoon strolling Unter dem Linden, the street leading up to the Brandenburg Gate. We heard the name "Obama" more than a dozen times. We made it back to P. Berg around 4pm, had dinner at around 7, got back home about 10. My favorite new joke: "Ich bin ein Berliner... Isst mich." Loosely translated: I am a jelly donut...Eat me.

Tomorrow we search for signs of the Bauhaus in the streets of Berlin. In the afternoon we are off to a Bauhaus-influenced art exhibition and discussion with the gallery's director: Galerie Berinson in Kreuzberg. In the evening we will end up at a friend's schriebergarten for dinner and discussion.

Back in Berlin

Finally, we are here. The trip from L.A. to Berlin was a little long and required more than your average effort to finally touch down in our apartment, but we are here and die Wohnung ist sehr shon.

Schedule through the weekend:

Friday: Bauhaus Archives
Saturday: Bauhaus Museum, interviews
Sunday: Writing, fahrrad in Berlin

I am juggling a few ideas about visiting the Bauhaus in Berlin. I think we will take a look at a few exhibitions of handwork and do a few interviews pertaining to the lasting effect of the Bauhaus philosophy in contemporary German art and handwork. In my research from my laptop in L.A., I did not find much discussion about the 1920s Bauhaus having any influence on 21st century art in Germany or abroad.

But I am also looking to go a little deeper, take a look at the schools and the universities to get an idea or feeling that discipline-based methods, those ultimately taught at the Bauhaus, are still used. This is my real research.

Bauhaus Research

While researching online resources specific to the Bauhaus, I found a cool link of an interview of a person who actually studied at the Bauhaus:

Former Bauhaus student to speak in Sheffield and Liverpool

It is a British person's first hand impression of many of the famous members of the Bauhaus. I have read it several times and have found those impressions a good addition to the Bauhaus textbook I am using by Magdalene Droste.

tools for the trip

We really need a few things for our trip, especially a good, small video camera.

I started with Computers.com to get the skinny on the best video cameras. Since I am partial to Sony and Canon, I have 3 choices.

http://reviews.cnet.com/digital-camcorders/canon-vixia-hf10/4505-6500_7-32786396.html?tag=txt

http://reviews.cnet.com/digital-camcorders/canon-vixia-hv30/4505-6500_7-32786397.html?tag=lst

http://reviews.cnet.com/digital-camcorders/sony-handycam-hdr-sr11/4505-6500_7-32775808.html?tag=lst

http://www.epinions.com/content_423933021828

I will also need a remote microphone and tripod. I am still trying to convince my wife to be my "cameraman". She hasn't said "no". Next post: Training my Camerawoman.

From our house to Bauhaus

I have finally set aside some time to work on planning my trip to Germany.This past week I have contacted the directors of each of the Bauhaus centers in Weimar, Dessau and Berlin. I have set up time meeting with architects in Berlin to discuss the influence of the Bauhaus on contemporary architecture and art.

My wife and I have rented a flat in Prenzlaur Berg in the eastern part of Berlin. We stayed in a hotel several years ago in this section of the city. We were excited about this new adventure, this new experience in one of the most interesting cities of the 20th century. Now we were going back to dig a little deeper into past, the years between the two wars and to find out how the Bauhaus was a product of its own time and influenced European artists and students in the 1920s. Do architects still address these principles? Do art educators still use some of its methods? How effective is the techniques of the Bauhaus in the 21st century?