Level 2 Graphic Design

Unit U17199 Making Modernities in Art and Design

HEMIS No. 49283901

Making Modernities The Avant Garde and Social Change

Figure 1. Lazlo Moholy-Nagy, Brochure cover for 14 Bauhaus Books, 1929 (www.artstor.org)

In 1929, Lazlo Moholy-Nagy created the brochure cover for 14 Bauhaus books a brochure designed to promote the school of Bauhaus, its philosophies, and its techniques under the direction of both Moholy-Nagy and Walter Gropius. In this essay I will discuss this image in relation to political activity of the early 20th century, the theories under which this design was inspired, and provide an insight into how the image communicates the Bauhaus message, which calls for a change in visual language to facilitate social change, and explore the reasons why a change was deemed necessary. To gain a further understanding of the messages that are being communicated in this design, we must first take a look at the turbulent politics around the time of its creation. In the year 1917, the Russian revolution saw a dynamic shift in the way the country was governed; the rising anger amongst the working classes climaxed near the end of the first world war, where Russia suffered heavy losses and food supplies were scarce. This in turn caused an upheaval of the Russian class system, giving proletariat Russia a much bigger voice, and inspiring a new order in art and architecture that dealt with social and economic problems (Constructivism (1914 1930), n.d.) Constructivism, as the movement came to be known was a driving force in the changing of visual language and conventions in art at the time; artists such as El Lissitzky and Rodchenko sought to give their work a higher purpose in society by creating works that were useful, and inspired social and economic improvement to a country that badly needed it.

Figure 2. El Lissitzky, Beat the Whites with the Red Wedge poster, 1919.

In Moholy-Nagys 14 Bauhaus Books brochure design there are definite signs of influence from Constructivist movement. Figure 2 shows El Lissitzkys Beat The Whites with the Red Wedge poster, which was one of the first works to put in to use the visual language of the Russian Avant Garde. El Lissitzky uses simple colours and only basic geometric shapes in his poster to symbolise the triumph of the red Bolshevick
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Level 2 Graphic Design

Unit U17199 Making Modernities in Art and Design

HEMIS No. 49283901

party over the white anti-revolutionary supporters. The use of primary colours and simple shapes are key elements in the visual style of the Bauhaus designs, and Moholy-Nagys brochure design is no different. Within the design we can observe the use of simple geometric shapes such as lines and squares to divide the design into sections, and also the simplistic logo in the top left hand corner, which is made up of only simplistic lines, curves and shapes. Furthermore, there is a clear similarity in the use of colour in both El Lissitzky and MoholyNagys works; both images are limited to a pallet of black, white and red, and although the red in El Lissitzkys work is used to symbolise a political party, it also provides an effective contrast with the less vibrant white and black, creating a hierarchy within the piece. This use of colour to communicate a hierarchy is similarly used in Moholy-Nagys design.

Figure 3 Rodchenko, Fire Escape, from the series Building on Miasnitskaia Street, 1925

Figure 4. El Lissitzky The Constructor, 1914

Another way in which my key image draws on the visual style of the Russian Constructivists is through the medium of photography and photomontage. A closer look at the photograph of metal type shows a duplication of the original image, rotated, darkened and placed alongside the original metal type object. Use of obscure angles and photomontage is typical of Russian Constructivist artists; as we can see from Figure 3, Rodchenko uses the angle of the camera (along with the direction of the light source) to obstruct the view of the subjects face, and depict the entirely normal action of a man climbing a ladder in a new light. This idea echoes the Constructivist philosophy that a new way of thinking is needed to improve the social and political unrest in Russia at the time, and exploring new methods in existing mediums was a way of putting this change into effect. For Rodchenko, learning to see in new ways was integral to effecting social and political change. His angled perspectives challenged the work of many of his Western contemporaries, who believed in a more traditional approach to documentary photography. (San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, 1996). Figure 4 is an example of the constructivist artist El Lissitzky using photomontage in his work: just as this image uses photomontage to add another meaning to the self-portrait (the hand holding a tool imposed over the face implies construction in his personality), so too does the photomontage used in Moholy-Nagys brochure design. Showing the metal type from a different angle communicates the Bauhaus philosophy of creating social change from the use of a different view point. As well as looking at how the political climate at the time influenced the artist, we also need to question the purpose of the work, and the intention of the author at the time of its creation. From 1925 to 1928, MoholyNagy directed the preliminary course at the Bauhaus in Dessau, and together with Walter Gropius, he coauthored and designed 14 Bauhaus books that were designed to promote the techniques and philosophies of the school. Within this design we can observe elements such as typography, colour and photography that communicate the schools methods and ideas.

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Level 2 Graphic Design

Unit U17199 Making Modernities in Art and Design

HEMIS No. 49283901

The first example of this is the aforementioned use of lines and geometric shapes in the design; as Rudolf Arnheim (1997, p. 225) comments when observing the architecture of the Bauhaus building in Dessau: Just as in the workshops of the Bauhaus the smallest utility is given the simplest geometric shape so are these [buildings], the biggest of them all one is made to receive her the sense of a convincing uniformity of all objects made by man. Arnhiem obvserves that everything the Bauhaus creates, from posters to architecture, can be simplified down to the basic principle of the geometric shape. Therefore, the use of these same principles in Moholy-Nagys design effectively communicates and promotes the Bauhaus visual aesthetic. Together with the use of simple geometric lines and shapes, the Bauhaus is famously known for its function over form mentality; the school actively sought to abandon old methods of visual communication and look for new, more functional ways of communicating. We can see this mentality put in to practice in the design of the brochure cover through the typography. Jan Tschichold (1935/1967 p.24) describes the advantages of exploring new typographic methods: [Hierarchy] cannot be achieved within the framework of old typography, which tends to present a uniform appearance Unsymmetrical arrangements are more flexible and better suited to the practical and aesthetic needs of today. In Moholy-Nagys design we can see the indicators of hierarchy and grouping through asymmetry, and it is because of visual language such as differently weighted type and the way the text is set and alighted on the page that we are able to decode the information as the designer intended. These methods were revolutionary in 1929, and they both defined and marketed the Bauhaus school to the world. A further indicator of the promotion of a new mentality towards typography in Moholy-Nagys design is his use of a sans serif typeface. In his essay on Modernism in design Greenhalgh states: Truth as a moral value was transposed into being simultaneously an aesthetic quality The Designer had to avoid formalistic imitation and snobbery which often distorted the fundamental truth. I.e. In order to communicate effectively, the design must be truthful, and not embellish meaning with excessive decoration. Using a sans serif typeface makes the design effectively communicate the Bauhaus call for the abandonment of art for arts sake through the sans-serif typeface that it uses. One of the fundamental teachings of the Bauhaus is that most students should face the fact that their future should be involved primarily with industry and mass production rather than with individual craftsmanship (Barr, 1938). The Bauhaus actively encouraged the synergy between art and industry because, much like the work of the early constructivists after the Russian revolution, they pursued a genuine desire to make a difference to the world with their work. Greenhalgh (1990, p. 8) explains: Design was to be forged into a weapon with which to combat the alienation apparent in modern, urban society. Industry provides a method of getting the message of art head by a larger audience, and so it is vital for social change to ensue. The promotion of the Bauhaus message of synergy between art and industry is evident in my key image. The photograph of the metal type on the front cover of the brochure can be seen as a reference to the letter-pressed typographic design on the back cover, which in itself promotes the use of industry in art. We have seen the ways in which Mohloy-Nahys 14 Bauhaus Books brochure design has been influenced by the avant garde of the early 20th century, and the way in which it promoted the values of the school, through its techniques and aesthetic, but how has the meaning of this aesthetic changed over time? The audience of the present day will undoubtedly look upon this image very differently to the audience that first viewed it in 1929, for a number of different reasons. Firstly, the aesthetics we can see in this late 1920s design are in a lot of ways a reaction to the social and political issues of the day; at the time of this designs creation The world was perceived to be in a chaotic, if not overtly evil, condition; every aspect of humanity had to be advanced towards a higher form, away from this previous state (Greenhalgh, 1990, p. 11) in the present day the techniques used in Moholy-Nagys design to facilitate expression of ideas are seen for their simplicity and style alone, rather than a solution to a problem, as they would have been viewed at the time of the designs creation.

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Level 2 Graphic Design

Unit U17199 Making Modernities in Art and Design

HEMIS No. 49283901

Furthermore, the Bauhaus ideas of the synergy between Art and Industry at the time were just beginning to be widely accepted as a solution to bringing the ideas of the Avant Garde to the masses. it must be stressed, however, that amongst the Pioneers at least, mass production remained an idea. Virtually nothing that was designed in the first phase of modernism went in to mass production It was an ideal (Greenhalgh, 1990, p. 10). Therefore at the time the merging of art and mass production of art through the medium of industry would have seemed much more radical than it does in the present day. Although by 1929, the ability for mass production had progressed much more, the scale in which the modernist style was mass-produced was only tiny compared to the present day. Since 1929, the message of modernism has spread to almost every developed country on the planet the ways of the Bauhaus and other modernist movements gained more and more notoriety, and by the 1960s the international style as it was coming to be known, had spread to all disciplines of the design world. The designers of the world interpreted the message of the Bauhaus and other schools as a message of style, without retaining the original ideas of social improvement - the sleek simplicity of refrigerators, white plastic kettles and collapsible laminated furniture suggest a common parentage, even if most consumers have no idea who the parents were. (Greenhalgh, 1990, p. 4). The ideas behind the construction of this design seem less significant in contemporary society, as the visual style in which the design adheres to has become so successful that it has now become the norm. In this essay I have discussed Lazlo Moholy-Nagys 14 Bauhaus Books brochure cover in relation to the political turbulence at the time of its construction and the influences it takes from the modernist movements formed after the Russian revolution. I have also discussed the aesthetics and visual language of the design in relation to its purpose of promoting the school of Bauhaus and its principles, and finally I have looked at how the meaning of the image has changed from the time of its creation, to the present day. Although the significance of the Bauhaus style is lost on the majority of consumers due to the popularity of the International Style, Moholy-Nagys design can be appreciated both for the way in which it promotes modernist values to initiate social change, and for the radical change in the design world that this image and others like it have inspired.

Arnheim, R. (1997). The Bauhaus in Dessau. In S. Heller, & G. Balance (Eds.), Graphic Design History (pp. 224-226). New York : Allworth Press. Barr, A. (1938). Bauhaus. In Bauhaus philosophy. (1996). Retrieved from http://academic.chrissnider.com/bauhaus/pages/philosophy.html Greenhalgh, P (Ed.). (1990) Modernism in Design. London: Reaktion. Constructivism (1914 1930). (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.huntfor.com/arthistory/C20th/constructivism.htm San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. (1996). Pozharnaia lestnitsa, from the series Dom na Miasnitskoi (Fire Escape, from the series Building on Miasnitskaia Street). Retrieved from http://www.sfmoma.org/explore/collection/artwork/18430#ixzz1josbyN00 Tschichold, J. (1967). Asymmetric typography (R. McLean, Trans.). London: Faber & Faber Limited. (Original work published 1935).

Figure 1. Brochure cover for 14 Bauhaus Books. Moholy-Nagy, L. (1929). Retrieved from http://www.artstor.org Figure 2. Beat the Whites with the Red Wedge. Lissitzky, L.M. (1919). Retrieved from http://www.artcitizens.net/picture/show/id/245/tribe_id/91 Figure 3. Pozharnaia lestnitsa, from the series Dom na Miasnitskoi (Fire Escape, from the series Building on Miasnitskaia Street). Rodchenko, A. (1925). Retrieved from http://www.artstor.org Figure 4. The Constructor. Lissitzky, L.M. (1914). Retrieved from http://russianconstructivists.blogspot.com/p/el-lissitzky.html

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