Bauhaus Now

Overview

For a 14-year period between 1919 and 1933, the Staatliches Bauhaus was ahead of its time. Also known as simply Bauhaus, the German art and design school took a clean, streamlined, thoroughly modernist approach to its disciplines. And when it was closed by the Nazi regime, its teachers and students kept applying those principles, including those who moved to Australia.

Indeed, there's a reason that the Bauhaus name has lived on for more than a century — and, although you mightn't realise it, the school has made quite a contribution to Aussie life, art and architecture. Bauhaus Now, the Museum of Brisbane's latest free exhibition, surveys all of the above until Sunday, April 18, 2021. Across nearly 100 pieces, you'll see how Bauhaus has influenced everything from furniture and building designs to films, textiles and photography. Also on display: paintings, prints, sculptures and historical imagery.

Exploring how Bauhaus' ideas are being applied and interpreted today, too, this colourful showcase includes work by a range of figures — including notable Bauhaus practitioners such as Karl and Gertrude Langer, Wassily Kandinsky and Marianne Brandt, plus local contemporary artists including Michael Candy and Christopher Handran. Not that you can miss it, but keep an eye out for the newly commissioned Sunroom: Between Sunrise and Sunset by Paul Bai, which gives the exhibition quite the striking entry point.

Images: Toby Scott.