The Bauhaus was a progressive German art and design school founded by the architect Walter Gropius that operated from 1919 to 1933. Authentic Bauhaus furniture — sofas, dining chairs, tables and more — and the school’s followers married industrial and natural materials in simple, geometric forms. The goal of the Bauhaus was to erase the distinction between art and craft while embracing the use of new technologies and materials.
ORIGINS OF BAUHAUS FURNITURE DESIGN
CHARACTERISTICS OF BAUHAUS FURNITURE DESIGN
BAUHAUS FURNITURE DESIGNERS YOU SHOULD KNOW
AUTHENTIC BAUHAUS FURNITURE ON 1STDIBS
The name Bauhaus is derived from the German verb bauen, “to build.” Under the school’s innovative curriculum, students were taught the fine arts, such as painting and sculpture, as well as practical skills like carpentry and metalworking.
The school moved from Weimar in 1925 to the city of Dessau, where it enjoyed its heyday under Gropius, then Hannes Meyer and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. The period from 1932 to 1933 when it operated in Berlin under Mies was its final chapter. Despite its brief existence, the Bauhaus has had an enduring impact on art and design in the United States and elsewhere, and is regarded by many as the 20th century’s chief crucible of modernism.
The faculty roster at the Bauhaus reads like a who’s who of modernist creative genius — it included such artists as Paul Klee, Wassily Kandinsky and László Moholy-Nagy along with architects and designers like Mies and Marcel Breuer, who became known for his muscular brutalist-style concrete buildings in the postwar years. In 1925, while he was head of the Bauhaus carpentry workshop, Breuer gave form to his signature innovation: the use of lightweight tubular-steel frames for chairs, side tables and sofas — a technique soon adopted by Mies and others. Breuer’s Cesca chair was the first-ever tubular steel frame chair with a caned seat to be mass produced, while the inspiration for his legendary Wassily chair, a timeless design and part of the collection crafted to furnish the Dessau school, was the bike he rode around campus.
Bauhaus design style reflects the tenets by which these creators worked: simplicity, clarity and function. They disdained superfluous ornament in favor of precise construction. Seating pieces such as side chairs, armchairs or club chairs for example, were made with tubular metal or molded plywood frames, and upholstery was made from leather or cane. Above all, designs in the Bauhaus style offer aesthetic flexibility. They can be the elements of a wholly spare, minimalist space, the quiet foundation of an environment in which color and pattern come from one’s own collection of art and artifacts.
Today, from textiles to typefaces, architecture, furniture and decorative objects for the home, Bauhaus creations continue to have an outsize influence on modern design.
Find a collection of authentic Bauhaus furniture on 1stDibs.
Bauhaus 1919-1928 (1st Edition)
By Herbert Bayer, MOMA Museum New York, Walter Gropius
Located in New York, NY
First edition of the iconic monograph published in conjunction with an exhibition organized by Philip Johnson and held in 1938 at the Museum of Modern Art New York marking the tenth ...
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Fortune Magazine, June 1942 (Herbert Bayer Cover Design)
Located in New York, NY
The large-format, June 1942 issue of Fortune Magazine, a publication known for its powerful graphic design elements, especially cover designs, as well as for its reportage and featur...
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The New Vision (Laszlo Moholy-Nagy)
Located in New York, NY
Revised and expanded edition of Laszlo Moholoy Nagy’s seminal The New Vision, published in 1938 by W.W. Norton & Company. First edition thus, following the initial American edition p...
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The New Architecture and the Bauhaus
Located in New York, NY
Third edition of this landmark architectural text by the founder of the Bauhaus, based on lectures delivered in London in 1934 following the school’s closure in Germany. This edition...
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Vision in Motion by Moholy-Nagy (First Edition)
Located in New York, NY
First edition of Laszlo Moholy-Nagy’s final book, posthumously published in 1947 in Chicago by Paul Theobald. A landmark work of modern design theory, the book presents Moholy-Nagy’s...
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Frank Lloyd Wright: Designs for an American Landscape, 1922-1932 Book
Located in Moreno Valley, CA
Frank Lloyd Wright: Designs for an American Landscape, 1922-1932. Anne Whiston Spirn, David Gilson De Long Thames and Hudson, 1996 - Organic architecture - 207 pages. Hardcover book. During the 1920s Frank Lloyd Wright designed five projects, none of which were ever built, but which were architectural prototypes...
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Tubular Steel Furniture Book / Bauhaus Interior - Die Schöne Wohnung, 1930s
Located in Praha, CZ
- 1930s - for the condition see the pictures - jr.
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Interior Bauhaus Leaflet Wohnräume Der Gegenwart / Chrome Furniture-1930s
Located in Praha, CZ
- 1930s. - By Gustav Adolf Platz. - 6 pages. - Tugendhat, Mies van der Rohe, L.Moholy Nagy, Le Corbusier. - for the condition see the pictures. - jr.
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Aldo van Eyck: 1st Edition Hardcover, Bauhaus Style, 1999
Located in Moreno Valley, CA
Aldo van Eyck: Works. by Aldo van Eyck and Vincent Ligtelijn. A survey of the work and career of Dutch architect Aldo van Eyck (1918 – 1999). For the present publication the architect opened his substantial archive and provided unpublished original texts, plans and photographs. All main buildings and projects from 1944 to the present day are documented in depth. Aldo van Eyck, Doyen of Dutch architecture, is one of the most significant architects of the 20th century. His way of looking at buildings, his visual thinking, his way of perceiving and structuring time and space, events and social coexistence had a strong influence on his contemporaries during the 1950s and 1960s. The book is based on van Eyck's substantial archive of original texts, plans and photographs, documenting all presented buildings in depth. Aldo van Eyck, the "Grand Seigneur" of Dutch architecture is one of the most significant architects of this century. He exerted a strong influence on his contemporaries during the fifties and sixties, and this can be seen in many ways of their buildings both in the Netherlands and worldwide. It was not merely his way of looking at buildings which was influential but also his perception of architecture; his visual thinking, his way of perceiving and structuring time and space, events and social coexistence. The architectonic treatises he wrote are still relevant and useful today. The present publication has been produced on the occasion of Aldo van Eyck's 80th birthday in 1998. The architect has opened his substantial archive and has provided unpublished original texts, plans and photographs. All buildings from 1944 to the present day are documented in depth and an essay by Alexander Tzonis and Diane Lefaivre makes the historical and cultural background to his work accessible, explaining clearly and lucidly the ideas, the design principles which underlie the conception of his buildings. Further texts by Pierre Boulez, Herman Hertzberger, Rejma Pietila and Joseph Rykwert...
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Book "2100 Metal Tubular Chairs" by Otakar Máčel (Bauhaus)
By Otakar Máčel
Located in Praha, CZ
- Very rare - Author: Prof. Otakar Mácel - Publicated in 2006 - Original, no reprint - Perfect condition - It's no chance to buy on internet - 2100 chairs with pictures and description.
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Original Thonet Stahlrohrmobel Furniture Catalogue, 1980s
By Thonet
Located in Praha, CZ
- 1980s - maker: Thonet - reprint from 1930s - perfect original condition - 48 pages jr.
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Extremely Rare Bauhaus Book BYT by Václav Petr, Ladislav Sutnar, 1934
Located in Praha, CZ
- 1934 - ilustrated by L.Sutnar - Václav Petr - Pavel Janák, A. Heythum, L. Žák, K. Honzík, F. Zelenka, H.Kucerová - 80 pages - few drawings by penci...
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English Style, First Edition
By Stafford Cliff, Suzanne Sleisin
Located in valatie, NY
English Style by Suzanne Slesin and Stafford Cliff. NY: Clarkson N. Potter, 1984. Stated first edition hardcover with dust jacket. 288 pp. An intimate l...
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New Orleans Architecture Vol. VII Jefferson City, First Edition
By Dorothy G. Schlesinger
Located in valatie, NY
New Orleans architecture vol. VII Jefferson City. Gretna: Pelican publishing company. First edition hardcover with dust jacket, 1989. 192 pp. ...
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Chinese Good Fortune Hairpin, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
Although eyes were certainly drawn to the high, fan-shaped headdresses that Qing-dynasty women affixed to back of their heads, it was the finishing touch of a hairpin or two that completed the look. This silver hairpin ends in a round floral medallion framing the decorative Fu (?) character for "good...
Silver
Paco Rabanne – 1st Edition 1996
Located in CA, CA
First edition hard cover, published by Éditions Michel Lafon, 1996. Paco Rabanne, a feeling for research. An impressive monograph covering the daring and experimental work of desi...
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Florence Sketchbook of Frank Lloyd Wright (Book)
Located in North Yorkshire, GB
This is a limited edition facsimile of the manuscript sketchbook by Frank Lloyd Wright which served as the maquette or layout for the famous Wasmuth portfolio...
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Architectural Digest The Most Beautiful Rooms in the World
By Rizzoli International Publications
Located in New York, NY
An unrivaled survey of the most exciting contemporary interior design across the globe, curated by the editors of ten international editions of Architectural Digest. Since 1920, Architectural Digest has celebrated design talents, innovative homes, and products--providing endless decoration, lifestyle, and travel inspiration. With ten global editions, the magazine is an authority renowned all-over the world for publishing only the very best of today's interior design. In this new volume--spearheaded by AD France's editor in chief, Marie Kalt...
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Frank Lloyd Wright Lake Geneva Cast Iron Deep Brown Magazine Rack
Located in Farmington Hills, MI
We are very pleased to offer this vintage magazine rack inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright’s iconic Lake Geneva Hotel tulip window design. This piece translates Wright’s geometric abstra...
Iron
Ray Booth: The Expressive Home: Architecture and Interiors
Located in New York, NY
Ray Booth: The Expressive Home: Architecture and Interiors Author Ray Booth, with Judith Nasatir For his second book, Booth, a master of modern elegance, creates homes that are strikingly sophisticated and wonderfully livable at the same time. Booth showcases his innovative and sophisticated modern interiors, which mix a keen sense of tranquility with bold and elegant details, as well as homes renovated inside and out, and houses designed and decorated from the foundations up. Both his exteriors and interiors display a harmonious blend of traditional and contemporary elements, resulting in an appealingly timeless aesthetic. This exquisitely designed tome presents his forward-thinking vision. The spectacular projects featured span the country from coast to coast—from a dramatic Los Angeles hillside dwelling with expansive windows to a contemporary Nashville home that marries brick, metal, and wood. For his own Provincetown seaside getaway, he has chosen an unexpected cutting-edge style. These projects show how he pushes the boundaries of design while imbuing spaces with soul. About The Author Architecturally trained designer Ray Booth is a partner of the prestigious McALPINE firm who divides his time between Nashville and New York City. Booth’s work has received national recognition from the most prestigious lifestyle publications, including Architectural Digest, Elle Decor, and Veranda. He remains at the top of the industry’s design list with honors including 1stDibs 50...
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Important Teddy Roosevelt Letter of June, 1911
Located in Dallas, TX
Presenting a very important Teddy Roosevelt Letter of June 1911 . On ‘The Outlook’ letterhead. Typed and personally signed and amended by President Theodore Roosevelt. Dated June 20th 1911. What makes this letter so important is the author, the office and the content. It refers to the beliefs and opinions of the then President and First Lady (Edith) towards the women’s sufferage and empowerment movement that was the ‘hot topic’ of the time. It is addressed to Eliza Calvert Hall/Obenchain who was a well known author at the end of the 19th Century and Early 20th Century. In 1905, Teddy referred to her book “Aunt Jane of Kentucky’ in a speech and recommended that every man in America should read it to understand ‘the plight of their womenfolk’. He regularly corresponded with her and we have a number of those letters in our collection. It appears that both he and Edith became big fans of Mrs Hall/Obenchain who was also heavily involved in the Suffragist movement. The letters also provide a fascinating and historic record of Roosevelt’s personal beliefs and feelings on female empowerment. The Letter Reads: The Outlook 287 Fourth Avenue New York Office of Theodore Roosevelt June 20th, 1911 “My dear Miss Hall: I am touched by your sending me “To Love and To Cherish”. But then, I am one of those included in the dedication, for I well know and dearly love ” Aunt Jane of Kentucky”. Mrs. Roosevelt and I do not feel that the hero ought to have yielded to his wife’s feelings ! Ultimately it was doing an injustice to her and to his children, as well as to the State. It is a good thing to have a Governor’s wife a woman who can be as gracious a hostess, and of as fine a type, as Dolly Madison...
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Visions of Home: Timeless Design, Modern Sensibility
By Rizzoli International Publications
Located in New York, NY
Author Andrew Cogar and Marc Kristal, Introduction by James L. Strickland, Photographs by Eric Piasecki A new volume from the esteemed architecture firm Historical Concepts features ...
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French Decorative Art 1900-1942 (Book)
Located in North Yorkshire, GB
The Société des artistes decorateurs, founded in 1901, was the first professional association of artists, artisans, designers and architects to emerge in France after the abolition o...
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$1,216Sale Price|32% Off
H 1 in W 108 in D 50 in
Frank Lloyd Wright for Schumacher Imperial Tokyo Textile, 3 yards, 1950’s USA.
By Schumacher, Frank Lloyd Wright
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Frank Lloyd Wright for Schumacher Imperial Tokyo Textile, 3 yards, 1950’s USA. 3 continuous yards
Textile
Pioneers of Modern Typography (1st American Edition)
By László Moholy-Nagy, Piet Zwart
Located in New York, NY
First American edition of Herbert Spencer’s foundational survey tracing the avant-garde origins of modern graphic design and typography in the first third of the twentieth century, v...
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H 11 in W 8 in D 1 in
Bauhaus, Weimar 1919-25 Dessau 1925-28, Museum of Modern Art, 1938 First Edition
Located in Stamford, CT
Bauhaus, Weimar 1919-25 Dessau 1925-28 Alfred H. Barr jr. (preface) Published by Museum of Modern Art, 1938 This hardcover is a first edition copy printed by The Museum of Modern A...
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H 12 in W 10 in D 1 in
The Wright Style by Carla Lind Simon and Schuster Hardcover Architecture 1992
Located in Moreno Valley, CA
The Wright Style by Carla Lind, Simon and Schuster, 1992 Architecture Hardcover Book. Re-Creating the Spirit of Frank Lloyd Wright. Publisher : Simon & Schuster (November 1, 1992). Language : English. Hardcover : 224 pages. Dimensions : 10 x 1 x 12 inches. The first book to highlight Frank Lloyd Wright's extraordinary contributions to interior design, The Wright Style opens the doors to more than 40 houses designed by Wright and his followers and includes an illustrated catalogue of sources for the furniture, rugs, wallpaper, lighting fixtures, textiles, and accessories shown. Over 250 photographs, most in full color. If you've ever wanted to step inside a house designed by frank Lloyd Wright or if you've ever dreamed of living in one The Wright Style offers the next best thing: an extraordinary look inside dozens of Wright's incomparable houses, all of them filled with countless inspiring ideas from America's favorite architect. From "pure" Wright houses to homes where his decorative magic has been mixed with related styles, the book captures the essence of the architect's timeless designs the spaces, the textures, the colors, the light, the furniture, the special features that all say Frank Lloyd Wright. As the magnificent houses here show, each of Wright's buildings was a complex composition of many interrelated elements; he regarded them as symphonies. Wright designed not just the shell, but everything inside as well: furniture, skylights, art glass windows, light fixtures, textiles, carpets, wall murals, decorative accessories, even the landscaping. Illustrating how Wright affected and inspired other houses, The Wright Style also presents interpretations of Wright's principles by some of his followers and apprentices providing a guided walk through a century of his unsurpassed influence on design. And for those who love Wright but who cannot live in complete, authentic rooms or purchase antique Wright furnishings, the book's catalogue of products makes it possible at least to bring a touch of the Wright style home. "Wright's ideas have so permeated our architectural world that we have lost track of the source," writes author Carla Lind. "His open floor plans led to family rooms, kitchens open to living areas, indoor spaces open to outdoor living spaces, garden rooms...
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Original Thonet Furniture Catalogue Book, 1930s
By Thonet
Located in Praha, CZ
- 1930s - 32 pages - for the condition see the pictures - jr.
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Frank Lloyd Wright The Interactive Portfolio by Margot Stipe Book
By Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation
Located in Moreno Valley, CA
Frank Lloyd Wright: The Interactive Portfolio by Margo Stipe Published by Running Press, Philadelphia, London. Frank Lloyd Wright: The Interactive Portfolio. Illustrated with Ful...
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Kandinsky Masterworks by Ramon Tio Bello Art Book
Located in Moreno Valley, CA
Kandinsky: Masterworks by Ramon Tio Bello Collector hardcover book One of the first and most famous abstract painters, Wassily Kandinsky created a form in which color and shape have...
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H 12.21 in W 9.06 in D 0.99 in
The Spirit of the Bauhaus - Anne Monier, Olivier Gabet - Thames & Hudson, 2018
Located in CA, CA
First UK Edition, published by Thames & Hudson, London, 2018. With contributions from a number of experts, this volume uncovers the sources of inspiration that brought the Bauhaus into existence, from medieval cathedrals of Europe and Hokusai prints to William Morris and Arts and Crafts...
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Book "2100 Metal Tubular Chairs" by Otakar Máčel (Bauhaus)
By Otakar Máčel
Located in Praha, CZ
- Very rare - Author: Prof. Otakar Mácel - Publicated in 2006 - Original, no reprint - Perfect condition - It's no chance to buy on internet - 2100 chairs with pictures and des...
Paper
Josef Albers "Interaction of Color" Yale University Press, 1963
By Josef Albers
Located in Chicago, IL
The seminal two volume work demonstrating Albers' complete teachings and ideas of color. Volume! is text and volume 2, 80 screen prints. Many of these prints have flaps. Cut-out over...
Erich Dieckmann First Edition Monograph
Located in New York, NY
Soft cover first edition of Erich Dieckmann's "Mobelbau" published by Julius Hoffman in 1931, with dust jacket in mylar cover. An important monograph s...
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