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.
4x Tubular Frame and Slatwood Stackable Garden Chairs, 1930's
By Eileen Gray, Marcel Breuer, Le Corbusier
Located in Den Haag, NL
Tubular frame and slatwood stackable garden chairs, 1930's We have 4 pieces available.
Steel
1930s Bauhaus Era Solid Brass Water Tap's - Faucet ´s
Located in Esbjerg, DK
A set of 2 solid brass water faucets. Both tested and in working order. Made in Europe, probably Scandinavian/Sweden during the 1930s. Your 1930s Bauhaus, Art Deco or Funkis House de...
Brass
1930s Bauhaus Era Solid Brass Water Tap's - Faucet ´s
Located in Esbjerg, DK
A set of 2 solid brass water faucets. Both tested and in working order and both come with original hose connectors. Made in Europe, probably Scandinavian/Sweden during the 1930s. You...
Brass
Bauhaus Style Bank Door or Gate Handles in Bronze, 1930s, Set of 4
Located in Esbjerg, DK
Two sets of patinated bronze gate or push/slide-door handles that was salvaged from a Danish Bank called Andelsbanken during the 1930s. The two sets are suitable for both in- or outd...
Bronze
$264Sale Price|35% Off
Bauhaus Era Door Handle Set in Bronze and Brass, 1930s, 1 Set
Located in Esbjerg, DK
Door Handle in brass and bronze. The solid brass spindles are thick and rounded of softly due to excessive use over the years. Suitable for your office, Conservatory, Atrium etc. It ...
Brass, Bronze
Bauhaus Chrome & Glass Gyroscopic Fireplace Screen
Located in Hanover, MA
Incredibly well preserved Bauhaus fireplace screen pivoting within its U-shaped stand in chromed steel and safety glass with playful gyroscopic rings, like a kinetic sculpture. Note ...
Chrome
Rare Bauhaus, Art Deco, Functionalism Chrome Window Pelmet or Console, 1930s
Located in Praha, CZ
- very rare type - practical - perfect original condition - coming from villa in Prag - custom-made
Chrome
Antique German Padlock in Brass & Iron, 1920s
Located in Esbjerg, DK
A 1920s original padlock with key. Made from steel and brass and made in Germany pre-war during the 1920s. Its works fine and is mechanically sound. Measurements: 8x5.5x2.5 cm.
Brass, Iron
Tubular chrome Bauhaus flower stand - 1940s
Located in Praha, CZ
- wooden parts restored - polished jr
Aluminum
Scandinavian Bauhaus State Building Door Handles in Brass, 1930s, 8 Sets
Located in Esbjerg, DK
8 Door handle sets with lock/key covers in patinated metal/brass. The solid brass spindles are patinated differently and rounded of softly due to excessive use over the years. Suitab...
Metal, Brass, Bronze
Mid Century Cast Aluminium Garden Chair
Located in Hastings, GB
Great looking garden or Orangery chair, cast in aluminium and painted in Emerald green. English circa 1950. Height 82cm x Width 60cm x Depth 67cm Seat Height 45cm
Aluminum
Cubist Terrazzo Concrete Sculpture, Abstract Female Form, Circa 1970s
By Brancusi, David Marshall, Constantin Brancusi 2, Amedeo Modigliani, Henry Moore
Located in Round Top, TX
Striking one-of-a-kind cast concrete sculpture in a terrazzo finish, featuring an abstracted Cubist female form. The faceted surface and stylized geometry reference both Brutalism an...
Concrete, Composition
Scandinavian Bauhaus State Building Door Handles in Brass, 1930s, 6 Sets
Located in Esbjerg, DK
6 Door handle sets with lock/key covers in patinated metal/brass. The solid brass spindles are patinated differently and rounded of softly due to excessive use over the years. Suitab...
Metal, Brass, Bronze
Bauhaus Era Brass Door Handles, 1930s, Set of 2
Located in Esbjerg, DK
A set of two door handle sets with oval lock/key covers in patinated brass (photo 1 and 2 of each set). The solid brass spindles are thick and rounded of softly due to excessive use ...
Brass
Czech Bauhaus Chrome Flower Stand Made Out of Oak, Lacquered, 1930s
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
This flower stand with a frame of bent steel tube and lacquered oak shelves, was made in the 1930s in the Czech Republic. Original chromium plating in perfect original condition. ...
Chrome
Bauhaus Style Macassar Ebony Pedestal
Located in Houston, TX
1940s Iconic Bauhaus style Macassar pedestal with ball detail.
Wood, Macassar
Aesthetically Perfect 1920s Art Deco Opaline Glass Pendant Light with Metal Rod
Located in Lisse, NL
Large size 1920s Bauhaus style fixture with original rod and canopy. This stunning and extremely rare design opaline glass pendant is in excellent condition. If we were in the busin...
Metal
1930s Bauhaus Era Solid Brass Garden Water Tap's - Faucet ´s
Located in Esbjerg, DK
A set of 2 large solid brass water faucets. Both tested and in working order and both come with original hose connectors. Made in Europe, probably Scandinavian/Sweden during the 1930...
Brass
$1,645Sale Price|20% Off
Chrome Etagere with Coral, Yellow and Red Painted Shelves in Bauhaus Style
Located in Vienna, Austria
Lovely chrome flowers étagère from 1930s, produce in Czechoslovakia. The shelves are in original colours, the applications technique is "Schleiflack" (...
Chrome
Set of Two Functionalism, Art Deco Chrome Towel Holders, 1930s
Located in Praha, CZ
- very rare type - practical
Chrome
Bauhaus Chrome Window Pelmet or Console, 1930
Located in Praha, CZ
- Good original condition, - 1930s - Coming from villa in Prag.
Brass, Chrome
Tubular chrome Bauhaus flower stand - 1940s
Located in Praha, CZ
- wooden parts restored - polished jr
Aluminum
$1,034Sale Price / set|20% Off
Bauhaus Chrome Window Pelmets or Consoles
Located in Praha, CZ
- 1930s - Good original condition - Coming from villa in Prag.
Brass, Chrome
Bauhaus Chrome Window Pelmet or Console, 1930/Czechoslovakia
Located in Praha, CZ
- 1930s - Good original condition with patina, polished - Coming from villa in Prag.
Brass, Chrome
Unusual Czech Oak Bauhaus Style Chrome Étagère, Flower Stand, Kovona, 1930s
Czech Bauhaus Chrome Flower Stand Made Out of Chrome Plated Steel, 1950s
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
This flower stand with a frame of bent steel tube and plastic flower pots, was made in the 1950s in the Czech Republic. Original chromium plating in...
Chrome
Bauhaus Style Small Table, Chrome-Plated Steel, Czechia, 1930s
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
Bauhaus style small table. Period: 1930-1939 Source: Czechia Material: Chrome-Plated steel Professionally cleaned chrome.
Chrome, Steel
Pair of Bauhaus Étagères by Robert Slezák and Arnošt Beck, Birch Wood, 1930s
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
Source: Czechia Period: 1930-1939 Maker: Robert Slezák Architect: Arnošt Beck This item features classic Bauhaus design elements. Elements of this style are neutral colors and occas...
Chrome, Steel
Restored Bauhaus Flower Pedestal, by Robert Slezák, Chrome, Steel, Czech, 1930s
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
Made by Slezak Factories, a unique Czech furniture brand specialising on chrome and bent metal furniture. It has been re-polished with polyutherane piano lacquer by our professional...
Chrome, Steel
Czech Brown Bauhaus Chrome Flower Stand by Mücke, Melder, Zebrano Wood, 1930s
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
This étagère, with a chrome-plated steel tube and Zebrano wood shelves, was made in the 1930s in the Czech Republic. Original chromium plating in a very nice original condition. S...
Chrome