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Bauhaus Footstools

BAUHAUS STYLE

The Bauhaus was a progressive German art and design school founded by the architect Walter Gropius that operated from 1919 to 1933. Authentic Bauhaus furnituresofas, 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

  • Emphasis on craft
  • Simplicity, order, clarity and a prioritization of functionalism
  • Incorporation of geometric shapes
  • Minimalist and refined, little to no ornamentation
  • Use of industrial materials such as tubular chrome, steel and plastic as well as leather, cane and molded plywood in furniture and other products

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.

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Style: Bauhaus
Tubular Zebra Hide Steel Stool by Hynek Gottwald, 1930s
Located in Wien, AT
Tubular Zebra Hide Steel Stool by Hynek Gottwald, 1930s This stool or ottoman goes very well with our zebra chair. Together they are a perfect couple, that attracts everyone's attention. Completely reupholstered with new springs and covered with a selected real zebra skin...
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Mid-20th Century Czech Bauhaus Footstools

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Rare Barcelona Ottomans by Mies van der Rohe for G.R. Griffith, Original Label
Located in Buffalo, NY
Rare Barcelona ottomans by Gerald R. Griffith for Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, 1960s. By Gerald Griffith for Mies van der Rohe, produced for a short period of time by this Chicago metal...
Category

1960s American Vintage Bauhaus Footstools

Materials

Stainless Steel

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Mies van der Rohe for Knoll Barcelona Chair and Stool
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Bauhaus Chrome Pouffe, 1930's, Czechoslovakia
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Bauhaus H22 Stool by Mart Stam for Mauser, circa 1920s
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Bauhaus footstools for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a broad range of unique Bauhaus footstools for sale on 1stDibs. Many of these items were first offered in the 21st Century and Contemporary, but contemporary artisans have continued to produce works inspired by this style. If you’re looking to add vintage footstools created in this style to your space, the works available on 1stDibs include seating and other home furnishings, frequently crafted with animal skin, leather and other materials. If you’re shopping for used Bauhaus footstools made in a specific country, there are Europe, Denmark, and Scandinavia pieces for sale on 1stDibs. While there are many designers and brands associated with original footstools, popular names associated with this style include Poul Henningsen, Aeterna Furniture, Gerald R. Griffith, and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. It’s true that these talented designers have at times inspired knockoffs, but our experienced specialists have partnered with only top vetted sellers to offer authentic pieces that come with a buyer protection guarantee. Prices for footstools differ depending upon multiple factors, including designer, materials, construction methods, condition and provenance. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $600 and tops out at $12,500 while the average work can sell for $3,331.

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