Pracht und Prinzip
In Pracht und Prinzip the designer Bas van Beek combines the design principles of the Bauhaus (1919-1932) and the Wiener Werkstätte (1903-1932) with the collection of the Van Abbemuseum. Van Beek sees the Bauhaus school, with its total commitment to the industrially manufactured product, and the Wiener Werkstätte with its more frivolous, more craftsmanlike and smaller scale approach, as the cradle of contemporary design. He redesigned the series of designs and patterns of the two schools – some of which had never been executed – and adapted them when it was necessary. He then combined these with works from the museum’s collection, such as those of Donald Judd and François Morellet. He used the results with different products, such as wallpaper, a carpet, clothes and a wooden jigsaw puzzle. Although the designs are more than a hundred years old, dating from about 1910, they are still surprisingly up to date, particularly now that they have been placed in the context of a contemporary museum.
The designs of Pracht und Prinzip will be exposed until March 26, 2017 at various locations in the building of the Van Abbemuseum. They were also part of the program of the Dutch Design Week 2016.
Exhibition Pracht und Prinzip
Van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven
Until March 26, 2017
www.vanabbemuseum.nl
foto’s: Peter Cox