Bauhaus Building, Dessau, 1925-1926: View from southwest after 1926

Curator: Klaus Hertig captured the Bauhaus Building in Dessau around 1926 in this striking photograph. The stark lines and cubic forms jump out. Editor: It feels austere, almost utopian, but there's a deliberate lack of ornamentation, wouldn’t you agree? I'm curious about the symbolism of the flat roofs, the vertical sign, and those glass curtain walls. Curator: Well, those elements weren't arbitrary. They embodied the Bauhaus school's ethos: functionalism, simplicity, and a rejection of historical styles. The building itself was intended as a pedagogical tool, its architecture reflecting the principles students were meant to internalize. Editor: So, the building embodies its function. I notice, also, how the lettering is vertically oriented. Curator: Absolutely. The Dessau Bauhaus, under Walter Gropius, aimed to integrate art, craft, and technology, and this building became a symbol of that vision, a beacon for modernism. Editor: A potent symbol, indeed. It still provokes questions about the role of design in shaping society, even today. Curator: Precisely, its legacy continues to influence architectural discourse and urban planning globally.