Luxury and Modernism - Architecture and the Object in Germany 1900-1933

Luxury and Modernism shows how luxury was present in bold, literal forms in modern designs--from lavish materials and costly technologies to deluxe buildings and household objects- and in subtler ways as well, such as social milieus and modes of living. While modernism was publicized as a fusion of technology, new materials, and rational aesthetics to improve the lives of ordinary people, it was often out of reach to the very masses it purportedly served. Schuldenfrei exposes the disconnect between modernism's utopian discourse and its luxury objects and elite architectural commissions. Despite the movement's egalitarian rhetoric, many modern designs addressed the desires of the privileged individual. Yet as Schuldenfrei demonstrates, luxury was integral not only to how modern buildings and objects were designed, manufactured, and sold, but has contributed to modernism's appeal to this day. Featuring stunning color images throughout, Luxury and Modernism provides an entirely new look at one of the most celebrated and influential eras in the history of architecture.

About the author

Robin Schuldenfrei is the Katja and Nicolai Tangen Lecturer in Twentieth-Century Modernism at the Courtauld Institute of Art, University of London.

Summary

While modernism was publicized as a fusion of technology, new materials, and rational aesthetics to improve the lives of ordinary people, it was often out of reach to the very masses it purportedly served. Luxury and Modernism shows how luxury was present in bold, literal forms in modern designs—from lavish materials and costly technologies to deluxe buildings and household objects—and in subtler ways as well, such as social milieus and modes of living. In a period of social unrest and extreme wealth disparity between the common worker and those at the helm of capitalist enterprises generating immense profits, architects envisioned modern designs providing solutions for a more equitable future. Robin Schuldenfrei exposes the disconnect between modernism's utopian discourse and its luxury objects and elite architectural commissions. Despite the movement's egalitarian rhetoric, many modern designs addressed the desires of the privileged individual. Yet as Schuldenfrei demonstrates, luxury was integral not only to how modern buildings and objects were designed, manufactured, and sold, but has contributed to modernism's appeal to this day.

This beautifully illustrated book provides a new interpretation of modern architecture and design in Germany during the heyday of the Bauhaus and the Werkbund, tracing modernism's lasting allure to its many manifestations of luxury. Schuldenfrei casts the work of legendary figures such as Peter Behrens, Walter Gropius, and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe in an entirely different light, revealing the complexities and contradictions inherent to modernism's promotion and consumption.

Additional text

"Robin Schuldenfrei revisits the inconsistencies between modernism’s rhetoric and its accomplishments, offering a generous reassessment of its proponents’ proclivity for luxury . . . . Luxury and Modernism presents eloquent, well-researched, and courageous scholarship . . . . With her major contribution, Robin Schuldenfrei has given us much to reconsider."---Leslie Van Duzer, Journal of Architectural Education

Report

"One of the most persistent myths about modern architecture is that it was inherently politically progressive. In this compelling account, Robin Schuldenfrei reminds us that modernism was often out of the reach of the masses, which of course enhanced its appeal to those who embraced its lavishness."--Kathleen James-Chakraborty, University College Dublin

Product details

• Authors: Robin Schuldenfrei, Schuldenfrei Robin
• Publisher: Princeton University Press
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 01.06.2018
• EAN: 9780691175126
• ISBN: 978-0-691-17512-6
• No. of pages: 336
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > Art > Architecture; ARCHITECTURE / History / General, History of Architecture