The Modernism movement I would consider to be a nonanachronistic creation. It was towards the end of the 18th century and the industrial revolution had the potential to create new forms of media. Things were rapidly changing and yet the art world stayed dormant. Growth of cities and WW1 made resources scarce and thus the modernist artist came about.
Probably one of the most prominent incubators of the modernism movement was the Bauhaus Art School based in Germany. This was the first school to follow the modernist formula of teaching and artistic exploration. The founder Walter Gropius explained that it was to encourage the idea of creating a "total" work of art. No art or creative outlet was above another and implementing scientific or more industrial techniques was encouraged. Because of this the students were taught the basics of all types of creative media from painting to metal works. Walter was a believer that "art may not unconsciously blossom from the labour of his hand"
First and foremost this movement was to create and design things that could change the future. The idea of creating an item with function and practicality was key. It was no longer about romanticism and the focus was the trim away any unnecessary frill till all that was left was the core idea. Artists until this point were taught to provoke and use light,colours and atmosphere in their work. This was the first wave of new artists and the route of the modern day art student. In order to do this Items or images were stripped down to their core minimum making uses of strong lines, shapes, spaces and most importantly the simplicity overall.
Marcel Breuer - Wassily Chair
A student of Bauhaus, inspired by his bicycle, was able to create a historical piece of furniture. This practical piece of art is a lightweight and simplistic chair and the first of its kind. The design has been stripped to its bare minimum and created using cheap and more importantly mass producible materials. Even with this it still is a aesthetically pleasing piece.
Marianne Brandt - Tea Infuser and strainer
This piece is made purely from geometric shapes but each piece serves a purpose avoiding cluttering the object.
These examples prove that you can create a quality and efficient product that simultaneously can be considered in itself a piece of art. Making the function the first most important without disregarding the visual aesthetic of the item.
In modern society we have adopted this movement with open arms and is seen Everywhere from architectural structure and public spaces down to office spaces and
house interior.
A current example would be the Glasgow's School Of Art Reid Building. This building was designed with environmental effects in mind as well as how the space would be used. Using reflecting shafts, the design of the building allows light to travel throughout the entire building.
The examples below are all from our popular Scandinavian ready to assemble furniture brand, IKEA.
