C’est Mon Favorite: László Moholy-Nagy

The work of László Moholy-Nagy has inspired me greatly.  Known as a professor of the Bauhaus, his work spanned across many fields such as photography, typography, sculpture, printmaking, and industrial design.  I appreciate the way he uses space and creates photographs that have depth through calculated design.

A pioneer in his field, he took communication into a progressive direction.  He was a strong supporter of technology and industry in the arts.  The tension he created with his work was both challenging and insightful.  Perhaps this was in part due to the challenges he faced in his real life as he had narrowly escaped the Nazi’s from persecution as a Hungarian Jew.  The work he had put forth continues to inspire generations of artists to create with a focused element of design. After moving to Chicago, Moholy-Nagy founded the Institute for Design which offered the first PHD program in the United States in design.

I have yet to read Vision in Motion in which he accounts for his curriculum development for the School of Design; however, it is on my wish list.

Interestingly, the software company Laszio Systems has created an open source program called OpenLaszio, both of which were named in honor of László Moholy-Nagy.

Here are some of his works that I have found inspiration from:

Vom Funkturm (From the Radio Tower) 1929

The Law of Series (Das Gesetz der Serie)

Finnegan’s Wake

Composition #19

Photogram

Frontispiece from Catalog for 1923 Bauhaus exhibition (1923)

Cover of therevue  foto-QUALITAT 1931

Typophoto is the use of photography and typography.

Pneumatik 1926

Bauhausbucher 1 (1924)

Bauhausbucher 11 (1927)

He helped to brand the image of the Bauhaus school and used iconography of fundamental geometric shapes such as the square, triangle, and circle.

Bauhausbücher 5

 

~ by lartistamaria on October 25, 2010.