the lectures
A brief history of the concept of function | Laura Hummernbrum
Function is a term that is used in numerous scientific disciplines. In the exemplary disciplines of mathematics, philosophy and biology, the term has had a variety of connotations from the early modern period to the present day, which are difficult to put together as a condensed whole. The specific vocabulary of the description touches on terms such as dependency relationship, unambiguity or attribution. Interestingly, the interdisciplinary characteristics can often be transferred to the aesthetic field and give rise to further considerations.
"Strength, practicality, grace" - Vitruvius' basic ideas | Tobias Ellinger
In the treatise De Architectura libri decem ("Ten Books on Architecture"), written over 2000 years ago, the Roman Polio Marcus Vitruvus, Vitruvius for short, summarized his thoughts on architectural theory. He dedicated his work to the Roman Emperor Augustus and the period in which he lived. By focusing on science, Vitruvius aimed to raise the status of architecture and thus his own reputation as an architect to a higher level. Bernhard E. Bürdek emphasizes Vitruvius' humane functionalism, as the human being, from whom everything is derived, is at the center of design. This can be clearly seen in the Vitruvian man, who is fitted into the perfect form of the circle and square, and in the principle of the modulus, which we later find again in Le Corbusier's Modulor. In his interpretation, Hans Joachim Fritz emphasizes the concept of decor, which translates as "beauty", but also as "appropriateness". He sees Vitruvius' theory as a doctrine supporting the prevailing legal system, so that everyone knows quid deceat, quid non.
Peter Behrens and the AEG | Alexandra Völker
Peter Behrens (1886 - 1940) was appointed to the Artistic Advisory Board of AEG (Allgemeine Electricitäts-Gesellschaft), founded by Emil Rathenau, in 1907. There he initially designed printed matter until he was commissioned to redesign all of AEG's products. Behrens dispensed with all superfluous decoration and placed the function of the product at the forefront of the design.
Behrens left nothing to chance, whether print media, salesrooms or factory facilities (such as the turbine hall in Berlin-Moabit) - everything was subject to his design. He designed a uniform appearance for AEG with a high recognition value (today we speak of a corporate identity). Today, Peter Behrens is regarded as one of the first industrial designers. He combined the planning, design, execution and presentation of a product.
Functionalism as an era. On the functionalist concept of style and its transformation over the course of the 20th century | Eva-Maria Gerhards
Functionalism in the 20th century - and the concept of functionalism - is much more complex than one would expect at first glance. The first half of the lecture was therefore dedicated to the problem of terminology and raised the question of whether functionalism can be understood as an epoch at all.
The second half presented an episodic historical overview of functionalism in the 20th century. The German Werkbund, the Bauhaus, the HfG Ulm and the functionalism debate of the 1960s were discussed. The aim was not to present a coherent history, but to highlight differences and contradictions as well as the changes that functionalism underwent.
Finally, an attempt was made to answer the question posed at the beginning. In my opinion, historical functionalism should be seen as a style or trend of modernism rather than an era. Although the functionalists in particular rejected the concept of style, this view has a decisive advantage: a style can change and so the eventful history of functionalism tells different stories.
International Style | Sebastian Bracht
The lecture on International Style dealt with the characteristics and principles of architecture from the early 1920s to the late 1960s. The American architects Henry-Russel Hitchcock and Philip C. Johnson coined the term International Style in 1932 with their book The International Style. Architecture since 1922 coined the term International Style. They paid tribute to the formal vocabulary of the Bauhaus and adopted it to define the "International Style". In the spirit of functionalism, architecture and furniture were reduced in their decoration and radiated clarity and order. Hitchcock and Johnson emphasized three principles as characteristics of the International Style: the architecture should be constructed as an enclosed space, exhibit modular regularity and also completely dispense with arbitrary ornamentation. Even today, buildings by Peter Behrens, Adolf Loos and Mies van der Rohe, as well as the furniture designs by Le Corbusier and Alvar Aalto, are still seen as exemplary.
Jürgen Habermas: Modernism - an unfinished project, Frankfurt, 19.09.1980 | Svenja Hoffritz
Modernity - an unfinished project. This is not a question, but a statement for Jürgen Habermas. In his acceptance speech for the Theodor W. Adorno Prize awarded to him by the City of Frankfurt, the sociologist and philosopher defends the ideals of the Enlightenment and thus also modernity against the neoconservative and postmodern counter-currents that were emerging at the time. The differentiation of system and lifeworld and an ongoing colonization caused by social modernization could only be countered by a radicalized enlightenment and not by anti-modernism. In his concept of society, Habermas continues the critical theory of Adorno and Horkheimer, but draws different conclusions. Communicative reason as the central paradigm is the only means of freeing modernity from its aporias and reconnecting the functionalist system and the lifeworld.
"Once again - teaching at the HfG Ulm" | Kathrin Corinna Böhm, Joyce Moore
Even four decades after its closure, the Ulm School of Design can still be attributed a significant role in the current discourse on design as well as a significant influence on university teaching and the teachability of design. In publications about the HfG Ulm, the debate repeatedly arises as to whether this school can be regarded as a successful or failed institution. If one concentrates on the influence that the innovations of the methodical-analytical design approach had on our design education today, the attribution "successful" seems to be justified.
With this in mind, the lecture entitled "Once again - teaching at the HfG Ulm" was dedicated on the one hand to the content that characterized teaching at the Hochschule für Gestaltung. On the other hand, the question of the significance of the HfG Ulm for our current design education in concrete terms as well as for the professionalization of the designer's job profile in general was explored.
System design at the HfG | Sandra Bischler
Orientation systems at airports, corporate designs of companies, furniture systems and modular smartphones - the list of examples of how system design determines our everyday lives today is seemingly endless. But how did this thinking in systems come about?
If we look at the development of the concept of system design historically, we inevitably come across the Ulm School of Design and its "ulmer modell", the scientific and systematic approach to design.
My research project is particularly dedicated to system design in the Department of Visual Communication, where, among other things, images and sign systems were developed. What is the theoretical foundation of system design here? How was it taught and (how successfully) applied? What influence did it have on subsequent developments?
Over the next few months, I would like to pursue these questions primarily by analyzing specific examples of system design such as student research projects and diploma theses, but also by examining the theoretical roots of HfG system design on the basis of documents and publications from the university, most of which are kept in the HfG Archive in Ulm.
"Less is more" - Dieter Rams | Patrick Möckesch
The aim was to examine Dieter Rams' work - one of the most important industrial designers in Germany and the post-war period - in terms of its function in the aesthetic discourse. His ten theses on design formed the contextual framework.
"I was always interested in simplicity, in simplicity. As long as I can remember, that's what I wanted." Rams' view is that you can make a product speak with good design. The aim was always to emphasize the self-explanatory. The sustainability factor, which is important today, was already included in his designs in the 1950s. Quality and durability were basic requirements for his products.
Dieter Rams' designs are often compared with current Apple products to illustrate the still valid meaning of his credo "less is more".
Wilhem Wagenfeld - "...because everything useful must be able to be beautiful" | Marleen Grasse
The industrial designer Wilhelm Wagenfeld (1900-1990) designed many everyday objects with this in mind. At the beginning of his creative career, Wagenfeld was still confronted with the standards of historicism and art nouveau, but as an apprentice at the Bauhaus, he developed the iconic "Bauhaus lamp" together with Carl Jakob Jucker. Later, Wagenfeld abandoned the constructivist principles of the Bauhaus in favor of a more human-oriented functionalism. This resulted in products that were always intended to be both beautiful and functional. They should be natural and pleasant to use as well as having a timeless and unobtrusive form.
The influence of nature - positions of modernism | Jana van Thiel and Robin Nagel
The lecture dealt with Louis Sullivan, Frank Lloyd Wright, Peter Behrens and Le Corbusier, four important representatives of modernism who dealt with nature both theoretically and practically.
The architects were less interested in artistic imitations of nature than in adapting organic functions and dimensions. Technical progress and the resulting search for a naturally perceivable formal language were also part of this lecture. Le Corbusier's buildings initially appear to be diametrically opposed to nature, but he made use of its laws and developed a human-oriented system of measurement with the Modulor.
The ideas of the four architects offer solutions that can be contrasted with the still prevalent styling of our day as a concept for conscious design.
The idea of reduction in Scandinavian design | Hanna Düspohl
"Only in limitation does the master reveal himself", wrote Johann Wolfgang von Goethe around 1800. To this day, the reduction to which Goethe alludes in this quote is a current and valid design method in Scandinavian design.
Scandinavian design has enjoyed unbroken worldwide attention since the 1950s and is characterized above all by a restrained and sparing use of materials and colors. Today, Finnish designer Harri Koskinen (*1970) continues the clear, functional and innovative design language of Scandinavian modernism with his products.
His block lamp designed in 1996, for example, is characterized by a condensed and comprehensible design style. Despite the cool glass body, the yellow light of the bulb creates a warming atmosphere and thus creates a contrast between warm and cold. This additional focus on aspects such as atmosphere and temperature are, in contrast to Bauhaus, an important component of Scandinavian design.
Current post-materialism - An outlook | Melanie Frischmuth
"Moderation has become the status symbol of a post-material lifestyle that no longer automatically means pessimism", wrote Der Spiegel in April 2014, describing the trend towards consumerism. Not only scientists but also alternative lifestyles in the private sphere are addressing this issue. Reason enough to deal with it in the context of design: If renunciation and moderation determine consumption, can consistently conceived rationality function as a guiding principle? Can current post-materialism even counter the crime of ornamentation?
Moderation as a status symbol? What does an exemplary product look like that not only communicates rationality, but is rational by nature? Does functionalism mean sustainability today?
What is implied enables the current pursuit of sustainability to achieve something that functionalism could not achieve in the 20th century: The end of waste. The great discrepancy between functionalism and the free market economy can be overcome. The concept is called the post-growth economy.
_Further topic
Dialectics of Enlightenment by Horkheimer and Adorno | Nicole Dierolf
