Is IKEA continuing the Bauhaus movement's mission?

The ways Bauhaus still shapes modern life

The German art school was around for less than 15 years, but its aesthetic and philosophy can still be seen today in sleek, minimalist design, bold typefaces, and even the corporate aesthetics of IKEA, Apple, and other brands. This DW feature visits the schools that have taken up the Bauhaus legacy, using its ideas to tackle contemporary problems.

Why Bauhaus—the 20th-century design school and aesthetic movement—matters today

The school, founded by Walter Gropius in Weimar, Germany, in 1919, was an experimental educational environment that valued the function of an object before its form, a philosophy that would animate the rise of minimalist and modernist design in the 20th century.

Browse some of the most iconic Bauhaus furniture

The Bauhaus style has become so commonplace that you might not have realized its influence on modern furniture, but the German school's impact is profound, from the Wassily and Barcelona chairs to Gropius' industrial style door knob.

Why the Nazis hated the Bauhaus style

The Nazis viewed the Bauhaus internationalist and collectivist philosophy to be communist and considered its modernist aesthetic as an affront to the more classical German identity they wished to project. This article from the Conversation explores the history behind that conflict, which forced the Bauhaus to move several times before ultimately closing.

The collaborative educational theory behind the Bauhaus school

The Bauhaus was an experimental school that prized interdisciplinary collaboration, blurring the lines between architecture, industrial design, theater, and other creative fields. Walter Gropius, the school's founder, lays out the ideas behind the school's unique curriculum in "The Theory and Organization of the Bauhaus," a 1923 manifesto.

How Bauhaus resonated in Norway

The Bauhaus style may have originated in Germany, but it had a major impact in Norway. This history unpacks the work of Marianne Brandt, Thorbjørn Lie-Jørgensen, Ola Mørk Sandvik, Hans Mollø-Christensen, and other Norwegian designers and architects

How a bicycle inspired an iconic armchair

The Wassily chair, also known as the Model B3, is one of the most recognizable and mass-produced pieces of modernist furniture. It was designed by Marcel Breuer—a Bauhaus student in the early '20s who went on to lead the school's carpentry workshop—who was inspired by the modular tubes and simple construction of a bicycle he'd purchased.

Why Le Corbusier called a house a 'machine for living'

Modernist architects aimed to boil design down to its essence, stripping ornamentation and frivolity. One of the most famous designers of that movement was Le Corbusier, who famously called a house a "machine for living in." This resource breaks down Le Corbusier's architectural theory and highlights where it can still be found today.

Some art critics believe that Liminalism, a form of art exploring the uncanny yet familiar, defines our present moment

While analyzing images of abandoned malls or empty hallways, art historians and critics argue that this style captures the feelings of this moment in time. Liminalism, they propose, expresses prominent themes in our age like anonymity, alienation, and anxiety.

Early MBA curricula were influenced by a movement in ‘scientific management’

The Scientific Management movement was pioneered by Frederick Winslow Taylor in the early 1900s and posited managers should take a scientific approach to work, studying each task and system in the workplace from an objective lens. It’s still considered the backbone of modern management practices.

An architect ranks the best bridges in the world

Architext Ezra Groskin builds bridges and argues that the best bridges do more than allow traffic. They should, he believes, encourage human interaction and lingering to ultimately become a destination of their own. Explore ten stunning designs that connect communities, from New York to Switzerland.

Mid-century modern graphic designers, known for their bright colors and bold lines in advertising, also found success with children's books.

Legendary architect Frank Lloyd Wright designed the SC Johnson headquarters in Wisconsin, aiming to make a cathedral-like workplace

The frenemies who shaped Modern Art

Matisse and Picasso are two of the biggest names in Modern Art, with works that redefined the possibilities of painting in the 20th century. While they were often cast as rivals, this Artnet article highlights their more complicated relationship, which was somewhere between a friendship, a mentorship, and an ongoing competition.

Burning Man's artists and architects create without seeking profit or fame

Each year Burning Man's Black Rock City sees major achievements in design. Many creators remain anonymous and do not seek fame, profit, or acclaim, valuing the process of creating, and seeking to cultivate culture and identity.

Salvador Dalí’s collaborations with fashion designers

Dalí was known to dabble in the world of fashion and formed a bond with the bold Italian designer Elsa Schiaparelli. Their collaborations birthed iconic designs like a bureau-drawer suit and a lobster dress.

Why Americans keep buying McMansions

Some argue that McMansions—large, relatively newly built, amenity-filled, cookie-cutter homes—are ugly. Others say they're just not a good investment. And yet Americans continue buying them. This video explores why McMansions are still popular despite these criticisms, and how these homes got their start in the first place. Watch the video here.

What is Swedish death cleaning?

Popularized in 2017 by Margareta Magnusson and her book "Döstädning: The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning," Swedish death cleaning is a cultural practice that encourages older folks to organize (and often donate) their belongings before they pass. This article explores the reasons behind the practice and explains how it can alleviate stress around death.

Existentialism has been used as a therapeutic tool

Psychologists became interested in existentialism in the 1940s, with two Swiss psychiatrists—Ludwig Binswanger and Medard Boss—particularly taken with Martin Heidegger’s “Being and Time.” The existential approach to therapy emphasized a patient’s personhood and experiences, using them to help that patient face their problems head-on.

The impact of FC Barcelona on Catalan pride

FC Barcelona is one of the most decorated soccer clubs in the world and has also become a source of Catalan pride. It all started in 1899 with a Swiss-German accountant and journalist, a newspaper advertisement, and 11 talented soccer players. Read this article to learn about the team’s humble beginnings and how its history overlaps with the Catalan resistance to Spanish rule.

In its famous catalog, Sears sold $600 DIY house kits from 1908 through the 1940s, resulting in an estimated 100,000 'Sears and Roebuck homes.'

What was the American Arts and Crafts Movement?

Although the phrase "arts and crafts" is now often used as a catchall for handmade art making, the term also refers to a 19th century artistic movement in both England and the United States. Its adherents felt alienated by industrialization's mass production and sought to bring noticeably human features back to household objects and design.

Sears failed to evolve in a changing economy

At its peak, Sears was the largest retailer in the world, making elite objects accessible to the middle class. But in 2018, the company officially filed for bankruptcy due to massive debt and losses.

'Move fast and break things' was one of Mark Zuckerberg's early leadership principles

The phrase was plastered across Facebook's office as a representation of the company's hacker mindset that fueled its early growth. However, Zuckerberg said he has since moved away from that motto and has focused more on sustainability as opposed to breakneck growth.

Exclusionary ads can help win over customers, some marketers argue

Slogans like "if you don't like dark roast, this coffee isn't for you," also known as "dissuasive framing," can entice specific groups of customers, some marketers say. The shift comes from the perceived authenticity of a company admitting that a product is not perfect for everyone.

Airbus is a rare European industrial success story that overtook a rival American firm

After World War II, the US dominated aviation, particularly Boeing. To compete, Europe's major industrial nations pooled resources to form Airbus, a customer-centric airplane manufacturer. Its A320 family of planes became the most popular in airliner history, leading to profitability in the 1990s. Amid Boeing's major hurdles in recent years, Airbus remains the industry leader.

Critics argue that the World Bank, IMF, and WTO were designed to serve Western interests

Some analysts from developing nations argue that the Bretton Woods institutions were designed to reinforce Western economic dominance rather than to promote fair development for poorer countries. Supporters respond that these institutions have improved living standards worldwide.

Designs for the Hubble Space Telescope were based on Cold War spy satellites

By incorporating elements of the KH-11 KENNEN reconnaissance satellites, NASA could incorporate existing classified manufacturing expertise and infrastructure from the intelligence community to expedite the research project.

A Yale student wrote a profound essay about the consulting industry's influence on elite college students that was published in a book of her writing after she died in a post-graduation car accident.

Massive 3D printers have been used to build homes by stacking layers of 'concrete toothpaste,' a fire-resistant material that effectively insulates against outside noise.

How Amazon operates a 'flywheel' business model, a self-reinforcing cycle that drives continuous growth

American dance legend Martha Graham, sometimes called 'the Picasso of dance,' refused to perform at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin and conceived the piece 'Chronicle' in response to the experience.

Budweiser stores yeast derived from the original 1800s strain in a secret bunker, which only the Head of Yeast Management can access—not even the CEO

SpongeBob exemplifies Aristotle's philosophy for living well because he understands that happiness doesn't come from external factors like money, recognition, or power.

The Brothers Grimm were lawyers before they were storytellers, but became interested in fairy tales as they began investigating how rules and customs had been passed down through cultures.

Up to a million Girl Scouts sell about 200 million cookie boxes every spring, generating $800 million, largely because refusing a child is frowned upon

Warren Buffett's former professor Benjamin Graham is known as the 'father of value investing,' a strategy in which investors seek to buy stocks trading below their intrinsic worth.

Clever Hans was a 1900s horse that was believed to be able to solve math equations, tell time, and read and comprehend German, until a psychology student discovered how he got his answers.

Art theft is the third-largest source of criminal revenues worldwide, thanks in part to the subjective nature of valuing a work of art.

The name 'Silicon Valley' arose from the founding of Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory in Fairchild Semiconductor in 1956-57, founded near Stanford University in Palo Alto

This site reaches millions of visitors who are tired of AI chatbots and seeking human connection. Pretend to be an AI chatbot and ask questions, provide answers, and draw for people in real time.

Fast-casual restaurant Chili's is experiencing a resurgence, with its parent company recently reporting a nearly 32% increase in sales, thanks to passionate Gen Z fans on TikTok.

In 2026, Finland was named the world's happiest country for the ninth consecutive year based on its wealth, social safety network, and high life expectancy, among other factors.

While the sun's gravity keeps the planets in orbit, their gravity also pulls on the sun, causing it and everything else in the solar system to orbit around a mutual balance point called the barycenter—the true center of the solar system.

Browse a detailed visual analysis of over 200,000 similes—comparisons that often use 'like' or 'as'—from popular fiction to see how frequently writers the same idiomatic expressions.

Take a 3D tour of the Hajj, Islam's annual pilgrimage to Mecca, undertaken by over 1.5 million Muslims.

Alzheimer's can lead to brain shrinkage, with an average of around 2% of volume reduction per year

Hotels in Cannes, the glamorous city on the French Riviera, hire hawks to ward off seagulls during the city's famous film festival.

For centuries, it was common to sleep in two shifts: a few hours at the beginning of the night, and a longer period beginning around midnight

Despite being favored by 87% of Americans, Congress does not have term limits.