Modernist Crafts

It's not the most likely sounding subject. When most people think of Modernism, they think of machined objects made using industrial processes, not handcrafted things. But the Bauhaus was a school of arts and crafts. The students studied many different making techniques, such as metalwork, cabinet-making, weaving and pottery, not just design. Of course, the most famous pieces of Modernist design are still mass produced, like the famous Marcel Breuer chair, but there are many pieces which have been forgotten. Marianne Brandt is quite well known, although that's a rather subjective term, as most people probably haven't heard of her. She was at the Bauhaus from 1923-29, and in fact ran the metalworking workshop for a year of that time. She was also a photographer, sculptor and designer of other things, but it's her metalwork that I think is particularly successful. Her tea infuser is a wonderful piece of design. It is well proportioned, practical and just a pleasure to look at. I like the rivets that hold the ebony handle to the silver body: not being afraid to show how something is made is a Modernist trait (it's also something the Arts and Crafts Movement is famous for - one of the many ways in which the two movements are similar). The original teapot would have been handmade, but I doubt the reproductions are. But that's not a problem to me: the Modernists liked mass production, as long as the original design was good. And this one is.