The Bauhaus was a progressive German art and design school founded by the architect Walter Gropius that operated from 1919 to 1933. Authentic Bauhaus furniture — sofas, dining chairs, tables and more — and the school’s followers married industrial and natural materials in simple, geometric forms. The goal of the Bauhaus was to erase the distinction between art and craft while embracing the use of new technologies and materials.
ORIGINS OF BAUHAUS FURNITURE DESIGN
CHARACTERISTICS OF BAUHAUS FURNITURE DESIGN
BAUHAUS FURNITURE DESIGNERS YOU SHOULD KNOW
AUTHENTIC BAUHAUS FURNITURE ON 1STDIBS
The name Bauhaus is derived from the German verb bauen, “to build.” Under the school’s innovative curriculum, students were taught the fine arts, such as painting and sculpture, as well as practical skills like carpentry and metalworking.
The school moved from Weimar in 1925 to the city of Dessau, where it enjoyed its heyday under Gropius, then Hannes Meyer and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. The period from 1932 to 1933 when it operated in Berlin under Mies was its final chapter. Despite its brief existence, the Bauhaus has had an enduring impact on art and design in the United States and elsewhere, and is regarded by many as the 20th century’s chief crucible of modernism.
The faculty roster at the Bauhaus reads like a who’s who of modernist creative genius — it included such artists as Paul Klee, Wassily Kandinsky and László Moholy-Nagy along with architects and designers like Mies and Marcel Breuer, who became known for his muscular brutalist-style concrete buildings in the postwar years. In 1925, while he was head of the Bauhaus carpentry workshop, Breuer gave form to his signature innovation: the use of lightweight tubular-steel frames for chairs, side tables and sofas — a technique soon adopted by Mies and others. Breuer’s Cesca chair was the first-ever tubular steel frame chair with a caned seat to be mass produced, while the inspiration for his legendary Wassily chair, a timeless design and part of the collection crafted to furnish the Dessau school, was the bike he rode around campus.
Bauhaus design style reflects the tenets by which these creators worked: simplicity, clarity and function. They disdained superfluous ornament in favor of precise construction. Seating pieces such as side chairs, armchairs or club chairs for example, were made with tubular metal or molded plywood frames, and upholstery was made from leather or cane. Above all, designs in the Bauhaus style offer aesthetic flexibility. They can be the elements of a wholly spare, minimalist space, the quiet foundation of an environment in which color and pattern come from one’s own collection of art and artifacts.
Today, from textiles to typefaces, architecture, furniture and decorative objects for the home, Bauhaus creations continue to have an outsize influence on modern design.
Find a collection of authentic Bauhaus furniture on 1stDibs.
Set of Two Original Armchairs, by Robert Slezak, Beech, Rattan, Czech, 1930s
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
Set of two restored beech Bauhaus Armchairs. Style: Bauhaus Maker: Robert Slezak Period: 1930-1939 Source: Czechia Material: Beech, Chrome-plated Steel, Rattan. In pristine origina...
Chrome, Steel
Restored Bauhaus Armchair, by Mücke-Melder, New Upholstery, Czech, 1930s
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
Restored Bauhaus Armchair by Mücke - Melder Source: Czechia (Czehoslovakia) Period: 1930-1939 Material: Upholstery, Chrome-Plated Steel, Beech Made by Mücke Melder, an influential ...
Steel, Chrome
Marcel Breuer's B 64 Reimagined as K 17 Armchair by Robert Slezak, 1930s
By Robert Slezák, Slezak Company
Located in PRAHA 5, CZ
A striking Czech reinterpretation of Marcel Breuer’s iconic B64 chair, this rare model K 17 was designed by architect and innovator Robert Slezák and produced by the Slezák factory i...
Steel, Chrome
Restored Bauhaus Table Lamp, New Electrification, Chrome, Czech, 1930s
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
Restored Bauhaus table lamp. Period: 1930-1939. Material: Chrome-plated steel, aluminium (lamp shade) Source: Czechia The chrome and aluminium parts have been cleaned, polished a...
Chrome, Aluminum, Steel
Restored Bauhaus Armchair by Kovona, Chrom-Plated Steel, Germany, 1930s
By Kovona
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
Origin: Germany 1930-1939 Made by Kovona, a renowned Czech manufacturer and dealer from the 20th century. Made according to the original design by Mauser. It has been reupholst...
Chrome, Steel
Restored Bauhaus Floor Lamp, Unusual Design, Chrome, France, 1950s
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
Restored Bauhaus Floor Lamp with Unusual Design. New Electrification. Material: Chrome-plated Steel Source: France Period: 1950-1959 The chrome parts have been cleaned and professi...
Steel, Chrome
Restored Bauhaus Small Chair Stool, Chrome, Czechia, 1940s
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
Restored Bauhaus Small Chair or Stool. Material: Chrome-plated Steel Source: Czechia (Czechoslovakia) Period: 1940-1949 Chair - Stool. Professionally cleaned chrome. The lower seat...
Steel, Chrome
Restored Bauhaus Pair of Armchairs, Anton Lorenz, Mücke Melder, Czechia, 1930s
By Anton Lorenz, Mücke & Melder
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
Restored Bauhaus Pair of Armchairs. New Upholstery. Maker: Mücke Melder Designer: Anton Lorenz Material: Chrome-plated Steel, Beech, Upholstery The chrome parts have been professio...
Steel, Chrome
Restored Bauhaus Floor Lamp, Hynek Gottwald, Chrome-plated Steel, Czechia
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
Restored Bauhaus Floor Lamp Made by Hynek Gottwald. Material: Chrome-plated Steel, Milk Glass Maker: Hynek Gottwald Source: Czechia New electrification. The diameter of the ball is...
Steel, Chrome
Restored Bauhaus Pair of Chairs, Robert Slezak, Chrome, Beech, Czechia, 1930s
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
Restored Bauhaus Pair of Chairs by Robert Slezak. Source: Czechia (Czechoslovakia) Maker: Robert Slezak Period: 1930-1939 Material: Beech, Chrome-plated Steel Revived polish. The ch...
Metal, Chrome, Steel
Restored Bauhaus Pair of Black Armchairs, Mücke - Melder, Czechia, 1930s
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
Restored Bauhaus Pair of Black Armchairs by Mücke - Melder. Period: 1930-1939 Maker: Mücke - Melder Source: Czechia (Czechoslovakia) Material: High-quali...
Steel, Chrome
Restored Bauhaus Beech Stool, Chrome-Plated Steel, Czechia, 1930s
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
Restored Bauhaus Beech Stool. Period: 1930-1939 Source: Czechia (Czechoslovakia) Material: Beech, Chrome-Plated Steel Revived polish. The chrome parts have been cleaned and profess...
Steel, Chrome
Restored Bauhaus Oak Small Round Table, Chrome-Plated Steel, Czechia, 1930s
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
Restored Bauhaus Oak Small Round Table Period: 1930-1939 Source: Czechia (Czechoslovakia) Material: Oak, Chrome-Plated Steel Revived polish. The chrome parts have been cleaned and ...
Steel, Chrome
Restored Bauhaus Coffee Table, Hynek Gottwald, Chrome, Czechia, 1930s
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
Restored Bauhaus Coffee Table by Hynek Gottwald. Period: 1930-1939 Maker: Hynek Gottwald Source: Czechia (Czechoslovakia) Material: Chrome-Plated Steel, Lacquered Wood Adjustable he...
Steel, Chrome
Restored Bauhaus Walnut, Round Table, Mücke - Melder, Chrome, Czechia, 1930s
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
Restored Bauhaus Walnut Round Table. Period: 1930-1939 Source: Czechia Material: Walnut, Chrome-Plated Steel The chrome parts have been cleaned and pr...
Steel, Chrome
Original Bauhaus Armchair, Very Well Preserved Condition, Czechia, 1940s
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
Original Bauhaus Armchair. Very Well Preserved Condition. Source: Czechia (Czehoslovakia) Period: 1940-1949 Material: Upholstery, Chrome-Plated Steel Professionally cleaned uph...
Metal, Steel, Chrome
Set of 4 Restored Bauhaus Beech Plywood Armchairs by Mart Stam, 1930s, Germany
By Mart Stam
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
Set of 4 restored Bauhaus beech plywood armchairs by Mart Stam. Style: Bauhaus Period: 1930-1939. Material: beech plywood and chrome-plated steel Source: Germany Maker: Mart ...
Chrome
Henri PFEIFFER (1907-1994), "Step of two", 1931
Located in Paris, FR
Henri Pfeiffer joined the Bauhaus at the age of 17, where he became a student of Paul Klee. He created numerous abstract works with a renewed vision of color use and perception. From...
Paper
Set of Four Bauhaus Dining Chairs Designed by Anton Lorenz for Slezak Factories
By Anton Lorenz, Slezak Company
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
Made by Slezak Factories, a unique Czech furniture brand specialising on chrome and bent metal furniture. It has been restored and reupholstered by our professional refurbishing ...
Chrome
Yellow Bauhaus Armchairs Made in 1930s Czechia, Non Restored Chrome and Fabric
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
2 Bauhaus armchairs. Original very well preserved condition. Source: Czechoslovakia Period: 1930-1939.
Chrome
Vintage Bauhaus Desk Lamp
Located in London, GB
A superb vintage Bauhaus desk lamp, likely to have been made by Escolux in Germany in the 1930’s. The quality is fantastic, this has a gorgeous d...
Metal
Modernist Tubular Stool, Ivory Leather, Chrome-Plated Steel, Slezák, 1930s
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
Modernist Bauhaus - Art Deco chrome tabouret. Completely restored, new upholstery and leather. Maker: Slezák Company Source Czechia Period: 1930-1939.
Chrome
Tubular Armchair by Kovona, New Upholstery, Chrome in Perfect Condition, 1960s
By Kovona
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
Bauhaus Art Deco armchairs Completely restored, new upholstery Material: Chrome-plated steel Source: Czechoslovakia Maker: Kovona Period: 1930-1939.
Chrome
$605Sale Price|20% Off
Functionalist nickel plated table lamp by Franta Anýž, 1930
By Franta Anyz, Jaroslav Anyz
Located in PRAHA 5, CZ
Iconic table lamp produced by the Franta Anýž Company and designed by Jaroslav Anýž, his son in early 1930s. This desk lamp is renowned for its distinctive joints, patented to allow the lampshade to pivot in any direction, with adjustable height. Franta Anýž, an influential figure in Czech design, studied at the Academy of Arts, Architecture, and Design in Prague. His notable achievements include work at Pragotron, camera design for Flexaret, and winning a gold medal at the Salon International des Inventions in Geneva in 1965 for his Beta 21 watch...
Steel, Nickel
Original Early Vintage Tubular Side Chair, Black Manchester Fabric, circa 1930
By Willem H. Gispen, Gispen Culemborg, Paul Schuitema
Located in Amsterdam IJMuiden, NL
This item is part of the private collection of Casey Godrie and is situated in his private house. Ask him for competitive shipping quotes. His incredible Dune Villa, Amsterdam Beach...
Chrome