14: "Bauhaus Bricks" Art Installation by Christine Dawson (Sunday, July 19)

It has been well recorded how the Bauhaus School began with high utopian ideals to dissolve distinctions between art and craft and to create equal educational opportunities for both men and women. In reality of course it fell short of these ideals and within 6 months of its creation women were segregated and allowed access only to the Weaving Workshop. They were excluded from disciplines such as Architecture. There are contradicting accounts of how their segregation was received.

Mary Elizabeth Williams (1) records that some saw the weaving program as a “compulsory evil” which they suffered to be near painters. Sigrid Workman Weltge (2) more positively states, “There was little complaining but rather great empathy for the struggles of the fledgling institution.” She describes an atmosphere of excitement where the women were thankful to be part of something of great importance but concedes that in fact the Weaving Workshop was excluded from “theoretical constructs” at the Bauhaus which encompassed all other aspects of art and design.

Despite this devaluing of the women and their work they were true "bricks" and an integral and important part of Bauhaus- Weltge paints a positive picture of them and their achievements and displays that many became important and renowned Textile artists – Anni Albers being perhaps the most famous.

The bricks allude to the gender issues the women faced and the walls and barriers in their career paths. Bricks are associated with building commonly seen as a male domain whilst knitting is attributed to women.

"Bauhaus Bricks" is my tribute to the women who worked within the Bauhaus Weaving Workshop (1919-33). "Bauhaus Bricks" is being exhibited at Farfield Mill Gallery, Sedburgh, Cumbria, U.K.
Link: http://www.farfieldmill.org/
for the duration of "The Bauhaus: 90 Years / 90 Days" and beyond until January 2010

Christine Dawson
Artist
christineart@btinternet.com

(1) Mary Elizabeth Williams, “The Gendered Bauhaus: Tempering Idealism with Realism” – The Brownstone Journal (last updated 31 March 2007).
(2) Sigrid Wortmann Weltge, Bauhaus Textiles: Women Artists and the Weaving Workshop, (Thames and Hudson 1993), p45

BAUHAUS BRICKS By Christine Dawson

BAUHAUS BRICKS is my tribute to the women who worked within the Bauhaus Weaving Workshop (1919-33).
The bricks were created during my Art Residency at Lancaster University Chaplaincy Centre in workshops I ran with the University's International Womens Group. My work is all about breaking down walls and barriers and in the Residency I used bricks as a material to convey this message - these were used in many guises and I produced an end of Residency exhibition called "Watching Walls" which had seven installations. The knitted bricks were produced in order to feminize/soften the whole notion of “macho” walls, however they manifest themselves in society. When I was asked to be part of the Bauhaus project at first I could not see how I could relate to such a Modernist movement. I describe myself as a Conceptual Artist and my work echoes post-modern pluralism by being both eclectic in method and materials. When I started to read about the Bauhaus Women – they appeared to have faced many walls and barriers and I decided I would dedicate the Bricks to them.
The installation consists of 60 bricks covered with terracotta knitted ‘jackets’ –.
Each brick has a label – 49 have an individual name of a woman associated with the Weaving Workshop – the rest have the words BAUHAUS BRICKS printed on them.

BAUHAUS BRICKS will be exhibited at Farfield Mill Gallery, Sedburgh, Cumbria, U.K. from Monday 20th July for the duration of Bauhaus: 90years 90days and beyond. It will be exhibited there until January 2010 - actual date uncertain presently: Contact the Gallery to ensure availability:
Link: http://www.farfieldmill.org/

Christine Dawson
Artist
christineart@btinternet.com