Peter Behrens: biography and work of the first industrial designer

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:46

Peter Behrens - the first industrial designer, one of the largest German artists and architects. He is the founder of modern industrial design. He was also one of the founders of the German Werkbund and the Munich Secession. Behrens was best known as a representative of functionalist architecture. He was a supporter of transformation and the use of new technologies, designs and materials, such as glass or steel.

Biography

Peter Behrens was born in Habsburg in 1868. He studied painting at art schools in Düsseldorf and Karlsruhe. If you look at his early works by Peter Behrens, it becomes clear that from the very beginning he was an adherent of Art Nouveau (in Germany - Jugendstil). In 1897 he visited Italy, and after his return he became one of the organizers of the Munich joint workshops. A year later, Behrens began to shape industrial products, and in the same year he was invited to Darmstadt. The architect built his house there. He not only designed the structure himself, but also designed all the elements of the interior, up to the kitchen knives. This house is an example of the symbiosis of art and craft, it shows not only the influence of Art Nouveau, but also individual style. Peter Behrens, who will most clearly appear in later works.

What Berens' house looks like can be seen in the photo.

Career

In 1902, the first international exhibition takes place in Turin. An architect is designing a German exposition that reproduces Peter Behrens' signature style, dubbed "Zarathustra Style".

The next four years, Behrens heads the Dusseldorf art school. In 1906, he was invited to take the post of artistic director of the AEG concern, with whom Oto Eckmann and Adolf Messel had previously worked. Berens developed the corporate identity of the company, which extended not only to advertising and products, but also to the design of production facilities and workers' apartments. A variety of products were subject to a single style formation principle, which was based on the repetition of certain geometric elements: circles, ovals, hexagons. The source of shaping was utilitarian engineering forms, which Behrens harmonized and led to certain proportions and rhythm. He eliminated all ornamentation and traditional forms.

Peter Behrens Architecture is a new way to transform technical requirements into creative solutions. His artistic talent was not hindered even by the narrow framework that industry and technology represent. The work of the architect and artist at AEG was the first example of a corporate identity, the practice of which subsequently became widespread andis now one of the main tools of the designer. However, among other things, Peter Behrens was engaged in the design of industrial buildings of the concern. In 1909, a turbine factory was built, the design of which symbolized the importance of industry as part of modern life. It has become a "temple of industrial power" and a work of art.

Industry and creativity

Architect Peter Behrens developed the idea that the principles of building an industrial building are universal. He used this when designing the representative building of the German Embassy in St. Petersburg. The building is located on Isakievskaya Square and is characterized by alienation and scale. In designing the interiors of the lobby, reception halls and the main staircase, Berens adhered to the style of modernized classics.

Monumentality, severity and asceticism of the façade contrast with the elegance of decoration inside the building, with an abundance of light and luxury. Powerful ceiling beams and black columns in the lobby are reminiscent of ancient Greek architecture. On the second floor, in the front suite, sliding doors were used to separate the halls, which is also of a utilitarian nature: if necessary, several halls can be easily combined into one room. On solemn occasions, the Throne Room, finished with marble, is connected to the Prussian Hall. The entrance to it is visually separated by a two-column Doric portico. Unfortunately, the embassy building has not survived to this day in its original form. Anti-German sentiments that broke out in 1914year, resulted in a great pogrom. As a result, the Throne Room was burned, many works of art were also damaged, and a group of sculptures located on the roof of the building was thrown off. The embassy building is the only work of Behrens in our country.

Monumentality as a style

The turbine factory in Berlin, which was designed by Peter Behrens, impresses with its monumentality, but this effect was achieved not by the abundance of ceremonial attributes, not by the massive facade, but by the scale of the entire structure, the enormous size of the factory. The building of the factory is not immediately perceived as a technological object by the layman. It carries the idea of an all-conquering force, which is born in the symbiosis of the actions of man and machine. An interesting fact is that the project lacked any decorative styling, and the building itself was the first building in Germany built of glass and steel.

In the photo - the famous building of the Turbine Plant, which has become a landmark. Peter Behrens used here the corporate identity developed for AEG: there are no standardized angles and geometric shapes, but all elements are also utilitarian.

Philosopher of Art

Behrens wrote that monumental art can be called the most important element that reflects the culture of the era. However, according to the famous architect, monumentality is far from just spatial grandeur. Buildings can also be relatively monumental.small in size, and the fact that they cannot fail to impress a single viewer is unimportant. Monumental works should influence the masses, only then their greatness is fully manifested.

Behrens also said that monumental majesty is not expressed materially. It affects people's minds through means that are much deeper. These are proportions and compliance with patterns that can manifest themselves in architectural relationships.

Other works

The Berlin High Voltage Factory, designed by Behrens in 1910, is an expression of the clear organization of complex structures in a symmetrical arrangement of elements. Shinel's classicism is shown here more clearly than in the building of the turbine factory. Also, the administration building of the Mannesmann concern, located in Düsseldorf, gravitates towards the traditional style. It is interesting as a prototype of a typical office, which was established several decades later. Now we can see it in almost any modern office space: it is a large space with a flexible layout provided by many movable partitions.

The small motor factory, designed by Behrens in 1912, is also an example of how the famous architect used a similar technique. The long facade of the factory building seems to be divided by vertical lines of cylindrical pylons, which make up a simplified order.

Worldview

The architect was heavily influenced by World War I andpost-war years. He understands the true meaning of nationalist chauvinism and its connection with anti-democratic forces. On a wave of confusion and disappointment, Berens draws closer to the expressionists. He begins to draw a new language of expression in the distortion of those techniques that were characteristic of nationalist romanticism in the pre-war years, but he does not exclude from his work the rationality of the organization of the whole.

Community activities

Besides working on projects, Peter Behrens headed the Dusseldorf School of Industrial Art. From 1922 to 1936 he also directed the Vienna School of Architecture at the Academy of Fine Arts. As an architect, he had a strong influence on the avant-garde artists in Austria and Germany. Behrens de alt with the issue of rationalization of construction and laid the foundations for this direction. Many of the theoretical design principles developed by Peter Behrens are reflected and continued in the work of his students. This man was not only a talented architect, but also a good teacher. Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and the designer of the German Bauhaus W alter Gropius, who since 1938 was a professor of architecture at Harvard University, visited his workshop. For some time, Le Corbusier also studied with Behrens.

Conclusion

Peter Behrens in his work has always relied more on calculation than on emotionality. This architect had a gift for creating harmonious and functional tectonic structures based on technical structures. The main merit of Behrens is the introduction of creative elements intoindustry. It was he who laid the foundations of the profession, which is now called "designer". Peter Behrens was able to prove that industrial buildings can be not only utilitarian structures, but also monumental, pathetic art. He clearly showed the presence of a huge artistic potential, which lies in the methods of shaping.