THE WAY BEYOND 'ART'
THE WORK OF HERBERT BAYER
Alexander Dorner
[Herbert Bayer] Alexander Dorner: THE WAY BEYOND 'ART' - THE WORK OF HERBERT BAYER. New York: Wittenborn, Schultz Inc. 1947. First edition [Problems of Contemporary Art Number 3]. Quarto. Thick printed wrappers. Photographically printed dust jacket. 224 pp. 154 black and white images. 7 color plates. Book design and typography by Herbert Bayer. Textblock edges lightly spotted. jacket mildly worn along spine junctures. A nearly fine copy of this easily-abused volume.
7.5 x 10 softcover book with 244 pages and 154 b/w and 7 color plates. Introduction by John Dewey, biographical notes & index. The book deals with the tensions in contemporary art, the genesis of contemporary art & the work of Herbert Bayer. The latter is shown as Modern Realist, Commercial Designer & as Typographer and Designer of Exhibitions.
A revolutionary and now classic statement of the challenges to modern art and aesthetics resulting from rapid technological changes.
Includes work by Herbert Bayer, El Lissitzky, A. M. Cassandre, Albert Gleizes, Paul Klee,Wassily Kandinsky, and many others.
Of all the artists to pass through the Bauhaus, none lived the Bauhaus ideal of total integration of the arts into life like Herbert Bayer (1900 - 1985). He was a graphic designer, typographer, photographer, painter, environmental designer, sculptor and exhibition designer. He entered the Bauhaus in 1921 and was greatly influenced by Kandinsky, Moholy-Nagy and El Lissitzky. He left in 1923, but returned in 1925 to become a master in the school. During his tenure as a Bauhaus master he produced many designs that became standards of a Bauhaus "style." Bayer was instrumental in moving the Bauhaus to purely sans serif usage in all its work. In 1928 he left the Bauhaus to work in Berlin. He primarily worked as a designer and art director for the Dorland Agency, an international firm. During his years at Dorland a Bayer style was established. Bayer emigrated to the United States in 1938 and set up practice in New York. His US design included work for NW Ayers, consultant art director for J. Walter Thompson and design work for GE. From 1946 on he worked exclusively for Container Corporation of America (CCA) and the Atlantic Richfield Corporation. In 1946 he moved to Aspen to become design consultant to CCA. In 1956 he became chairman of the department of design, a position he held until 1965. He was awarded the AIGA medal in 1970. Bayer's late work included work for ARCO and many personal projects including several environmental designs.