An Ideal Unity: The Bauhaus and Beyond

NEW ORLEANS, LA – The New Orleans Museum of Art (NOMA) presents An Ideal Unity: The Bauhaus and Beyond on view August 16, 2019 through March 8, 2020. Celebrating the centennial of the Bauhaus (1919-1933), An Ideal Unity explores the artistic breadth of the innovative school that integrated fine arts and design. Including photographs and decorative arts from NOMA’s permanent collection, the exhibition underscores the principles of the Bauhaus aesthetic and mission. 

“Though the Bauhaus did not survive the rise of the Nazi regime, the school’s influence continues to impact generations of artists and designers today,” said Susan Taylor, Montine McDaniel Freeman Director of NOMA. “We are delighted to present works from NOMA’s permanent collection to showcase the distinctive theories and practices of the Bauhaus.” 

Founded by architect Walter Gropius in Weimar, Germany, the Bauhaus school was established in response to the political and economic uncertainty following the First World War, as well as the rise of industrial production and the movement away from individually-made to machine-made objects. The goals of the institution grew to include creating an aesthetic that served the modern industrial society, designing for mass production, and incorporating technology to improve quality of life. All students began their studies with a preliminary course that focused on materials, color theory, and formal relationships before moving into more specialized workshops in carpentry, ceramics, graphics/bookbinding, metalworking, photography, weaving, sculpture, stagecraft, stained glass, wall painting, or printing and advertising. An incubator for thought and experimentation, the Bauhaus invited students from around the world to rethink modes of making. 

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About NOMA and the Besthoff Sculpture Garden 

The New Orleans Museum of Art, founded in 1910 by Isaac Delgado, houses more than 50,000 works of art encompassing 5,000 years of history. Works from the permanent collection, along with continuously changing special exhibitions, are on view in the museum’s 46 galleries Tuesday through Friday from 10 AM to 6 PM, select Fridays from 10 AM to 9 PM, Saturdays from 10 AM to 5 PM and Sundays from 11 AM to 5 PM. NOMA offers docent-guided tours at 1 PM Tuesday – 

Sunday. The adjoining Sydney and Walda Besthoff Sculpture Garden features work by more than 85 artists, including several 20th and 21st-century master sculptors. NOMA’s Besthoff Sculpture Garden is free and open to the public seven days a week: 10 AM to 6 PM. The New Orleans Museum of Art and the Besthoff Sculpture Garden are fully accessible to handicapped visitors and wheelchairs are available from the front desk. For more information about NOMA, call (504) 658-4100 or visit www.noma.org. Museum admission is free on Wednesdays for Louisiana residents, courtesy of The Helis Foundation. Children 12 and under receive free admission. Teenagers (ages 13-19) receive free admission courtesy of The Helis Foundation. 

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For additional information, contact Margaux Krane: 504.658.4106 | mkrane@noma.org

Gallery of lo-res images: