From Bauhaus to Our House by Tom Wolfe (.ePUB)
File Size: 0.7 MB
From Bauhaus to Our House by Tom Wolfe
Requirements: .ePUB reader, 0.7MB
Overview: In From Bauhaus to Our House, Tom Wolfe unleashes his sharp pen on the world of modern architecture, taking aim at the self-serious doctrines and movements that shaped much of the 20th-century built environment. With the same biting satire he applied to social elites in The Bonfire of the Vanities and Radical Chic, Wolfe deconstructs the legacy of the Bauhaus school, exposing how its austere, functionalist ethos came to dominate American skylines and universities. His critique cuts through academic jargon, bringing clarity and wit to a subject often cloaked in theory.
Wolfe traces how the Bauhaus ideals, exported from Europe in the wake of World War II, spread across the United States and became gospel among architects and critics. He portrays the disciples of Walter Gropius, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, and Le Corbusier as zealous missionaries, convinced that steel, glass, and stark geometries were the only legitimate expressions of modern life. Yet in Wolfe’s telling, what was sold as revolutionary often resulted in sterile, impersonal buildings that ignored human needs and local traditions.
More than a history lesson, Wolfe’s book is a cultural broadside against elitism in art and design. By skewering the pretensions of architectural orthodoxy, he champions a more democratic vision of beauty—one that prioritizes how people actually live, work, and feel in their surroundings. From Bauhaus to Our House is as much a manifesto for common sense as it is a critique of architectural dogma, delivered with Wolfe’s trademark humor, energy, and fearless contrarian spirit.
Genre: Non-Fiction > Educational
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