Lyonel Feininger & Bauhaus – One of the First Masters

Lyonel Feininger’s 'Cathedral' was in the cover of the Bauhaus manifesto. The aim of the Bauhaus coalesces was to create a new unity of craftsmanship and art with the motif in the woodcut. Feininger himself found this idea and included it in the manifesto. Following which he eventually became one of the first masters of Bauhaus. Lyonel Feininger’s work and his association with Bauhaus school deserve a closer look. Lyonel Feininger’s ‘Cathedral’ motif is available online. Check out Lyonel Feininger’s work and explore his art. Buy collections of art created by Lyonel Feininger. Drawing was the first attempt for Lyonel Feininger at the vocational school in Hamburg back in 1887.

One year later, he joined Königliche Akademie der Künste (royal academy of art) in Berlin. He attended his initial painting classes with painter Ernst Hancke. In 1891, he joined a private art school to continue further studies. He travelled extensively around Paris, Rome, London and other cities between 1892 and 1909. During that time he started publishing caricatures in various magazines such as 'Narrenschiff' and 'Lustige Blätter.

He attended various exhibitions such as the Große Berliner Kunstausstellung (great Berlin art exhibition) of 1904, and in 1909, he became a member of the Berlin Secession. In 1907, Feininger’s work exhibited at the Salon des Artistes Indépendants in Paris. In 1911, Franz Marc invited him to exhibit some of his works for the first time at the Erster Deutscher Herbstsalon (first German autumn salon) at Herwarth Walden’s Gallery Der Sturm. He became a member of the work council for art and pursued Walter Gropius to Weimar In 1919. Explore the art by Lyonel Feininger in the advent of twentieth century. Buy Lyonel Feininger’s art online.

In May 1919, Walter Gropius appointed him as one of the first masters at the Staatliches Bauhaus in Weimar.  He was teaching the ‘form’ in the printing workshop from 1919 to 1925. His woodcut ‘Cathedral’ was used in the cover of the Bauhaus Manifesto of 1919. In 1921, a folder with 12 woodcuts by Feininger was published. It was the first publication to be printed at the Bauhaus Weimar. In 1924, he joined with Alexej Jawlensky, Paul Klee and Wassily Kandinsky. They formed the exhibition collective 'Die Blauen Vier' (The Blue Four).

During his Bauhaus period, Feininger attended many exhibitions like at the Kronprinzenpalais (Crown Prince palace) in Berlin in 1928 and also in the Museum of Modern Art in New York in 1929. In 1937, Feininger moved to the USA and joined at Mills College in Oakland, California and later he taught at Black Mountain College in North Carolina. He had several exhibitions of his work at the USA, including the retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art New York in 1944. Lyonel Feininger’s journey is as unique as his association with Bauhaus school of art. Lyonel Feininger was a Cubist and an expressionist and kept on experimenting with his style. Later in his life he was also experimenting with photography. Explore Lyonel Feininger’s unique journey in art and photography. Buy artworks by Lyonel Feininger online.

Lyonel Feininger- The second half

Lyonel Feininger, the German-American artist, worked in the 20th century and became one of the most celebrated and admired contributors of the cubist schools as well as expressionist movements which emerged in the wake of 20th century.

The second half of his career initiated after he left his teaching post in Bauhaus school in 1925. Feininger founded the celebrated group Die Blaue Vier which translates in English as “The Blue Four” along with three of his long-time friends and colleagues who were Paul Klee, Kandinsky, and Alexej Jawlensky. In the year 1925, first exhibition of the group was organized at the Charles Daniel Gallery in New York. This show was followed by several other presentations organized in Germany as well as in the US. Post his time as a teaching fellow at Bauhaus Feininger remained as an artist-in-residence when the school was moved to Dessau in 1925.

The latter half of his journey is also celebrated because of his experiments in Photography which he undertook from 1928 and continued until his death. He had his major solo exhibition organized at the Nationalgalerie in Berlin, back in 1931. The exhibition became a celebrated affair and assured him a satisfactory success. The paintings of Lyonel Feininger showcased at this major solo show is available online. Check out the brilliant works of Lyonel Feininger. Buy online Lyonel Feininger’s works. Lyonel Feininger’s art is up for grabs for the followers of cubism and expressionist art movement.

 His artistic journey took many turns throughout his career and such is the time after the exhibition when Feininger went on another journey following which he painted several nocturnal seascapes where he would often feature architectural ruins. The series made its reputation among his followers and viewers. His life took another turn around 1937 when he left Berlin and shifted to Oakland to teach at the Mills College there soon after he moved to New York and started working on cityscapes pursuing his interest in the architecture painting artworks such as Manhattan, created in the year 1940. His joint retrospective with his contemporary artist Marsden Hartley was organized at the Museum of Modern Art in New York in the year 1944. Just a year after the show, in 1945, Josef Albers invited Lyonel Feininger for a teaching opportunity at the Black Mountain College in North Carolina for their special curriculum of a summer course.

He gracefully accepted the invitation. He continued to teach and create art till the end of his days. Feininger died in New York on January 13, 1956. He left a legacy hard enough to achieve or dismiss leaving behind some of the gems of cubism as well as expressionist art. Lyonel Feininger’s art is available online for everyone to explore. Followers can have a look at the great legacy of Lyonel Feininger and book a piece of the art for their personal collection. Lyonel Feininger’s art is available for anyone to buy online.

Lyonel Feininger’s legacy was not only celebrated through his life his works had been admired post his death too. His posthumous retrospective shows have celebrated his brilliance and legacy. Retrospective exhibitions of Lyonel Feininger’s work had been held at the reputed Dallas Museum for Contemporary Arts back in 1963 alongside many other posthumous retrospective shows and the list includes Pasadena Art Museum in California which was organized in 1966; Kunsthaus of Zürich in 1973; and the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York in 2011. In his later life he also became interested in photography and experimented with the medium.

Lyonel Feininger’s first exhibition of photographs was celebrated in 2011 at the J. Paul Getty Museum of Los Angeles. Lyonel Feininger’s photographs are available online. Check out the works of Lyonel Feininger and the artist’s experiments with photography. Buy Lyonel Feininger’s art online.