Aspects of Max Bill's Work on View at The Bauhaus Museum of Design
The First Art Newspaper on the Net    Established in 1996 Thursday, September 4, 2025


Aspects of Max Bill's Work on View at The Bauhaus Museum of Design
Max Bill, Porzellanservice-Entwurf für die Firma Hutschenreuther, 1956, nicht produziert skizze: Bleistift auf Transparentpapier, max, binia + jakob bill stiftung, adligenswil © VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2008.



BERLIN.- Max Bill (1908-1994) embodied the multidisciplinary orientation of the Bauhaus like no other: he achieved international success in a wide range of creative activities as a painter, graphic artist, typographer, sculptor, product designer, stage set and exhibition designer, architect and educator. After 1945 he played an important role in the reestablishment of modernism: for example, as founding director of the Hochschule für Gestaltung Ulm (1951-57), as a product designer for various German companies, and as Professor of Environmental Design at the Hochschule für Bildende Künste in Hamburg (1967-1974).

The Bauhaus Archive is honoring this great artist and friend, who maintained a close relationship over a period of decades, with an exhibition of his work organised by the Gewerbemuseum (Museum of Applied Arts and Design) in his home city of Winterthur on the occasion of Bill's 100th birthday. Complemented by holdings from the Bauhaus Archive and loans from the Max, Binia + Jakob Bill Foundation, the exhibition emphasizes the areas of architecture, design, graphics, typography and exhibition design. Special consideration is given to Max Bill's years at the Bauhaus. The exhibition is supported by the Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia.

Max Bill (22 December 1908 – 8 December 1994) was a Swiss architect, artist, painter, typeface designer, and graphic designer.

Bill was born in Winterthur. After an apprenticeship as a silversmith during 1924-1927, Bill took up studies at the Bauhaus in Dessau under many teachers including Wassily Kandinsky, Paul Klee and Oskar Schlemmer from 1927 to 1929, after which he moved to Zurich.

From 1937 onwards he was a prime mover behind the Allianz group of Swiss artists. In 1944, he became a professor at the school of arts in Zurich.

In 1950, he, Inge Aicher-Scholl and Otl Aicher founded the Hochschule für Gestaltung in Ulm, Germany (HfG Ulm), a design school in the tradition of the Bauhaus. The school is notable for its inclusion of semiotics as a field of study. The school closed in 1968.

Among Bill's most famous designs is the "Ulmer Hocker" of 1954, a stool that can also be used as a shelf element or a side table. Although the stool was a creation of Bill and Ulm school designer Hans Gugelot, it is often called "Bill Hocker" because the first sketch on a cocktail napkin was Bill's work.

Bill sought to create forms which visually represent the mathematical complexity of the New Physics of the early 20th century. He sought to create objects so that the new science of form could be understood by the senses. A prime example is his work with the Möbius strip form.

From 1967 to 1971 he became a member of the Swiss National Council, then became a professor at the Staatliche Hochschule für Bildende Künste in Hamburg and chair of Environmental Design from 1967 to 1974.

In 1973 he became an associate member of the Royal Flemish Academy of Science, Literature and Fine Art in Brussels. In 1976 he became a member of the Berlin Academy of Arts.

A large granite sculpture by Max Bill was installed adjacent to the Bahnhofstrasse, Zürich in 1983. As is often the case with modern art in public places, the installation generated some controversy.











Today's News

June 25, 2008

Christie's in London Sells Monet Masterpiece for $ 80.5 Million A Record for the Artist

Cy Twombly's Work Lepanto, Created for the Venice Biennal in 2001, on View at the Museo del Prado

Landmark Exhibition on Buckminster Fuller to Open at The Whitney

Richard Prince: Continuation Opens at The Serpentine Gallery

On the Threshold of a Dream: Zoe Walker and Neil Bromwich

Milestones in Automotive Design: Mercedes-Benz State Museum of Applied Arts and Design

Sotheby's Sale of Contemporary Art to Feature Works by Leading Indian Contemporary Artists

Finest Group of Works by Paul Cezanne on View at The Courtauld Gallery

Aspects of Max Bill's Work on View at The Bauhaus Museum of Design

Teen City: The Adventure of Adolescence at The Musee de L'Elysee

The Indianapolis Museum of Art Announces the Appointment of Joanne Cubbs to Adjunct Curator of American Art

Frieda Riess: Photographic Studio and Salon in Berlin, 1918-1932

DIA Art Foundation Announces Appointment of Philippe Vergne as New Director

Photoshelter Announces Shoot! the Day Global Event

Luce Foundation Awards VMFA $200,000 For New American Installation




Museums, Exhibits, Artists, Milestones, Digital Art, Architecture, Photography,
Photographers, Special Photos, Special Reports, Featured Stories, Auctions, Art Fairs,
Anecdotes, Art Quiz, Education, Mythology, 3D Images, Last Week, .

 




Founder:
Ignacio Villarreal
(1941 - 2019)


Editor: Ofelia Zurbia Betancourt

Art Director: Juan José Sepúlveda Ramírez

Royalville Communications, Inc
produces:

ignaciovillarreal.org facundocabral-elfinal.org
Founder's Site. Hommage
       

The First Art Newspaper on the Net. The Best Versions Of Ave Maria Song Junco de la Vega Site Ignacio Villarreal Site
Tell a Friend
Dear User, please complete the form below in order to recommend the Artdaily newsletter to someone you know.
Please complete all fields marked *.
Sending Mail
Sending Successful