In the late 1800s and early 20th century the "Modernist" movement united philosophers, artists and politicians who were determined to change the world. We will explore the evolution of this fascinating, dramatic, idealistic and tragic movement. We will use iconic events and objects to explore how different aspects of modernism commenced and evolved, and how they continue to influence us today.
- J.Delong, Slouching Towards Utopia – An Economic History of the Twentieth Century, Basic Books 2022
- M. Eckstiens, Rites of Spring – The Great War and the Birth of the Modern Age, Houghton Mifflin 1989
- D. Dreilinger, The Secret History of Home Economics: How Trailblazing Women Harnessed the Power of Home and Changed the Way We Live, Norton & Co, 2021
- P. Brandon, The Dark Valley – A Panorama of the 1930s, Pimlico, 2002
- S. Rotbard, Black City, Whity City - Architecture and War in Tel Aviv and Jaffa, MIT Press, 2005
- F. Trentman, Empire of Things: How We Became a World of Consumers, from the Fifteenth Century to the Twenty-First, Harper 2016
- M. Davis, Late Victorian Holocausts: El Niño Famines and the Making of the Third World, Veros, 2001
- Benton, Benton & Wood, Art Deco 1910-1939, V&A Museum, 2006
- Introduce class and key concepts and framework. Use a discussion of the 1927 building the Villa Savoye to explore concepts
- Discuss the 1913 ballet The Rites of Spring and WW1 to explore modernist attitudes, plus how the disruption of WW1 accelerated the influence of these attitudes
- Discuss the growth of Facism, Nazism and Communism post WW1. Also use a discussion of the Frankfurt kitchen to explore the impact of technology and socialism on everyday life
- Use a discussion of the origin and growth of Art Deco to explore changing attitudes to art and design
- Use a discussion of the British Colonial Exhibition of 1924 to explore experience of the non-Western world in the modernist period, especially India, China and Japan
- Use a discussion of the Igo-Pruitt housing commission complex and Thomas Wolfe’s book “From Bauhaus to Our House” to explore how modernism fell from favour
By the end of this course, students should be able to:
- Understand different interpretations of modernist philosophy, their scope and structure, and how modernism affected society in the period between 1870 and 1939
- Explore key modernist symbols, movements and events of the period, including WW1, Art Deco, emancipation, facism
- Contrast the experience of the western and non-Western world over the period, especially the impact of colonialism
- Explore how modernism fell from favour in the 1960s and 70s
