Netherlands: The Mondrian touch

With the dawn of the Industrial Revolution, the culture of mass production came into existence. Burgeoning demand for housing and affordable furniture created the perfect environment for standardized, clean line and simple design where form followed utility

The Modernist Movement was brought in by the influence of the Bauhaus School, writings and work of Adolf Loos and the Dutch influence of Piet Mondrian and the de Stijl Movement. They ushered in a form of expression founded in geometry and color using simple elements like straight lines along with  black, greys and white, juxtaposed with primary colors. 

The Bauhaus School of Germany was symbolic of the harmony between function and form of a building
Source: http://www.bauhaus.co.il

Adolf Loos openly condemned any form of decoration as "degeneration of civilization"
Source: http://img.radio.cz/

Ornamentation and individualistic decoration of the Victorian and Gothic Styles were shunned for an abstract interpretation of ideas like universality, liberation and spirituality.

Piet Mondrian's horizontal and vertical form of expression
Source: http://www.mondriantrust.com/

After 1900, the Movement redefined art by rejecting reproduction of visually perceived reality or capturing reality as it is. The cool, minimal and restrained expression can be best understood through Piet Mondrian's vertical and horizontal expression and Theo van Doesberg's diagnol form of expression.  The idea was to express liberation and spirituality in an objective way without any ornamentation. 

Counter Composition VI by Theo van Doesberg, completed in 1925
Source: http://www.wikipaintings.org

Composition of Red Yellow and Blue by Piet Mondrian, 1921
Source: http://a1reproductions.com

They influenced design in every form: be it Architecture, Fashion or Furniture Design. Gerrit Rietveld's Schroder House built in 1924 came to be known as a 3D Interpretation of a Mondrian Painting. 

Schroder House, Utrecht, Gerrit Rietveld, 1924. Source: http://www.archdaily.com

Every element in the interior is detailed out to follow de Stijl principles

Open interior spaces, color coded according to utility

Gerrit Rietveld's Red and Blue Chair is also a powerful expression of this style. Though uncomfortable to sit on, the linear interpretation was first of its kind and is still admired world over. 

The Red and Blue Chair by Gerrit Rietveld, 1917.
Photo: http://pinkappledesigns.co.uk

By the late 1930's Hitler attacked Paris and later London. Hence, Mondrian left Europe for America in 1940. The austere black lines that Mondrian painted in the war-hit and tense environment in Europe gave way to lively colored blocks under the influence of the energetic, pulsating life of new York city. 

Not many paintings exist in this new style, since he died due to pneumonia in 1944. His earlier works hence continue to be the more well-recognized part of his work.

Broadway Boogie Woogie, Mondrian, 1942-43

Mondrian continues to inspire and influence

A prominent architectural example of the influence of the de Stijl Movement outside Europe is the Eames House Los Angeles, USA designed by Charles and Rae Eames in 1949 . The steel structure for the house  was put up in a record 16 hours. The house has sliding walls and windows giving it the trademark versatility and openness of the de Stijl Movement.

The Eames House, Los Angeles, USA by Charles and Rae Eames
Source: http://www.tumblr.com

The side elevation of the house. Source: http://www.tumblr.com

Source: http://www.midcenturia.com

In 1965, Pierre Berge and Yves Saint Laurent made a cocktail dress as a tribute to Mondrian as part of their Fall Winter Collection. They went on to become famous and made enough money over the next ten years to acquire three original Mondrian paintings in 1975!

Cocktail Dress, Fall Winter, 1965 by Pierre  Berge - Yves Saint Laurent

Even in contemporary times, the de Stijl Movement continues to influence designers and Art lovers in every walk of life!