Futurism & Europe: the aesthetics of a new world

Abstract

"Futurism & Europe: The Aesthetics of a New World examines for the first time the many interconnections between Futurism and other European avant-gardes as varied as the Bauhaus in Germany, De Stijl in the Netherlands, Omega Workshops in Britain, Constructivism in Russia and Esprit Nouveau in France. Featuring over twenty essays by an international team of experts, this expansive book covers a range of topics and mediums including painting, sculpture, architecture, interior and stage designs, graphic work, fashion, theatre and cinema, as well as a diverse variety of functional objects from furniture and carpets to ceramics and toys. Spanning various avant-gardes from 1912 to 1939, artists featured include Italian futurists such as Giacomo Balla, Umberto Boccioni and Fortunato Depero, alongside other European artists including Sonia Delaunay, Le Corbusier, Fernand Léger, Walter Gropius, Alexander Rodchenko, Fritz Lang, László Moholy-Nagy, Wassily Kandinsky, Hans Arp, Duncan Grant, Natalia Goncharova and Vladimir Tatlin. Broad in scope, this pioneering book examines the intersections between Futurism and other European avant-garde movements in their shared quest for a new aesthetic, triggering a lively exchange of new ideas, friction and rivalry."-- Page 4 of cover.

Contents

The futurist gap / Lisette Pelsers -- Futurism & Europe: The aesthetics of a new world / Fabio Benzi -- The city of the avant-gardes: Futurism, internationalism & italianità / Maria Elena Versari -- Futurism in France: Comparisons & exchanges with cubism / Manuel Barrese -- The Russian avant-garde & futurism: Between dissociation & creative appropriation / Verena Krieger -- De Stijl & futurism / Sjoerd van Faassen -- Futurism & the German avant-gardes between the two wars / Monica Cioli -- I. Futurism 1912: The European show & the diffusion of new aesthetics. On tour, 1912: Futurism conquers Europe / Francesco Tedeschi -- II. Three-dimensional futurism. Polymateriality: Futurism & beyond / Christine Poggi -- III. Futurist reconstruction of the universe & Europe. Avant-garde houses: from Balla to Schwitters / Christine Poggi -- Tutti all'inferno!!! Constellations of cabarets & clubs in Rome & beyond / Lotte Johnson -- Artificial flowers & trees: From Balla to Martel / Niccolò D'Agati -- The avant-garde syncretism of Ivo Pannaggi: Between neo-plastic-constructivist & Bauhaus influences / Manuel Barrese -- IV. Fashion. Art & the performance of clothing: Futurist avant-garde in Italy & elsewhere / Eugenia Paulicelli -- V. Theatre & cinema. Futurist theatre / Günter Berghaus -- Futurist mechanical theatre & the Bauhaus: Notes from the unpublished diary of Herbert Bayer / Maria Elena Versari -- Italian futurist dance / Günter Berghaus -- Futurist cinema: An autonomous art / Marta Braun -- VI. Graphics. Futurist graphics: Theories & experiences / Matteo Fochessati, Gianni Franzone -- Futurist & mechanical influences in Bauhaus graphics / Silvia Barisione -- VII. Architecture & the futurist image of the city. Antonio Sant'Elia & the others: Models of Italian futurist architecture / Paolo Bolpagni -- The futurist image of the city / Alberto Cibin -- Fortunato depero & the Nouvelle Vague of New York skyscrapers, 1928-30 / Fabio Benzi