De Stijl Movement and Rietveld Schroeder House
Introduction
De Stijl art movement was founded in 1917 in the Netherlands. The art movement later ended in the year 1940. This art movement is particularly unique because of its simplicity. Inspired by the abstract art movement, Dutch artists would take a step further and simplify art into even simpler shapes and colours. For instance, research shows that De Stijl artworks only compromised of 3 basic shapes, straight lines, elongated rectangles, and square. Additionally, the art movement only used six colours black, grey, white, yellow, red, and blue[1]. The following essay will study the history of De Stijl art movement, its characteristics, famous artists in the campaign along with their artworks, architectural structures of the movement particularly Rietveld Schroder House and the influence that De Stijl has had on society.
The History of the De Stijl Art Movement
De Stijl art movement was started in 1917, shortly after of World War I, which ended in 1914. The founders of the art movement believed that De Stijl would help heal the wounds that World War I impacted society through the display of spiritual harmony in the artworks. Further, World War I prohibited the movement of Dutch citizens outside of its country’s borders. At the time of the movement’s foundation, Paris was the epicentre of numerous art movements such as symbolism, neo-impressionism, fauvism, cubism, art deco, abstract art, and the recent art movement being impressionism. Lack of free movement bared the Dutch artist from mingling with artists in Paris and prevented them from visiting the cited where they borrowed their inspiration from. Due to the isolation, artists in the Netherlands decided to join hands and form their art movement, therefore, giving birth to the De Stijl art movement.
Additionally, Mondrian, one of the most famous artists in the art movement, stated that the simplicity of artworks in the De Stijl art movement would attract more people in society to take part in painting. this would eventually help distract them from the traumas of World War I. Apart from the political influence, and research also shows that several art movements influenced the De Stijl art movement borrowed. For instance, the cubism art movement which was founded a few years earlier in 1907. De Stijl art borrowed the use of geometrical and flat shapes from cubism; they took a step further and limited the shapes and colours that were used in this art movement. Finally, research shows that the De Stijl art movement borrowed part of its inspiration from the anti-sentimentalism theory in the Dadaism art movement.
The foundation of the De Stijl art is attributed to Theo Van Doesburg, who recruited other artists, namely, Vilmos Huszar, Piet Mondrian, and Bart Van Der Leck. He also hired an artist know Jacobus Johannes, a poet known as Pieter Oud, and an artist known as Essayist Antony Kok. The seven are said to have been the principal founders of the art movement; this group would later promote other artists to join the movement. After having a substantial number of followers, Theo Van Doesburg then established the rules that would be used to guide the artist in the De Stijl art painting, sculptures, furniture, typography, urban planning, music, and poetry.
A image of Theo Van Deosburg
Characteristics of De Stijl Art
The ultimate goal of the De Stijl art style was to display a sense of simplicity and harmony in the art forms. The art movement, therefore, decided to reduce the elements of the artworks to the ultimate form of simplicity; by doing these, De Stijl artists believed they would communicate to their audience about the primary factors that made up the world. The primary colours of all the artworks, the architecture of any other type of art form were red, blue, and yellow. The fundamental values, on the other hand, were black, white, and grey, which was mostly used to draw the outlines of the artworks. Additionally, research also shows that the art forms were asymmetrical. Further, similar to the cubism movement, the De Stijl art movement used geometric shapes both in their paintings and the architectural structures through the use of straight vertical and horizontal lines, squares, and elongated rectangles.
Below are some examples of the paintings that were made during this period.
Piet Mondrian Painting Theo Van Painting Piet Mondrian Painting
Famous De Stijl Artists
Despite having numerous artists use the De Stijl art style, two artists stood out. These are Piet Mondrian and Theo Van. On the one hand, Piet Mondrian turned out to be the most successful and famous artist in the movement. Theo Van, on the other hand, pioneered the art movement; he was also a great De Stijl painter and architect. The paragraphs below are a closer look at the lives of the two artists, and several of their artworks.
Piet Mondrian
Pieter Cornelis Mondrian, famously known as Piet Mondrian, was the most successful artist in the De Stijl art movement. His success was attributed to the maturity of his paintings that used simple combinations of straight lines, square and rectangle shapes, primary colours, and the formal purity that was displayed in his artworks. Before adopting the De Stijl art style, Mondrian had adopted the impressionist art style following famous artists such as Van Gogh. He, however, later changed his an art by adopting cubism. After the break of World War I., when Mondrian was trapped in Netherland due to restricted movement, he joined hands with Theo Van and started the De Stijl art movement. Apart from making art paintings, Mondrian also ventured into fashion after migrating to the USA, where he designed women attire, especially dresses. The following are some of the art paintings that were made by Piet Mondrian.
Piet Mondrian Composition with Yellow, Blue and Red 1937–42 Mondrian dresses Yves St Laurent (1966
Theo Van Doesburg
Theo Van was an artist, writer, poet, and architect. He founded the De Stijl art movement. Before starting the De Stijl art movement, Theo Van made his painting using a post-impressionist and fauvist art style. After discovered Mondrian’s work, however, Theo Van took a particular interest in vertical lines and horizontal shapes. He would later contact Mondrian and other artists who then started the movement. Apart from taking an interest in art painting, Theo also took an interest in the architectural design, such as the design of De Stijl windows and the interior design of buildings[2]. This style would later be picked up by millions of people all over the world, especially when building religious structures such as churches. Additionally, Theo also made an immense amount of effort to convince the community to take up the De Stijl art style. This would see him make tens of lectures across Germany. Below is an image of Theo Van and some of his artworks. Further, Theo was one of the first people to introduce, diagonal shapes into De Stijl, which helped incorporate diversity in the De Stijl art composition.
A picture of Theo Van Counter Composition 1925 Stained Glass 1918
De Stijl Architecture
Apart from having massive impact, the De Stijl art movement also had an enormous impact on architecture both in the 1900s and some of the buildings that exist today. Artists in history have adopted the De Stijl art style in several ways. For instance, architects incorporated the art by building structures using the rectangles and squares. This was visible on the exterior and interior design of structures, which included furniture, partitions, windows and doors. Secondly, De Stijl art styles were incorporated in architecture through the adoption of its primary colours[3]. Similar to the De Stijl paintings, De Stijl architecture only used primary colours and different shades of white and grey on the house. Some of the most famous architectural building that was constructed using this style include the City Hall of Hague located in the Netherlands which was designed by Richard Meier and the Café L’Aubetter whose interiors were designed by Theo Vans. The most famous building constructed using this art style, however, was the Rietveld Schroder House built by Rietveld in 1924.
Below are the images of the structures mentioned above.
City Hall of Hague Café L’Aubetter Rietveld Schroder House
Rietveld Schroder House Analysis
Rietveld Schroder House was the only architectural structure that was entirely built using De Stijl art principles. The house was constructed by an architect known as Gerrit Rietveld, in 1924. Mrs Truus Schroder commissioned Rietveld after her husband passed on. Research states that before the beginning of the construction, Mrs Schroder briefed architect Rietveld to construct a house without walls to encourage transparency between her and children. She also wanted a progressive house[4]. Seeing that Architect Rietveld had some history in De Stijl art, Mr Rietveld decided to construct the house using De Stijl art principles. The outcome of the house was so impressive, so much so that it remains to be an excellent inspiration for numerous architects and interior designers to date.
Several elements were borrowed from the De Stijl art style; these include the use of clean vertical lines and the use of primary colours that were used alongside different shades of white, grey, and black. This was evident from the exterior design of the House. The external parts of the house were painted with white and grey colours, even the fence of the house was painted using these colours. Rietveld would later take a step further to incorporate several rectangular cuboids, which he painted in red, blue, and yellow colours. The incorporation of coloured pillars made the building appear like some of the De Stijl art paintings. Research also shows that the placement of the colours was also deliberate. For instance, designers have found out that Mr Rietveld painted the main door of the house in black to prevent the door from being soiled because of frequent use. Further, the front part of the house, along with other parts of the walls, were painted in white colour to help the home stand out[5]. Further, the sharp contrast created by white and grey shades on the house also helped improve the aesthetic appearance of the home.
The interior design of the house was also designed using the De Stijl art style. Mr Rietveld sort to achieve minimalism and simplicity in the interior design just like Mrs Schroder wanted. Intending to maximize space in the house, Mr Rietveld decided to minimize the number of rooms in the house. The only rooms in the house were three. These were the: living room, one room for Mrs Schroder’s daughter, and one for her son. The other rooms, such as washrooms, were separated by sliding walls, which would be folded and unfolded according to one’s desire[6]. The foldability of the walls would allow for the maximization of space in the room. It is also important to note that Rietveld constructed the house using massive windows to maximize the view of the external environment and entrance of light during the day. At night, however, the family would close the windows using wooden panels, which would easily fit in the windows. This created a sense of security for the night. Further, the wood would act as insulators, which helped to shut out the cold at night.
One of the charming rooms in the house was the kitchen area. The sliding doors in the living room allowed the family to convert parts of the living room space to be a kitchen, dining, a studio space, or a reading room depending on how one positioned the sliding walls. The first floor of the house was also made up of open space. However, the sliding doors enabled the family to partition into two, forming one room for the daughter and the other one for the son[7]. They also had portable storage space. Another fascinating feature found in the upper floor was the collapsible wall located around the stairs that led up to the top floor. The collapsible wall made it possible for the children to pull a barrier over the stairs to make room for an open play space. The children would later pull up the walls at night to partition the space and create their private bedrooms.
Mr Rietveld also threw in a couple of other tricks on the upper floor on the house to customize the house even further. For instance, he designed a large and small window on one of the corners that would both swing open, thus dissolving the corner of the house. The open space created by the window helped integrate the house even further to the outside environment, which helped the house create harmony with the outdoor environment. Also, apart from designing the house, Mr Rietveld took the responsibility of customizing the furniture of the house. The chairs in the house, however, remain to be the most iconic features. Following the rules of the De Stijl art style, Rietveld ensured that all the furniture was constructed using rectangle shapes. He also painted the chairs using primary colours in conjunction with black, which added a splash of colour and life to the interior design of the house. Mr Rietveld customized the house to greater heights by constructing a speaking tube for Mrs Schroder, which allowed her to speak to her visitors at the gate when she was on the balcony of the first floor. This would save her the trouble going stairs if a visitor came to the house and wanted to converse with her shortly.
The customization of the house, along with the unique design, pleased Mrs Schroder so much, that she even allocated a room for Mr Rietveld where he could sleep anytime he wanted. Mr Rietveld would eventually move into the house after his wife passed away. Mrs Schroder in the house from the year 1925 to 1985, when she passed away. Mr Rietveld also lived his last years in the same house. The Schroder house remains an iconic structure because of the utilization of space, customization and flexibility of various structures in the house to this day. The fact that Mr Rietveld designed sliding walls that could turn the space in the living room into a kitchen, reading space, studio, or a dining room is incredible. The colours used in the space also blended in together to form a beautiful space that remains to be a viable source of inspiration for architects and interiors designers to this day.
Below are images of the Rietveld Schroder House.
Exterior design Staircase Design Kitchen Space Design
Sitting Room Design Furniture Design Bed Design
Window Design Speaking Tube Design Sliding Wall Design
Impact of De Stijl Art Movement
De Stijl art had both short and long time term impacts. One of the most immediate implications of the movement was the reduction of tension among the Dutch people. World War I had hazardous effects on the world population people, such as Mondrian, felt secondary impacts of the war due to restricted movement, and the trauma that was impacted by the war. De Stijl art preoccupied the life of the artists, poets, and architects that took up the art style, which helped them reduce the trauma of the war. Secondly, the De Stijl art movement influenced architecture hence. Rietveld has been an inspiration to thousands of interior designers and architects throughout the world. He taught future generations how to maximize small, on spaces by applying smart design. These tactics have mainly grown in recent years because of the increasing population, which has limited the spaces that people live in. The utilization of this type of architecture also helped thousands of citizens to save on the cost of setting up their home and also cuts down on environmental pollution. Additionally, the movement also inspired colour blocking, a technique that has been used by millions of designers to improve the aesthetic look of interior spaces.
De Stijl art also impacted fashion. Mondrian, one of the most famous artists in the De Stijl art style, took a further step of incorporating De Stijl art into fashion. This fashion trend would later be taken up by future fashion designers. The use of De Stijl art in fashion was especially famous in the mass production of coats and sweaters in the late 20th century. To the present day, celebrities such as Katy Perry still rock in clothes designed using De Stijl art. De Stijl art movement even penetrated in technology. Microsoft Company utilized the De Stijl art style through its logo, which is made up of rectangles and the movement’s primary logo[8]. Another notable company is utilizing the De Stijl art Style of Google, which picked up the primary colours used by the art movement. Finally, the last section that was impacted by De Stijl art was graphic design. For years, graphic designers have utilized the patters drawn by De Stijl artists, along with their mixture of colours to create attractive logos, editorial layouts, and posters. Graphic designers have also incorporated De Stijl in their typography.
Below are some examples of fields that have been inspired by De Stijl Art
Coat Design inspired by De Stijl Dress design inspired by De Stijl De Stijl Graphic Design
Interior design inspired by De Stijl Interior design inspired by De Stijl Microsoft design inspired by De Stijl
Conclusion
The De Stijl art movement, though less famous compared to other art movements, has genuinely had a long-lasting impact on the world today. The foundation of this art movement at the time helped world war victims, especially the Dutch, who found their peace of mind again. It would also see the rise of successful artists such as Piet Mondrian and Theo Van. Further, the art movement also taught the world how to utilize small spaces and improve the aesthetic look of the interior design of houses. Further, the art movement led to the rise of a new fashion trend and helped graphic designers improve the aesthetic look of their work. De Stijl is genuinely an art movement to reckon with, and its impacts will be felt in many years to come.
References
Cross, Nigel. “Designerly ways of knowing: Design discipline versus design science.” Design Issues 17, no. 3 (2001): 49-55.
Jensen, Tara. “De Stijl.” (2007).
Luscombe, Desley. “Illustrating architecture: the Spatio-temporal dimension of Gerrit Rietveld’s representations of the Schröder House.” The Journal of Architecture 22, no. 5 (2017): 899-932.
Mulder, Bertus. “the rietveld schröder house.” (2015).
Qin, Siying. “On De Stijl and Architectural Design.” In 2015 2nd International Conference on Education, Language, Art and Intercultural Communication (ICELAIC-15). Atlantis Press, 2015.
Welsh, Robert P. “Theo van Doesburg and Geometric Abstraction.” In Nijhoff, Van Ostaijen,“De Stijl”, pp. 76-94. Springer, Dordrecht, 1976.
[1] Jensen, Tara. “De Stijl.” (2007).
[2] Welsh, Robert P. “Theo van Doesburg and Geometric Abstraction.” In Nijhoff, Van Ostaijen,“ De Stijl”, pp. 76-94. Springer, Dordrecht, 1976.
[3] Qin, Siying. “On De Stijl and Architectural Design.” In 2015 2nd International Conference on Education, Language, Art and Intercultural Communication (ICELAIC-15). Atlantis Press, 2015.
[4] Mulder, Bertus. “the Rietveld schröder house.” (2015).
[5] Mulder, Bertus. “the Rietveld schröder house.” (2015).
[6] Luscombe, Desley. “Illustrating architecture: the Spatio-temporal dimension of Gerrit Rietveld’s representations of the Schröder House.” The Journal of Architecture 22, no. 5 (2017): 899-932.
[7] Luscombe, Desley. “Illustrating architecture: the Spatio-temporal dimension of Gerrit Rietveld’s representations of the Schröder House.” The Journal of Architecture 22, no. 5 (2017): 899-932.
[8] Cross, Nigel. “Designerly ways of knowing: Design discipline versus design science.” Design Issues 17, no. 3 (2001): 49-55.