W E N D I N G E N 1918-1932
Reading Room
“With its first issue in January of 1918 Wendingen set a new standard in arts publishing. In its combination of rigorous thinking about the world of contemporary arts and its exquisite design and production, it surpassed all other journals of its time – and those that followed. Under the direction of architect Hendricus Theodorus Wijdeveld, Wendingen sought out the newest ideas and most creative practioners in all of the visual arts, including architecture, graphics, sculpture, ceramics, glass, and theatrical design.
In its fourteen-year history, Wendingen featured the work of such diverse artists and architects as Gustav Klimt, Josef Hoffmann, Michel de Klerk, El Lissitzky, Erich Mendelsohn, and Eileen Gray. From 1925-1926, it published a series of seven issues devoted to the work of Frank Lloyd Wright.”
Reading Room offers a rare opportunity to examine all 116 issues of this important and visually striking publication. Each original silk-screened cover was especially commissioned for the publication, and the 13 inch square format lends a distinctive formal unity to the rich and often conflicting visions that the magazine was able to accommodate.
Whilst perceived as one of the principal organs of Modernist ideals, it becomes evident when seen collectively that the magazine represented a far more complex picture, embracing symbolist ornamentation, expressionist graphics, Constructivist design, visionary architecture: positions and perspectives too diverse and myriad to cleanly correspond to the coherence associated with the purpose of a program.
The design of the library is conceived in such a way as to express the sheer variety of visual languages in circulation during the 14-year history of Wendingen,
Reading Room is open to the public from the 13th December – January 25th 2008
Thursday – Friday 12 – 6pm (or by appointment)
Cabinet will be closed from 21st December – 2nd January.