Atop bonny Killesberg, and beside Kochenhof, (the) Akademie der Bildenden Künste, ABK, Stuttgart has been nurturing a basic kernel within a bright kettle of students of numerous creative disciplines since 1761. For their 2018 Rundgang the, we believe the word is, identity, was based on alternative resolutions of the initialism ABK, the central one being Alle brauchen Kunst - Everyone Needs Art. But do we need that applied, functional art developed in the year past at the ABK Stuttgart......?
read moreApproaching the 2018 Universität der Künste Berlin Rundgang one was obliged to navigate the weekly antique and flea market that overwhelms the Straße des 17. Juni, and thereby walk, hurry, past untold objects whose ill consideration, self-celebration, kitschiness or plain ugliness confuse, insult, anger and otherwise offend the senses and sensibilities. An inconvenience, or an omen for that which awaited us..........? Universität der Künste Berlin, Germany Universität der Künste Berlin With
read moreWhereas Frankfurt can, and very loudly does, claim to the birthplace of the German poet, playwright, scientist, statesman, etc, etc, etc Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, nearby Offenbach was not only the birthplace of his almost wife and long, long time love Lili Schönemann, but it was in the, then, relative, calm of Offenbach that Goethe's affections for Lili evolved and grew; "Lili was the first person I deeply and truly loved, and maybe she was the last", an octogenarian Goethe is reported as
read moreIn October 2017 the Design Department of the Folkwang Universität der Künste Essen moved into its new home, the so-called Quartier Nord designed by Stuttgart based MGF Architekten. The 2018 Folkwang Summer Rundgang therefore not only offered an opportunity to explore the work undertaken by institute's students in the semester past, but also to explore their new home....... Folkwang Universität der Künste Essen, Quartier Nord..... Folkwang Universität der Künste Essen The most important
read moreOwing to the unique nature of Berlin's history and geopolitical relevance, the (hi)stories of all the city's cultural institutions are invariably complex. And the number of such institutions greater than in most comparable metropoli*. Few other cities can boast, for example, two public zoos, three public operas or four public universities. And while three of Berlin's universities offer individual courses in subjects such as architecture, theatre studies or music, there is only one which offers
read moreJokes about revolting students are as old as the noble art of the student protest itself. And neither has lost any of their charm. The 2017 Hochschule für Bildende Künste Braunschweig Rundgang was held against the backdrop of a student protest over new regulations concerning, amongst other aspects, how and when the school buildings and workshops could be used. But would there also be protest from our side over the way the students had used the buildings and workshops........? Hochschule
read moreIf a central component of the Bauhaus philosophy was, in essence, to make art useful for industrial production and thus give art a contemporary relevance and function, what to do in a post-industrial world?* The answer from the German art historian and architecture theorist Heinrich Klotz was to unify art with digital technology, and thus give art a contemporary relevance and function. Or the Zentrum für Kunst und Medientechnologie Karlsruhe, to give it its formal name; and an institution
read moreOn the steps leading to the entrance of the Hochschule für Gestaltung Schwäbisch Gmünd is embossed "Ich will Designer werden" - "I want to be a designer." With the criticism from Schwäbisch Gmünd alumni Markus Jehs concerning the quality of the discourse in global design education still ringing in our ears, we felt a very real need to grab a marker pen and add ", because..." We didn't. That would have be vandalism. Although if we're correctly informed graffiting on design schools is allowed,
read moreAn important commercial, financial and administrative centre since the middle ages Cologne has contributed greatly to the development of European society, culture and politics, while with the Kölner Dom the city is home to not only one of the largest Gothic cathedrals in Europe, and thus one of the most important religious institutions on the continent, but posses an excellent example of logical, considered, coherent, urban planning: by building the cathedral on a raised platform directly next
read moreWith its postal address of "Am Weissenhof 1" it should come as no surprise that the Akademie der Bildenden Künste, ABK, Stuttgart was not only the first building on that now fabled site on Stuttgart's Killesberg, but also that it played a role, when albeit a relatively small one, in helping create the fable: Professor Adolf Schneck designing two of the houses, the school's workshops, under the supervision of Hilde Zimmermann, being responsible for the kitchen of one of Schneck's houses, while
read moreFor reasons which we believe are in some form or other closely related to Ley Lines, or similar, all long distance trains in Germany pass through the station Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe. It's not a situation over which Deutsche Bahn have any control, is rather a natural phenomenon, or as Louis H. Sullivan would no doubt phrase it, "This is the law" Thus we have passed through Kassel a lot. Without ever having visited the city. A situation we rectified this year with a visit to the Rundgang end of term
read moreOne of the highlights for us of the student summer semester showcase season is always the annual Rundgang at the Universität der Künste, UdK, Berlin. And while the Product/Industrial Design presentation at the 2014 Rundgang is/was somewhat smaller than usual, it was/is still the expected, and entertaining, mix of the theoretical, the conceptual and the practical. In addition to the chance to once again experience projects such as Clair Obscur, a project which can of course also be viewed as
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