In the 1890s, the Berlin artist, sculptor and lecturer Karl Blossfeldt began photographing plants, seeds and other natural materials to show his students patterns and shapes found in nature. His close-ups of the smallest plant parts, which he enlarged up to 30 times, are surprising in their geometric and sculptural appearance. Blossfeldt's photo collection was first published in 1928 under the title Urformen der Kunst and was a sensation. The publication became an international bestseller and remains one of the most important photo books of the 20th century.
Karl Blossfeldt: Variations is the first comprehensive monograph devoted entirely to the reception of Blossfeldt's work. Using unpublished materials, Ulrike Meyer Stump analyses the reproduction of Blossfeldt's photographs in teaching aids, pattern books, art books and in the illustrated press. In six chapters, the richly illustrated study traces the paths that Blossfeldt's legendary plant motifs took from 1890 to 1945 - as preparations, illustrations, analogues, models and abstractions. Thematic excursions into the present illustrate the rediscovery of Blossfeldt's motifs in design and architecture over the last two decades and provide a contemporary perspective on the famous German photographer.
info
Author: Ulrike Meyer Stump
Number of pages: 516 pages, 205 illustrations
Published: 27.11.2020
Publisher: Lars Müller Publishers
Type: Hardcover
Language: German
