Art Deco vs Bauhaus
Bauhaus is the cross-discipline counterpart of Art Deco — parallel interwar styles — functional rigor versus decorative glamour.
Art Deco
Glamorous machine-age modernism — bold geometry, stepped setbacks, and stylized ornament that made the skyscraper feel like the future.
- Stepped 'setback' massing that tapers as it rises
- Strong vertical piers emphasizing height
- Geometric ornament: zigzags, chevrons, sunbursts
- Banded or ribbon windows with decorative spandrels
- Stylized, machine-age decorative motifs
Bauhaus
The German school that fused art, craft, and industry into a functional modernism — clean geometry, flat roofs, and 'form follows function' applied to the whole designed world.
- Rejection of applied ornament; function expressed as form
- Clean rectilinear geometry and flat roofs
- Glass curtain walls and ribbon windows
- Honest, industrial materials
- Unity of art, craft, and mass production
At a glance
| Art Deco | Bauhaus | |
|---|---|---|
| Era | 1910s–1940 | 1919–1933 |
| Discipline | Architecture | Architecture |
| Region | United States, France, Worldwide | Germany |
| Family | Deco family | Modernism |
| Formal traits | geometric, ornamental, stepped, luxurious | geometric, minimal, functional, unornamented |
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