Luigi Colani and Art Nouveau

In 1977, Luigi Colani declared “The Bauhaus is dead”, calling instead for a “renaissance of art nouveau”. Luigi Colani (1928–2019), a native Berliner, a man of many talents and a master of self-promotion, thus triggered a revolution in German design. One of the most fascinating designer figures in the twentieth century, he is difficult to sum up in his entirety. A student of Berlin’s Hochschule der Künste and graduate of the Sorbonne in Paris, the controversial designer wrote history with his visionary ideas and biomorphic forms. Nature was his most important source of inspiration, formally speaking the maverick had an affinity for art nouveau.

Colani also triggered a revolution in German design in the 1960s by making himself and his name a brand. He used the possibilities of the new material plastic to create unusual and futuristic forms. He often took the floral and organic forms of art nouveau as a point of departure, seeking to develop its foundational ideas and concepts further.

In this exhibition at Bröhan-Museum, his designs are contrasted with art nouveau objects from the museum’s own collection. The floral objects from the art nouveau period and Colani’s works stand for a dream of a better world.

Curator: Dr. Tobias Hoffmann
Exhibition design: Katleen Arthen
Advertising motif: Gerwin Schmidt, Munich