The Timeless Textiles of Gunta Stölzl
Gunta Stölzl was an iconic textile artist whose works have changed the world. She was mostly active during the 1920s and 1930s, creating textiles with expertise learned at the Bauhaus. Later, she became a weaving master, teaching and passing along her skill and craft to other weavers.
Gunta Stölzl’s History
Gunta Stölzl was born in Munich, Bavaria in 1897. After high school she began to study applied arts, but was interrupted by World War I. She left home to be on the front lines of the war as a Red Cross nurse. Upon her return, she spent another brief period of time studying art again at the Kunstgewerbeschule, or School of Applied Arts in Germany. While participating in reforming the curriculum at the school, she was introduced to the Bauhaus school. Deciding she wanted to attend, she was accepted into the school with a full scholarship in 1920.
Gunta Stölzl
Bauhaus Education & Teaching
Within her very first year at the Bauhaus, Stölzl’s work and passion stood out. She was instrumental in forming the “women’s department.” Due to stereotypical gender roles in the 1920s, this was simply the name for the Bauhaus weaving department. Since weaving was simply seen as women’s work at the time, rather than an art, the leadership within the school had little interest in the department. As such, Stölzl and the other women weavers in the department largely learned and developed the art on their own. They put great effort into this, with Stölzl even taking a trip to Italy to study the art and architecture of the country, and taking textile dyeing courses at other schools. It became clear that out of all of the women in the weaving workshop, Stölzl was really going above and beyond and taking on the role of teaching everyone else.
Gunta Stölzl at the Bauhaus
After Stölzl’s graduation from the Bauhaus, it relocated to Dessau in 1926. She returned to the school, this time as the technical director of the weaving studio. When the school relocated, it upgraded its equipment as well. These improved dyeing facilities and wider variety of different looms gave Stölzl much more flexibility in her teaching. She taught alongside many other famous Bauhaus women, including Anni Albers, Otti Berger, and Benita Otte.
A carpet by Gunta Stölzl in 1923.
Gunta Stölzl is well known for her work to change the perception of weaving. Throughout various efforts, she began to move the stereotype away from “women’s work” and help it to be seen as the art it is. She continued this effort through the rest of her time at the Bauhaus. Unfortunately, at this time in Germany, the Nazi party was rapidly gaining power. The school’s ideologies did not line up with the political pressure to conform, and Stölzl did not want to compromise her values. As such, she was dismissed in 1931. The Bauhaus itself was closed by the Nazis just one year later.
A piece of upholstery fabric for chairs by Gunta Stölzl.
S&H Stoffe and Legacy
After she left the Bauhaus, the Swiss artists association “Schweizerischer Werkbund” profiled Stölzl in their official magazine. This was incredibly helpful to her post-Bauhaus career. Stölzl moved to Zurich and opened a private business, S&H Stoffe (S&H Fabrics in English) with her former classmate Heinrich-Otto Hürlimann. She passionately ran this business until 1967, when she left the business to fully devote her time to tapestry weaving and creating interior design textiles. It was during this same year that London’s Victoria and Albert Museum acquired some of her pieces for their collection. Her pieces were already on display in other museums, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York. She passed away in 1983, leaving behind an incredible legacy.
A textile by Gunta Stölzl
This art blog about the textiles of Gunta Stölzl was published by Nazmiyal Antique Rugs.
