i was taken by some texture studies in the bauhaus book and thought i’d try some of my own. i’ve been out gathering stuff today and took some pictures too. i found it surprisingly difficult to differentiate between texture and pattern and found this distinction helpful:

… pattern changes to texture as you loose sight of the individual motifs. This is easy to do with natural patterns, but you have to get quite far away from a checker board grid to see it as texture. Patterns are generally more noticeable than textures. This makes them a stronger visual element for controlling attention. art 104

the bauhaus textiles book is truly inspirational, so far i especially like gunta stolzl (full catalogue of the centenary retrospective Gunta Stölzl – Master at the Bauhaus Dessau – textiles, textile designs and free drawings 1915-1983) and benita otte’s work.

the bauhaus manifesto also appeals majorly:

Architects, painters, sculptors, we must all return to crafts! For there is no such thing as “professional art”. There is no essential difference between the artist and the craftsman. The artist is an exalted craftsman. By the grace of Heaven and in rare moments of inspiration which transcend the will, art may unconsciously blossom from the labour of his hand, but a base in handicrafts is essential to every artist. It is there that the original source of creativity lies.

resources:
bauhaus-archiv museum
bauhaus teachings: an overview of itten, kandinsky and klee’s theories of colour.

i’ll definitely be back to edit this post since i’ve only read the first chapter so far.