1905–1935
Expressionism
Form pushed until it carries feeling
Expressionism is the opposite of the machine aesthetic it ran alongside: rather than standardising a form, it distorts one until it carries an emotion. In architecture it is brick sculpture — Amsterdam School — and in furniture it is faceted planes — Czech Cubism. Both refuse to let construction be the whole story.
It is short, regional and easier to find in buildings than in objects, which is why the cabinet pieces are rare. Read it by looking for a form that would be simpler if it were only functional: the distortion is the argument.
History
The first wave (1905–1920) is German and Dutch: brick expressionism, faceted furniture, and a taste for the unfinished.
The second (1920–1935) narrows into the Amsterdam School's public buildings and Czech Cubism's small workshops, after which the machine aesthetic takes the argument away from it.
What to look for
Faceted or sculpted mass, ornament that is structural rather than applied, and a form that resists being explained by use alone.
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