Foundations for Design Education: Continuing the Bauhaus Vorkurs Vision

The Bauhaus Vorkurs (Foundation Course) is discussed as a versatile, enduring prototype for combining art, design, and architectural studio education in the American K-12 curriculum. The history of the Vorkurs is reviewed, from its pedagogical roots in Froebelian ideas, to its esrablishment and modifications between 1919 and 1933, to the continuing visions of present-day theorists. When Gropius and Moholy-Nagy came to America, they introduced their ideas about Vorkurs-style education and spatial studies for American K-12 education in two little known articles, both published in 1937. This article argues that a re-examination of Vorkurs art and design education theory for K-12 students in the context of subsequent theory, can bring to light a wealth of information about the teaching of creative space and form mastery.