Still continuing with the topic of Bauhaus and its heritage, now it’s time to examine the influence it had far away from its birthplace in Weimar. After its closure in 1933, the staff and alumni of Bauhaus, emigrating from Germany and settling all over the world, disseminated its founding ideas like dandelion seeds. Today, let’s have a look at a Japanese couple that brought Bauhaus design ideas back to Japan with them – so let’s get to opening this week’s Crate with no further ado.

1. Japanese architecture and aesthetics had been an inspiration to several Bauhaus teachers, including its founder Walter Gropius and colour theory teacher Johannes Itten. Moreover, in 1925 when Takehiko Mizutani joined the school, Bauhaus gained its first student from Japan. Iwao and Michiko Yamawaki studied at Bauhaus from 1930 until 1932, when mounting political pressure on the school motivated them to return to Japan. Iwao, being a trained architect, focused on architecture classes at first and later changed to photography, whereas Michiko studied at the weaving workshop. After their return, Iwao taught photography at the school known as the ‘Japanese Bauhaus’ (School for New Architecture and Design – Shinkenchiku kōgei) – an establishment that brought together the Japanese Bauhaus alumni and had great influence in establishing Japanese modernism. The most famous work of Iwao Yamawaki is, however, his photo collage aptly called ‘Der Schlag gegen das Bauhaus‘ (The Attack on the Bauhaus).

2. Could we communicate with plants? Apparently.. yes – and they could have a lot to say to us.

3. Indigenous peoples, no matter where they live, value ceremonies. Photographer Jimmy Nelson has gone around the world to document them.

4. Van Gogh loved his pigments and out of all pigments he loved the blues the best.

5. From a religious symbol to exotic headpiece to the symbol of feminism – the history of a turban is unexpectedly colourful.

6. And to finish off for this week – a little creation comic by Owlturd.

And that’s it for this time. Happy reading and until next week!

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