Gerrit Rietveld

Gerrit Rietveld was a Dutch furniture designer and architect.  He was born in 1888 and died in1964.  He is one of the main pioneers of the De Stijl movement and the designer of the Red and Blue chair and the Rietveld Schroder house.

In 1917 he opened his own workshop and set up a business as a cabinet-maker.  Unlike the designers of the Art Nouveau movement, he aimed at designing furniture which will eventually be mass produced in factories.  He was not exactly a fan of decoration and craftsmanship.
in 1918 he started hi own furniture company and modified his 1917 design of the Red and Blue chair.  In 1919 he officially joined the De Stijl movement and became an architect in that same year.

"In 1923, Walter Gropius the head of the Bauhaus, invited Rietveld to view the exhibit at the Bauhaus.  In 1924, Rietveld designed his first building called The Rietveld Schroder house"(Wikipedia).  At a first glance one will already be able to tell that it is a house very influenced by the De Stijl movement.  Rietveld focused a lot of the functionality of the house.  For example, the bedroom can either be one big bedroom or it can be divided into two by a folding wall and the stairs can be closed off too by means of a folding wall.  He focused a lot on the practicality and comfort of the house.






















Fashion today is extremely influenced by the De Stijl movement.  Designers have literally translated Rietveld's Red and Blue chair onto their cloathing.