Fagus Shoe Factory

The Fagus Shoe Factory represents a dramatic turning point in architecture. Construction on the building began in 1910 using the designs from Bauhaus architects Walter Gropius and Adolf Myer, and the factory is still open today. They envisioned a building that encouraged the workers towards better productivity through a pleasing work environment. Additionally, the owner of the factory paid the workers excellent wages, and the workers felt no need for a union.The idea was that if they workers enjoyed their time at the work-place, they would produce more effectively.
The design of the building preceded any other building in ingenuity and creativity. They built the factory out of glass, iron, and brick. The stairs are in the outside corners in order to free up more work space. The ribbon window installment all around the building is called a curtain wall. The building also included a free facade and a flat roof, all of which became major components of modern architecture after their introduction in this building. The free facade specifically freed up the architects to design the space in the most visually pleasing and comfortable way.

Shoji Screen

The design was heavily influenced by the works of Frank Lloyd Wright, who in turn was influenced by Japanese art. The form of the windows resemble Japanese shoji screens in their grid-like appearance. No longer was a window simply a hole in the wall, it had become a transparent screen and part of the building itself.











http://worldheritage.si.edu/en/sites/fagus.html 

http://books.google.com/books?id=aE7YtKrbNZAC&lpg=PA6&ots=BncW9QgQ_V&dq=fagus%20shoe%20factory&lr&pg=PA7#v=onepage&q=fagus%20shoe%20factory&f=false

http://www.all-art.org/Architecture/25-4.htm