Chapter 12: The Genesis of Twentieth Century Design

The end of the eighteenth century ended art nouveau and brought on modern style. The twentieth century artists searched for new forms of expression. Frank Lloyd Wright inspired artists and designers toward a rectilinear approach to spatial organization. Wright believed that space was the essence of design. "The Four" innovated a geometric style of composition by tuning floral and curvilinear elements with strong rectilinear structure. Their work inspired many and they were celebrated on the continent, mostly in Vienna.  Vienna Secession artists experimented with unusual methods which would achieve an original looking visual elegance. Koloman Moser may have designed the first white-on-white embossed graphic design. He played a major role in defining the approach to graphic design. Adolf Loos banished useless decoration, he had the same views as Wright about the use of space. Decoration was only used when it functioned as a harmonious proportion. Peter Behrens was an important figure who played a major role in working towards graphic design, he was also called "the first industrial designer". He worked for AEG and designed street lamps and teapots. He used a grid system to structure space in his layouts. Klingspor Foundry released Behrens first font, Behrensschrift. He designed another typeface called Behrens-Antiqua especially for AEG. I found Behrens to be a very interesting man. He not only designed typefaces and styles but created street lamps and teakettles , he influenced and worked with many other designers. 

What were Thomas Edison's patents that Rathenau bought?