John Diebel's stunning geometric collages ooze Bauhaus perfection

Date
27 September 2012

Minneapolis resident John Diebel spent most of the 1980s living in and around Berlin. As anyone who’s ever visited the city will know, the experience of immersing yourself in one of Europe’s most unique cultures has something of a lasting effect. For John Berlin’s legacy was felt most profoundly in his artwork and the architectural representations the city’s streets inspired.

John’s geometric collages ooze Bauhaus perfection. Constructed from layers of carefully crafted vintage papers they represent an architectural ideal long since abandoned by Berlin’s inhabitants. The faceless tower blocks, empty plazas and wide streets are powerfully evocative of the former Eastern Bloc and the utilitarian ideals that governed the post-war era, compounded by the billboards of an unknown dictator foxing his gaze on the deserted streets.

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John Diebel: Zonal Border (Zonengrenze)

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John Diebel: Construct

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John Diebel: New Border Crossing

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John Diebel: Neue Siedlung (Fragment)

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John Diebel: Interhotel

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John Diebel: District Null

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About the Author

James Cartwright

James started out as an intern in 2011 and came back in summer of 2012 to work online and latterly as Print Editor, before leaving in May 2015.

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