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Wolfgang von Wersin (3 December 188213 June 1976) was a
Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus *Czech (surnam ...
-born designer, painter, architect and author who developed his career in
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
. Born in
Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...
, he studied architecture at the Technische University of Munich (19011904) and, in parallel (1902 to 1905), he also studied drawing and painting at the Lehr- und Versuch-Atelier für Angewandte und Freie Kunst ("Teaching and Experimental Atelier for Applied and Free Art"), a reform oriented art school in the same city. Then, from 1906 onwards, after he completed his military service, became a tutor there. His constant collaborator and eventual wife, the German printmaker and draughtswoman Herthe Schöpp (1888–1971), met him as his pupil. In 1909 he began working as a designer for numerous firms, including the Behr furniture factory and the Meissen porcelain manufacturers.''"Wolfgang von Wersin." The Concise Grove Dictionary of Art'', Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002. In 1929, he assumed the directorship of the Neue Sammlung established in Munich in 1925, the department for artisan art at the National Museum – and remained there until his illegal dismissal by the national socialists in 1934. In 1956 he wrote ''The Book of Rectangles, Spatial Law and Gestures of The Orthogons Described'', in which he describes a set of 12
dynamic rectangle A dynamic rectangle is a right-angled, four-sided figure (a rectangle) with dynamic symmetry which, in this case, means that aspect ratio (width divided by height) is a distinguished value in dynamic symmetry, a proportioning system and natural desi ...
s he calls ''orthogons''.


Style

Wersin's early designs are characterized by East-Asian forms; however, he eventually developed a style free of any kind clear of influence (including rural
folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk horror ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Fo ...
art) and achieved a timelessly classical style of great objectivity, revealed above all in articles for everyday use, such as
porcelain Porcelain (), also called china, is a ceramic material made by heating Industrial mineral, raw materials, generally including kaolinite, in a kiln to temperatures between . The greater strength and translucence of porcelain, relative to oth ...
, glass,
tableware Tableware items are the dishware and utensils used for setting a table, serving food, and dining. The term includes cutlery, glassware, serving dishes, serving utensils, and other items used for practical as well as decorative purposes. The ...
fabric and
wallpaper Wallpaper is used in interior decoration to cover the interior walls of domestic and public buildings. It is usually sold in rolls and is applied onto a wall using wallpaper paste. Wallpapers can come plain as "lining paper" to help cover uneve ...
.


Orthogon information

Wolfgang Von Wersin's book about the Orthogons gives detailed information about how to construct and use a special set of 12 inter-related rectangles to create a design. They are similar to what
Jay Hambidge Jay Hambidge (1867–1924) was an American artist who formulated the theory of "dynamic symmetry", a system defining compositional rules, which was adopted by several notable American and Canadian artists in the early 20th century. Early life an ...
called
dynamic rectangle A dynamic rectangle is a right-angled, four-sided figure (a rectangle) with dynamic symmetry which, in this case, means that aspect ratio (width divided by height) is a distinguished value in dynamic symmetry, a proportioning system and natural desi ...
s. The set of 12 Orthogons is determined by expanding a square through a series of arcs and cross-points until another square is formed on top, an exact duplication of the original square. Wersin also explains in the book how Orthogons can be detected and used in architecture, ceramics, furniture and works of art. The value of using Orthogons is explained in an excerpt that includes an extraordinary copy of text from the year 1558 (
Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...
). Diagrams of seven of the 12 orthogons are accompanied by a passage from the 1558 text cautioning that careful attention be given as the "ancient" architects believed "nothing excels these proportions" as "a thing of the purest abstraction." One of the orthogons, the hemidiagon, is apparent in the designs of synagogues in ancient Galilee. Mathematical ratios and another source for the term Orthogon: A well-known Orthogon, the Auron (
golden rectangle In geometry, a golden rectangle is a rectangle with side lengths in golden ratio \tfrac :1, or with approximately equal to or Golden rectangles exhibit a special form of self-similarity: if a square is added to the long side, or removed from ...
), has been employed to create a range of designs from posters and chapels (
Mies van der Rohe Ludwig Mies van der Rohe ( ; ; born Maria Ludwig Michael Mies; March 27, 1886August 17, 1969) was a German-American architect, academic, and interior designer. He was commonly referred to as Mies, his surname. He is regarded as one of the pionee ...
), to chairs. and glassware The Auron is related to musical
harmony In music, harmony is the concept of combining different sounds in order to create new, distinct musical ideas. Theories of harmony seek to describe or explain the effects created by distinct pitches or tones coinciding with one another; harm ...
, in that the golden ratio is among the most dissonant musical intervals, and is also included in discussions on
sacred architecture Sacral architecture (also known as sacred architecture or religious architecture) is a religious architectural practice concerned with the design and construction of places of worship or sacred or intentional space, such as churches, mosques, ...
and
sacred geometry Sacred geometry ascribes symbolic and sacred meanings to certain geometric shapes and certain geometric proportions. It is associated with the belief of a divine creator of the universal geometer. The geometry used in the design and constructi ...
as well as information regarding
dynamic symmetry Jay Hambidge (1867–1924) was an American artist who formulated the theory of "dynamic symmetry", a system defining compositional rules, which was adopted by several notable American and Canadian artists in the early 20th century. Early life an ...
and
aesthetics Aesthetics (also spelled esthetics) is the branch of philosophy concerned with the nature of beauty and taste (sociology), taste, which in a broad sense incorporates the philosophy of art.Slater, B. H.Aesthetics ''Internet Encyclopedia of Ph ...
. According to Von Wersin, "The Orthogons are without exception root figures and are all
irrational numbers In mathematics, the irrational numbers are all the real numbers that are not rational numbers. That is, irrational numbers cannot be expressed as the ratio of two integers. When the ratio of lengths of two line segments is an irrational number, ...
. The calculations for measure relations of the Orthogons are based, without exception, on the Pythagorean doctrine." Examples of these root figure relations are: the Diagon relation is 1:
square root of 2 The square root of 2 (approximately 1.4142) is the positive real number that, when multiplied by itself or squared, equals the number 2. It may be written as \sqrt or 2^. It is an algebraic number, and therefore not a transcendental number. Te ...
, the Sixton is 1:
square root of 3 The square root of 3 is the positive real number that, when multiplied by itself, gives the number 3. It is denoted mathematically as \sqrt or 3^. It is more precisely called the principal square root of 3 to distinguish it from the negative nu ...
and the Doppelquadrat is 1:
square root of 4 2 (two) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 1 and preceding 3. It is the smallest and the only even prime number. Because it forms the basis of a duality, it has religious and spiritual significance in many ...
. Mathematical
ratios In mathematics, a ratio () shows how many times one number contains another. For example, if there are eight oranges and six lemons in a bowl of fruit, then the ratio of oranges to lemons is eight to six (that is, 8:6, which is equivalent to th ...
for all twelve Orthogons: Ratios for all twelve Orthogons: WERSIN, pp. 39 Quadrat 1:1 – Hemidiagon 1:1.118 – Trion 1:1.154 – Quadriagon 1:1.207 – Biauron 1:1.236 – Penton 1:1.376 – Diagon 1:1.414 – Bipenton 1:1.46 – Hemiolion 1:1.5 – Auron 1:1.618 – Sixton 1:1.732 – Doppelquadrat 1:2 (''Quadrat'' is the German word for ''square'', and ''Doppelquadrat'' for ''double square''.)


See also

*
Aesthetics Aesthetics (also spelled esthetics) is the branch of philosophy concerned with the nature of beauty and taste (sociology), taste, which in a broad sense incorporates the philosophy of art.Slater, B. H.Aesthetics ''Internet Encyclopedia of Ph ...
*
Auron Auron may refer to: * Auron (comics), two fictional DC Comics superheroes * Auron (ski resort) * Auron (river) in central France, a tributary of the Yèvre * Auron, a playable character in the Square role-playing game ''Final Fantasy X'' * One ...
*
Golden rectangle In geometry, a golden rectangle is a rectangle with side lengths in golden ratio \tfrac :1, or with approximately equal to or Golden rectangles exhibit a special form of self-similarity: if a square is added to the long side, or removed from ...
*
Golden section In mathematics, two quantities are in the golden ratio if their ratio is the same as the ratio of their summation, sum to the larger of the two quantities. Expressed algebraically, for quantities and with , is in a golden ratio to if \fr ...
*
Phi (letter) Phi ( ; uppercase Φ, lowercase φ or ϕ; ''pheî'' ; Modern Greek: ''fi'' ) is the twenty-first letter of the Greek alphabet. In Archaic and Classical Greek (c. 9th to 4th century BC), it represented an aspirated voiceless bilabial plos ...
*
Logarithmic spiral A logarithmic spiral, equiangular spiral, or growth spiral is a self-similarity, self-similar spiral curve that often appears in nature. The first to describe a logarithmic spiral was Albrecht Dürer (1525) who called it an "eternal line" ("ewi ...
*
Fibonacci number In mathematics, the Fibonacci sequence is a Integer sequence, sequence in which each element is the sum of the two elements that precede it. Numbers that are part of the Fibonacci sequence are known as Fibonacci numbers, commonly denoted . Many w ...
*
Sacred architecture Sacral architecture (also known as sacred architecture or religious architecture) is a religious architectural practice concerned with the design and construction of places of worship or sacred or intentional space, such as churches, mosques, ...
*
Religious art Religious art is a visual representation of religious ideologies and their relationship with humans. Sacred art directly relates to religious art in the sense that its purpose is for worship and religious practices. According to one set of definit ...
*
Dynamic symmetry Jay Hambidge (1867–1924) was an American artist who formulated the theory of "dynamic symmetry", a system defining compositional rules, which was adopted by several notable American and Canadian artists in the early 20th century. Early life an ...
*
Giorgio Morandi Giorgio Morandi (July 20, 1890 – June 18, 1964) was an Italian painter and printmaker widely known for his subtly muted still-life paintings of ceramic vessels, flowers, and landscapes—their quiet, meditative quality reflecting the artist's ...
*
Georges Braque Georges Braque ( ; ; 13 May 1882 – 31 August 1963) was a major 20th-century List of French artists, French painter, Collage, collagist, Drawing, draughtsman, printmaker and sculptor. His most notable contributions were in his alliance with ...
*
Vitruvian Man The ''Vitruvian Man'' (; ) is a drawing by the Italian Renaissance artist and scientist Leonardo da Vinci, dated to . Inspired by the writings of the ancient Roman architect Vitruvius, the drawing depicts a nude man in two superimposed positions ...
*
De architectura (''On architecture'', published as ''Ten Books on Architecture'') is a treatise on architecture written by the Ancient Rome, Roman architect and military engineer Vitruvius, Marcus Vitruvius Pollio and dedicated to his patron, the emperor Caesa ...
*
Square root of 2 The square root of 2 (approximately 1.4142) is the positive real number that, when multiplied by itself or squared, equals the number 2. It may be written as \sqrt or 2^. It is an algebraic number, and therefore not a transcendental number. Te ...
*
Square root of 3 The square root of 3 is the positive real number that, when multiplied by itself, gives the number 3. It is denoted mathematically as \sqrt or 3^. It is more precisely called the principal square root of 3 to distinguish it from the negative nu ...
*
Square root of 4 2 (two) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 1 and preceding 3. It is the smallest and the only even prime number. Because it forms the basis of a duality, it has religious and spiritual significance in many ...
*
Square root of 5 The square root of 5 is the positive real number that, when multiplied by itself, gives the prime number 5. It is more precisely called the principal square root of 5, to distinguish it from the negative number with the same property. This numbe ...


Sources

*
Albrecht Dürer Albrecht Dürer ( , ;; 21 May 1471 – 6 April 1528),Müller, Peter O. (1993) ''Substantiv-Derivation in Den Schriften Albrecht Dürers'', Walter de Gruyter. . sometimes spelled in English as Durer or Duerer, was a German painter, Old master prin ...
, Of the Just Shaping of Letters, From the Applied Geometry of Albrecht Dürer Book; Dover Publications, NY, NY. *
Keith Critchlow Keith Barry Critchlow (16 March 1933 – 8 April 2020) was a British artist, lecturer, author, Sacred geometry, sacred geometer, professor of architecture, and a co-founder of the Temenos Academy in the UK. Biography Critchlow was educated at ...
, Order in Space: A Design Source Book; 1970, Viking, NY, NY. *Kimberly Elam, Geometry of Design: Studies in Proportion and Composition; 2001, Princeton Architectural Press, NY, NY. *
Jay Hambidge Jay Hambidge (1867–1924) was an American artist who formulated the theory of "dynamic symmetry", a system defining compositional rules, which was adopted by several notable American and Canadian artists in the early 20th century. Early life an ...
, The Elements of Dynamic Symmetry; 1967, Dover Publications, NY, NY. *Hemenway, Priya; Divine Proportion, Phi in Art, Nature and Science; 2005, Sterling Publishing Co., Inc, NY, NY. *Michael S. Schneider, A Beginner's Guide to Constructing the Universe: Mathematical Archetypes of Nature, Art, and Science; 1994, Harper Paperbacks. *Alfred Ziffer; Wolfgang Von Wersin 1882–1976 Vom Kunstgewerbe zur Industrieform; 1991 Klinkhardt & Biermann, Munchen, Germany.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wersin, Wolfgang Von 1882 births 1976 deaths 20th-century German painters 20th-century German male artists Architects from Prague 20th-century German architects German male painters German male writers Sacred geometry Technical University of Munich alumni