Hartwig's Bauhaus chess pieces

One of the most famous chess set designs is Josef Hartwig's 1923 set in which the moves are sculpted into the pieces. Hartwig had started as an Art Nouveau sculpture, but as he matured he minimalized his designs and eventually joined the Bauhaus school as a sculptor and teacher. His chess set is a triumph of the "form follows function" credo and reductionism of the Bauhaus school of design.

Sets based on his design can still be bought, although they can be rather pricey. Via Visual News, which has links to a couple of sites selling the set.

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Can Genius Be Taught?

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Here she is explaining her thoughts to Seattleites at the Univ. of Washington Wednesday night.