Report: Translating Walter Gropius for Britain | Research Access Grant (Student) recipient

3 January 2025 -

Alborz Dianat, Research Scientist at University College Dublin, reports on the presentation of their research at the Alvar Aalto Researchers’ Network at the Alvar Aalto Museumas.

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Supported by the DHS Research Access Grant (Student), I presented my research on ‘Translating Walter Gropius for Britain’ in Jyväskylä, Finland. The seminar was hosted by the Alvar Aalto Researchers’ Network at the Alvar Aalto Museum. The seminar theme of ‘Whose Modernism?’ offered a valuable framework to develop my ideas. I was grateful for the opportunity to present my research and receive the responses of visitors and international scholars working on both related and unrelated research topics.

My paper summarised a key chapter of my PhD thesis, arguing that the arrival of émigré designers in interwar Britain can be reinterpreted through the reciprocal influence of the indigenous design culture. I focused on the English-language translations of Walter Gropius, revealing the adaptive role of the recipient culture. As translator, Philip Morton Shand freely altered language, tone and content to maximise the appeal of Gropius’s The New Architecture and the Bauhaus (1935). Shand’s effort served to ingratiate the Bauhaus founder in the British design scene, following his emigration away from Nazi Germany in 1934.

In addition to linking to my PhD, my paper also related to my research towards a forthcoming monograph on Walter Gropius in Britain (Routledge). Comments from other participants at the seminar have helped to develop my ongoing research.

Beyond benefitting from the opportunity to present my own paper, I received the opportunity to learn from other researchers. The seminar separated a broad selection of papers into three themes – Intent, Authorship and Legacy. In contributing to the second topic, I joined others challenging concepts of authorship in Modernism. While parallel sessions restricted the opportunity to hear all papers live, the event was recorded, and copies of the conference publication provided in advance. The publication is now available for purchase online as well.

I was also pleased that the conference provided the opportunity to study the buildings of Alvar Aalto. The conference provided guided tours of Aalto’s Muuratsalo Experimental House, Säynätsalo Town Hall and University of Jyväskylä. I separately arranged tours at Aalto’s house and studio in Helsinki. These visits were particularly insightful as another my PhD chapters focused on Aalto’s engagement with Britain. The seminar was therefore a beneficial experience as I made final preparations for my viva (which has since taken place, fortunately recommending a pass with minor corrections).

Aside from Aalto, I enjoyed the opportunity to visit Helsinki’s Museum of Finnish Architecture and Design Museum (both coincidentally free entry as I unintentionally visited on Helsinki Day, 12 June). The former museum hosted an exhibition on Finland’s 1970s ‘Concrete Dreams,’ with displays on themes of disabled access, energy efficiency and demolition. The museum’s library meanwhile provided access to some texts which I had long sought to get a hold of.

As my first international conference experience, the visit to Finland was extremely productive and enjoyable. The seminar recorded around 500 registered participants from 46 countries (in-person and online). Having had an isolated PhD experience through Covid lockdowns, the opportunity for discussions during and after the event was particularly welcome.