Dessau, das Bauhausgebäude, 02/09/2009.

The Bauhaus influence has reached almost all of us in our material worlds, whether it is the streamlined, functionality of a chair or the steel-frame construction of a building. The documentary Bauhaus: Model and Myth (103 minutes, German and English with English subtitles) will be screened at the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art this Friday, April 11th. It explores this significant influence and the school’s beginnings in post-World War I Europe, as well as its demise in 1933. Based on accounts by alumni and archival excerpts that reveal the visions of certain of the school’s former teachers, the film also examines the political collusion among some of its members under Nazi Germany.

The Bauhaus School began in Germany in 1919 and was founded by German architect Walter Gropius. Its main objective, radical at the time, was to reimagine the material world in a way that reflected the unity of all the arts. Gropius envisioned a union of art, craft and design. Several noteworthy artists, architects and designers were associated with or attended the Bauhaus, including Paul Klee, Wassily Kandinsky, Josef Albers, Marcel Breuer and Mies van der Rohe.

An event reception with a cash bar and free light bites precedes the film at 6 p.m., with the screening starting at 7 p.m. Ken Lambla, AIA, Dean of the UNC Charlotte College of Arts + Architecture, will speak about the Bauhaus and the documentary before the film begins. Tickets are $10 for non-members, $8 for members and $5 for students with a valid school I.D. Tickets can be purchased by phone 704-353-9200 or online.

Bechtler Museum of Modern Art: 420 South Tryon St., Charlotte; www.bechtler.org. Hours: Mon., 10-5 p.m.; Tues., closed; Wed.-Sat., 10-5 p.m.; Sun., 12-5 p.m.