English text about `Österreichischer Werkbund` and

Forgotten Architects of the Austrian Werkbund
Hamburg classic Scandinavian design specialists Wohnkultur 66, will
expand their new collection with the theme “ Vienna between the wars”.
Featuring furniture from the late 1930’s and 40’s American period of émigré
Viennese architect and member of the Wiener Werkbund, Ernst Schwadron.
Wohnkultur 66 has had the opportunity, to gain the rights and acquire old original
pieces as models for this re issue. The collection continues to grow and is handcrafted
by the Petersen Brothers Workshop in Denmark. The first pieces shown at the Interior
Design Week in Cologne in 2013 were; an ottoman from Ernst Schwadron, designed
in 1934, a chair with footstool from Hugo Gorge, designed in 1920 and an intriguing
cactus stool by an unknown designer.
New to the collection is a group of pieces, that Schwadron more or less produced in prototype for his house in Connecticut. A sofa, a high-backed chair and
footstool in cowhide as originally specified, all hand-crafted reflections of his Austrian
heritage.
The catalogue of the Austrian Werkbund, its values and processes are seen again in
classic Scandinavian design. The close collaboration between architect and craftsmen,
putting aside economic aspects. Biedermeier references, Shaker and Windsor furniture,
Egyptian stool, Chinese chairs, the list goes on.
“…no boasting through construction, no overpowering honesty that assaults the eyes, no
burden of technical romanticism”
MICHAEL RACHLIS, TASKS FOR OUR TIME. INNENDEKORATION 1930
The Austrian Werkbund established itself at the beginning of the 20th Century as a
movement deploring the loss of quality in craftsmanship and against the profanity of
the industrialised workshop. Established in 1907 by Herrmann Muthesius, the German
Werkbund was already outshone in the twenties by the Bauhaus movement of Walter
Gropius and Ludwig Mies Van der Rohe.
With the annexation of Austria before the second world war the many Jewish architects of the Austrian Werkbund, emigrated, and like the Bauhaus movement or Phillip
Johnsons International Style, became a considerable influence on design worldwide.
With the Werkbund’s somewhat retrospective approach and its strong affinity
with bespoke craftsmanship it was still modern in much the same way as the Scandinavians were to be at a later date. Members of “Red Vienna” such as; Ernst Plischke, Oscar
Strnad, Josef Frank, Oskar Wlach, Hugo Gorge and others were also leaders responsible
for the construction of public housing and the Vienna Werkbund Housing Estate in 1932.
ARCHITECTS GORGE, KAYM, HETMANEK-VIENNA
“CANADIAN” CHAIR WITH STOOL, HUGO GORGE, 1920
COMMUNITY HOUSING “KARL HÖGER HOF”
Although the Austrian Werkbund had a strong interest in developing mass produced furniture for the simple household, they were mainly producing hand made original pieces
that strongly contrasted with the over done products from the Wiener Werkstätten, that
Adolf Loos so detested. They diverged in that they rejected Art Nouveau, Historicism or
the strict classicism of Josef Hoffmann, instead they seeded themselves between an older
tradition of craftsmanship and the new liberal objectivity.
“…the artistically unusual and not the material hedonistic…”
MARGARETHE WINTERLING “ ERNST SCHWADRON 1896 – 1971 A FORGOTTEN MODERNIST” VIENNA 2002
“ House & Garden” the workshop and business quarters of Josef Frank and Oskar Wlach
were excellent examples of Austrian Werkbund style. After the emigration of Frank and
Wlach “ House & Garden” was passed on to their friend J.T. Kalmar extant to this day
as the Kalmar Werkstätten. The blueprints from Frank went later to Svenskt Tenn in
Stockholm. At least Frank had found a European exile in Sweden.
Many émigré’s of that time had a picture of America drawn from the rich,
educated, art aficionados living in Europe during the interwar years. People like Peggy
Guggenheim or Gertrude Stein.
When they arrived in the middle of the economic crises caused by the stock
market crash they were greeted by a very different America. An America that was
anti-Semitic, uneducated about art and with little appreciation for their artisan craftsmanship. In fact Frank Lloyd Wright with his Bauhof style was an exception in the
prevailing American market.
Of course among the Viennese there were also rather eccentric designers such
as Friedrich Kiesler or Joseph Urban who so thoroughly immersed himself in American
Hollywood style that he became builder for Hearst and created such film set nightmares
that they were later caricaturised by Orson Wells in “Citizen Kane”. Victor Gruen with
his creation of the shopping mall helped create the America we think we know today.
As in Vienna, many architects could above all rely on their regular Jewish clientele. Viennese émigré’s and also American Jews, who had resided in Vienna in order
to be analysed by Freud or to attend The School of Arts & Crafts.
Ernst Schwadron, renowned Jewish architect and leading designer of the Austrian Werkbund , was born on July 1st, 1896 in Vienna to Viktor Schwadron of Brüder
Schwadron, a ceramics and tile company. After attending technical state school, Ernst
Schwadron studied ceramics under Master ceramicist Michael Powolny at the Kunstgewerbeschule (The School of Arts & Crafts) in Vienna. He wanted to become an architect,
unfortunately little more is known of his professional training.
He constructed a number of freestanding family homes in and around Vienna and in
1928 he designed and built a beach house for a couple called Lederer. In 1930 he married Mrs Lederer and was divorced the following year in 1931. The Lederer beach house
was sadly demolished in 2010.
„HAUS AM STRAND“ - BEACH HOUSE FOR THE LEDERER FAMILY, GREIFENSTEIN AUSTRIA (1928)
Schwadron specialised in renovating existing buildings. He created open space by
gutting the buildings interiors. He designed built in elements, room dividers and fitted
cupboards, folding doors and conservatories. He created clever interior concepts with
his own furniture designs manufactured by the master Viennese cabinet maker Johann
Kabele. See also Innendekoration, 1930 “Painter’s Residence” 237ff and “Architects
Apartment” 329ff.This last refers to Schwadron’s own penthouse apartment on Franz-Josefs-Kai 3 now BAWAG Contemporary’s exhibition spaces.
SCHWADRON‘S PENTHOUSE APARTMENT, FRANZ-JOSEFS-KAI 3
Today the only remaining almost untouched example of his work is the apartment of
Jacob Wittels at Veithgasse , Vienna 3. Unfortunately, many of the apartments, designs,
and decorations that Schwadron created were dispossessed and destroyed by the Nazis.
The MAK has five pieces from the Viennese apartment of the Dozsa family
which were acquired in 2000. Along with photos, plans, designs and letters these were
shown at the “Furniture in Exile” exhibition. Schwadron’s pouf from 1934 was given
new life by Wohnkultur66 in 2012.
POUF BY ERNST SCHWADRON, 1934
Having fled Austria in 1938 Ernst Schwadron quickly re-established himself in New
York. He was the chief designer for Rena Rosenthal Inc. and then set up his own business, Ernst Schwadron Inc. on Madison Avenue, which collaborated on such projects as
the Rockefeller Center and collaborated with Leopold Kleiner on the interiors of the
American Crayon Company as well as many private ventures.
OFFICES OF THE AMERICAN CRAYON COMPANY, DESIGNED WITH LEOPOLD KLEINER (1945)
He built “Dreamlake” for himself and his second wife Gladys. The much admired modern house in Connecticut was a modern interpretation of the Austrian tradition with a
collection of devotional pieces and art, for example ceramics from Vally Wieselthier and
his own elegant furniture designs. See “The Home of a European Architect in the USA”
Architektur Wohnform 3, 1951, p. 59ff
ERNST SCHWADRON’S LIVING ROOM, “DREAMLAKE” CONNECTICUT
He commissioned the workshop of Vladimir Kagan’s father among others and the young
Kagan himself cited Schwadron as a mentor. Designs from Ernst Schwadron were published in “Town and Country” House & Garden” and „Interiors“.
Today Schwadron’s designs are exclusively produced for Wohnkultur66 by the Petersen
Brothers Workshop in Aarhus, Denmark.
After the second world war Edgar Kaufmann Jr., son of the department store magnate Edgar Kauffman Snr. (commissioner of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater ) was
the art historian directing the design department of the Museum of Modern Art. He
not only assigned the “Good design” exhibition in Chicago in 1950 to Schwadron’s
friend Ernst Lichtblau. In the following year 1951, he engaged the Dane Finn Juhl, as
architect of that exhibition which was then shown in the same year at the Museum of
Modern Art in New York.
LIBRARY AND COURTYARD OF THE BUTTINGER RESIDENCE, NEW YORK 1958-59
Actually the Austrian Werkbund and modern Scandinavian design have always had a
complimentary relationship sharing many of the same values as well as a steady stream
of appreciation over the years. Felix Augenfeld for example used Finn Juhl’s furniture
for his masterpiece the Buttinger Library, New York a commission given him by Muriel
Gardiner-Buttinger.
“The world of the over simplified geometry left me unsatisfied compared to a world of
organic growth and change”
ERNST PLISCHKE, BECKER A., STEINER D.,WANG D., ARCHITECTURE IN THE 20TH CENTURY, AUSTRIA, MUNICH, 1995, P 29
In this century Wohnkultur66 is realigning the shared aspects of Austrian and Scandinavian design into a unified context.