Emil Kaufmann
Encyclopedia
Emil Kaufmann was an Austria
n art and architecture
historian. He was the son of Max Kaufmann (d. 1902), a businessman, and Friederike Baumwald (Kaufmann) (b. 1862). Kaufmann is best known for his studies of neo-classicism
.
. In Vienna he studied under Max Dvořák, Josef Strzygowski
and Moriz Dreger in the spirit of the so-called Vienna School of Art History
, such as Alois Riegl
and Franz Wickhoff, who attempted to give greater objectiviy to the study of art. Kaufmann fought as a soldier in World War I
and afterwards attended to his studies intermittently because of illness. He received his Ph.D. in 1920, writing his dissertation under Dvořák on the development of the architecture of Ledoux
and classicism. After completing his studies, Kaufmann was unable to obtain an academic position and so earned a living as a bank clerk. In 1933, Kaufmann published the book "Von Ledoux bis Le Corbusier
", which argued for a formal aesthetic continuity between neoclassicism and modernism. It was regarded by established Austrian scholars such as Hans Sedlmayr
as symptomatic of all that was bad about Modernism
.
After the Anschluss
, the annexation of Austria by the Nazi's
, Kaufmann, being a Jew
, managed to emigrate to the USA, where he taught art history at various universities. In 1952 he published the book "Three Revolutionary Architects: Boullée, Ledoux, Lequeu". He died in Wyoming
in 1953 while travelling to Los Angeles
before his magnus opus, "Architecture in the Age of Reason", could be completed. The work was published posthumously in 1955. His style of writing and scholarship is termed formalism
, derived to an extent from the philosopher Immanuel Kant
's notion of autonomy in art, from his work Critique of Judgement
, in Kant's own words, art is "a mode of representation which is purposive for itself and which although devoid of a purpose, has the effect of advancing the culture of the mental powers in the interests of communication." Kaufmann was influential on later formalistic architectural historians and critics such the British-American academic Colin Rowe
in the 1950s and the Italian architect and theorist Aldo Rossi
in the 1960s.
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n art and architecture
History of architecture
The history of architecture traces the changes in architecture through various traditions, regions, overarching stylistic trends, and dates.-Neolithic architecture:Neolithic architecture is the architecture of the Neolithic period...
historian. He was the son of Max Kaufmann (d. 1902), a businessman, and Friederike Baumwald (Kaufmann) (b. 1862). Kaufmann is best known for his studies of neo-classicism
Neoclassical architecture
Neoclassical architecture was an architectural style produced by the neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century, manifested both in its details as a reaction against the Rococo style of naturalistic ornament, and in its architectural formulas as an outgrowth of some classicizing...
.
Career
From 1913 he studied at both the University of Innsbruck and the University of ViennaUniversity of Vienna
The University of Vienna is a public university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world...
. In Vienna he studied under Max Dvořák, Josef Strzygowski
Josef Strzygowski
Josef Strzygowski was a German art historian known for his theory on the influence of Early Christian Armenian architecture on the early Medieval architecture of Europe, outlined in his book, Die Baukunst der Armenier und Europa...
and Moriz Dreger in the spirit of the so-called Vienna School of Art History
Vienna School of Art History
The Vienna School of Art History is a collective term used to describe the development of fundamental art-historical methods at the University of Vienna...
, such as Alois Riegl
Alois Riegl
Alois Riegl was an Austrian art historian, and is considered a member of the Vienna School of Art History...
and Franz Wickhoff, who attempted to give greater objectiviy to the study of art. Kaufmann fought as a soldier in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and afterwards attended to his studies intermittently because of illness. He received his Ph.D. in 1920, writing his dissertation under Dvořák on the development of the architecture of Ledoux
Ledoux
Ledoux or LeDoux is a surname, and may refer to:* Chris LeDoux* Christene LeDoux* Claude Nicolas Ledoux 18th century French architect.* Claude Ledoux * Harold LeDoux* Jesse LeDoux* Joseph E. LeDoux* Patrice Ledoux* Paul Ledoux...
and classicism. After completing his studies, Kaufmann was unable to obtain an academic position and so earned a living as a bank clerk. In 1933, Kaufmann published the book "Von Ledoux bis Le Corbusier
Le Corbusier
Charles-Édouard Jeanneret, better known as Le Corbusier , was a Swiss-born French architect, designer, urbanist, writer and painter, famous for being one of the pioneers of what now is called modern architecture. He was born in Switzerland and became a French citizen in 1930...
", which argued for a formal aesthetic continuity between neoclassicism and modernism. It was regarded by established Austrian scholars such as Hans Sedlmayr
Hans Sedlmayr
Hans Sedlmayr was an Austrian art historian. Sedlmayr was University Professor of Art History in Vienna from 1936 until 1945, then in Munich from 1951 until 1964, and finally at the University of Salzburg from 1965-69, where he established the art history curriculum...
as symptomatic of all that was bad about Modernism
Modernism
Modernism, in its broadest definition, is modern thought, character, or practice. More specifically, the term describes the modernist movement, its set of cultural tendencies and array of associated cultural movements, originally arising from wide-scale and far-reaching changes to Western society...
.
After the Anschluss
Anschluss
The Anschluss , also known as the ', was the occupation and annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany in 1938....
, the annexation of Austria by the Nazi's
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
, Kaufmann, being a Jew
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
, managed to emigrate to the USA, where he taught art history at various universities. In 1952 he published the book "Three Revolutionary Architects: Boullée, Ledoux, Lequeu". He died in Wyoming
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
in 1953 while travelling to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
before his magnus opus, "Architecture in the Age of Reason", could be completed. The work was published posthumously in 1955. His style of writing and scholarship is termed formalism
Formalism (art)
In art theory, formalism is the concept that a work's artistic value is entirely determined by its form--the way it is made, its purely visual aspects, and its medium. Formalism emphasizes compositional elements such as color, line, shape and texture rather than realism, context, and content...
, derived to an extent from the philosopher Immanuel Kant
Immanuel Kant
Immanuel Kant was a German philosopher from Königsberg , researching, lecturing and writing on philosophy and anthropology at the end of the 18th Century Enlightenment....
's notion of autonomy in art, from his work Critique of Judgement
Critique of Judgement
The Critique of Judgment , or in the new Cambridge translation Critique of the Power of Judgment, also known as the third critique, is a philosophical work by Immanuel Kant...
, in Kant's own words, art is "a mode of representation which is purposive for itself and which although devoid of a purpose, has the effect of advancing the culture of the mental powers in the interests of communication." Kaufmann was influential on later formalistic architectural historians and critics such the British-American academic Colin Rowe
Colin Rowe
Colin Rowe , was a British-born, American-naturalised architectural historian, critic, theoretician, and teacher; acknowledged as a major intellectual influence on world architecture and urbanism in the second half of the twentieth century and beyond, particularly in the fields of city planning,...
in the 1950s and the Italian architect and theorist Aldo Rossi
Aldo Rossi
Aldo Rossi was an Italian architect and designer who accomplished the unusual feat of achieving international recognition in four distinct areas: theory, drawing, architecture and product design.-Early life:...
in the 1960s.
The works of Emil Kaufmann
- Von Ledoux bis Le Courbusier. (1933)
- Three Revolutionary Architects: Boullée, Ledoux, Lequeu. (1952)
- Architecture in the Age of Reason: Baroque and Post-Baroque in England, Italy, and France. (1955).