Jindrich Waldes
Encyclopedia
Jindřich Waldes 2 July 1876 Nemyšl u Tábora – May 1941 Havana
(precise date of death is not known), leading industrialist, founder of Waldes Koh-i-noor Company, Czech patriot and art collector.
Karel Waldes, father of Jindřich, had an inn and a small haberdashery shop in the village of Nemyšl near the town of Tábor
in southern Bohemia
. He wanted his son to continue his business but Jindřich found a position of a clerk at the firm of Eduard Lokesch and Son in Prague
. This company made buttons and cufflinks. As Waldes had a good knowledge of languages he became Lokesch’s business agent and travelled the world on behalf of the firm.
In 1902 together with an engineer Hynek Puc (1856–1938) Waldes left Lokesch and founded his own company Waldes a spol. A year later Puc invented a special machine that inserted a small spring into concealed dress fasteners, the main product of the new firm. The new machine supplemented labour of ten skilled workers. With the increased production Puc kept inventing more machines to support the manufacture of pins, safety pins, needles and buttons. The world renown Waldes trademark, Miss KIN, came about in 1912 when Waldes on his ocean trip to New York met Elisabeth Coyens who playfully put one fastener in her eye. František Kupka
painted her portrait in oils and Vojtěch Preissig from it designed the firm’s trademark. The other trade names used were Koh-i-noor and Otello.
Waldes Koh-i-noor headquarters were located in Prague
suburbs of Vršovice
. Soon the company grew to a large concern with branch factories in Warsaw
, Dresden
, Vienna
, Paris
, Barcelona
and New York
.
In 1939 Waldes was imprisoned by Gestapo
after the Third Reich occupation of Czechoslovakia
and kept in concentration camps Dachau and Buchenwald. In 1941 his family, who were sent to USA by Waldes before the war (he decided to remain in Prague
as a Czech patriot) paid the Nazi authorities 8 million Czech crowns ransom. However, Waldes did not survive the journey to the USA and died under suspicious circumstances on the ship which stopped at Havana
, Cuba
in May 1941.
Waldes was also a passionate art collector of contemporary Czech art. In 1918 in Prague
he founded Waldes Museum for his collection of buttons which had over 70 thousand items. The collection was transferred after the Second World War to Uměleckoprůmyslové museum in Prague
. Apart from buttons he collected works of Czech painters especially František Kupka
’s paintings. They became friends in 1919 and remained so until 1938. Waldes supported Kupka throughout his career by buying his canvases. Part of Jindřich Waldes’ collection held by the National Gallery in Prague
had been returned to his descendants living in the United States.
Havana
Havana is the capital city, province, major port, and leading commercial centre of Cuba. The city proper has a population of 2.1 million inhabitants, and it spans a total of — making it the largest city in the Caribbean region, and the most populous...
(precise date of death is not known), leading industrialist, founder of Waldes Koh-i-noor Company, Czech patriot and art collector.
Life
Tábor
Tábor is a city of the Czech Republic, in the South Bohemian Region. It is named after Mount Tabor, which is believed by many to be the place of the Transfiguration of Christ; however, the name became popular and nowadays translates to "camp" or "encampment" in the Czech language.The town was...
in southern Bohemia
Bohemia
Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
. He wanted his son to continue his business but Jindřich found a position of a clerk at the firm of Eduard Lokesch and Son in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
. This company made buttons and cufflinks. As Waldes had a good knowledge of languages he became Lokesch’s business agent and travelled the world on behalf of the firm.
In 1902 together with an engineer Hynek Puc (1856–1938) Waldes left Lokesch and founded his own company Waldes a spol. A year later Puc invented a special machine that inserted a small spring into concealed dress fasteners, the main product of the new firm. The new machine supplemented labour of ten skilled workers. With the increased production Puc kept inventing more machines to support the manufacture of pins, safety pins, needles and buttons. The world renown Waldes trademark, Miss KIN, came about in 1912 when Waldes on his ocean trip to New York met Elisabeth Coyens who playfully put one fastener in her eye. František Kupka
František Kupka
František Kupka was a Czech painter and graphic artist. He was a pioneer and co-founder of the early phases of the abstract art movement and Orphic cubism...
painted her portrait in oils and Vojtěch Preissig from it designed the firm’s trademark. The other trade names used were Koh-i-noor and Otello.
Waldes Koh-i-noor headquarters were located in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
suburbs of Vršovice
Vršovice
Vršovice is a district of Prague. All of Vršovice lies within the Prague 10 administrative district. Vršovice is located south of the city centre. It borders Vinohrady to the north, Nusle to the south-west, Michle to the south and Strašnice to the east....
. Soon the company grew to a large concern with branch factories in Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
, Dresden
Dresden
Dresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe, near the Czech border. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....
, Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
and New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
.
In 1939 Waldes was imprisoned by Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
after the Third Reich occupation of Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
and kept in concentration camps Dachau and Buchenwald. In 1941 his family, who were sent to USA by Waldes before the war (he decided to remain in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
as a Czech patriot) paid the Nazi authorities 8 million Czech crowns ransom. However, Waldes did not survive the journey to the USA and died under suspicious circumstances on the ship which stopped at Havana
Havana
Havana is the capital city, province, major port, and leading commercial centre of Cuba. The city proper has a population of 2.1 million inhabitants, and it spans a total of — making it the largest city in the Caribbean region, and the most populous...
, Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
in May 1941.
Waldes was also a passionate art collector of contemporary Czech art. In 1918 in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
he founded Waldes Museum for his collection of buttons which had over 70 thousand items. The collection was transferred after the Second World War to Uměleckoprůmyslové museum in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
. Apart from buttons he collected works of Czech painters especially František Kupka
František Kupka
František Kupka was a Czech painter and graphic artist. He was a pioneer and co-founder of the early phases of the abstract art movement and Orphic cubism...
’s paintings. They became friends in 1919 and remained so until 1938. Waldes supported Kupka throughout his career by buying his canvases. Part of Jindřich Waldes’ collection held by the National Gallery in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
had been returned to his descendants living in the United States.
Literature
- Patrik Šimon: Jindřich Waldes – sběratel umění, Patrik Šimon – Eminent, Praha 2001
- Jiří Waldes a kolektiv: Kupka – Waldes Malíř a jeho sběratel, Petr Meissner, Praha 1999