Josef Frank (architect)
Encyclopedia
Josef Frank was an Austria
n-born architect
, artist, and designer who adopted Swedish
citizenship in the latter half of his life. Together with Oskar Strnad
, he created the Vienna School of Architecture, and its concept of Modern
houses, housing
and interiors.
in Hungary
. He designed his parents' grave in the old Jewish section of Vienna's Central Cemetery
(Group 19, Row 58, Grave No.52). He studied architecture at the Vienna University of Technology. He then taught at the Vienna School of Arts from 1919 to 1925. He was a founding member of the Vienna Werkbund, initiator and leader of the 1932 project Werkbundsiedlung in Vienna. In 1933, he emigrated
to Sweden, where he gained citizenship
in 1939. He was the most prestigious designer
in the Stockholm design company Svenskt Tenn (Swedish Pewter). He remained in Sweden after 1945 despite attempts to return him to Vienna
.
and housing estate
s. Contrary to most other architects of the interwar period in Vienna, he took the idea of settlement and not the creation of so-called super blocks in the municipal housing. He also rejected facade decor and clearly preferred functional
forms. The Viennese architect and furniture designer Luigi Blue refers to him as one of his idols.
In addition to his architectural work he created numerous designs for furniture, furnishings, fabrics, wallpaper
and carpet
. He has been a painter, as well.
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-born architect
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
, artist, and designer who adopted Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
citizenship in the latter half of his life. Together with Oskar Strnad
Oskar Strnad
Oskar Strnad was an Austrian architect, sculptor, designer and set designer for films and theatres. Together with Josef Frank he was instrumental in creating the distinctive character of the Wiener Schule der Architektur...
, he created the Vienna School of Architecture, and its concept of Modern
Modern architecture
Modern architecture is generally characterized by simplification of form and creation of ornament from the structure and theme of the building. It is a term applied to an overarching movement, with its exact definition and scope varying widely...
houses, housing
House
A house is a building or structure that has the ability to be occupied for dwelling by human beings or other creatures. The term house includes many kinds of different dwellings ranging from rudimentary huts of nomadic tribes to free standing individual structures...
and interiors.
Life
Josef Frank was of Jewish ancestry. His parents, Kaufmann Ignaz (Isak) Frank (October 17, 1851 – January 27, 1921 Vienna) and the Vienna-born Jenny (September 3, 1861–10 February 1941 Vienna), were originally from HevesHeves
Heves is a small city in eastern Hungary. About 100 km east of Budapest, Heves lies at the northern extreme of the Great Hungarian Plain , just south of the Mátra and Bükk hills and west of the Tisza River. Heves shares its name with a Hungarian county . The city is the fourth largest city in...
in Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
. He designed his parents' grave in the old Jewish section of Vienna's Central Cemetery
Zentralfriedhof
The Zentralfriedhof is one of the largest cemeteries in the world, largest by number of interred in Europe and most famous cemetery among Vienna's nearly 50 cemeteries.-Name and location:...
(Group 19, Row 58, Grave No.52). He studied architecture at the Vienna University of Technology. He then taught at the Vienna School of Arts from 1919 to 1925. He was a founding member of the Vienna Werkbund, initiator and leader of the 1932 project Werkbundsiedlung in Vienna. In 1933, he emigrated
Emigration
Emigration is the act of leaving one's country or region to settle in another. It is the same as immigration but from the perspective of the country of origin. Human movement before the establishment of political boundaries or within one state is termed migration. There are many reasons why people...
to Sweden, where he gained citizenship
Citizenship
Citizenship is the state of being a citizen of a particular social, political, national, or human resource community. Citizenship status, under social contract theory, carries with it both rights and responsibilities...
in 1939. He was the most prestigious designer
Designer
A designer is a person who designs. More formally, a designer is an agent that "specifies the structural properties of a design object". In practice, anyone who creates tangible or intangible objects, such as consumer products, processes, laws, games and graphics, is referred to as a...
in the Stockholm design company Svenskt Tenn (Swedish Pewter). He remained in Sweden after 1945 despite attempts to return him to 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...
.
Legacy
Josef Frank dealt early on with public housingPublic housing
Public housing is a form of housing tenure in which the property is owned by a government authority, which may be central or local. Social housing is an umbrella term referring to rental housing which may be owned and managed by the state, by non-profit organizations, or by a combination of the...
and housing estate
Housing estate
A housing estate is a group of buildings built together as a single development. The exact form may vary from country to country. Accordingly, a housing estate is usually built by a single contractor, with only a few styles of house or building design, so they tend to be uniform in appearance...
s. Contrary to most other architects of the interwar period in Vienna, he took the idea of settlement and not the creation of so-called super blocks in the municipal housing. He also rejected facade decor and clearly preferred functional
Functionalism (architecture)
Functionalism, in architecture, is the principle that architects should design a building based on the purpose of that building. This statement is less self-evident than it first appears, and is a matter of confusion and controversy within the profession, particularly in regard to modern...
forms. The Viennese architect and furniture designer Luigi Blue refers to him as one of his idols.
In addition to his architectural work he created numerous designs for furniture, furnishings, fabrics, wallpaper
Wallpaper
Wallpaper is a kind of material used to cover and decorate the interior walls of homes, offices, and other buildings; it is one aspect of interior decoration. It is usually sold in rolls and is put onto a wall using wallpaper paste...
and carpet
Carpet
A carpet is a textile floor covering consisting of an upper layer of "pile" attached to a backing. The pile is generally either made from wool or a manmade fibre such as polypropylene,nylon or polyester and usually consists of twisted tufts which are often heat-treated to maintain their...
. He has been a painter, as well.
Recognition
- 1965 First Austrian Frank exhibition by the Austrian Society for Architecture
- 1965 Grand Austrian State PrizeGrand Austrian State PrizeThe Grand Austrian State Prize is a decoration given annually by Austria to an artist for exceptional work. The recipient must be an Austrian citizen with a permanent residence in Austria....
for Architecture - 1991 The Josef-Frank-Gasse street in DonaustadtDonaustadtDonaustadt is the 22nd district of Vienna, Austria .Donaustadt is the eastern fourth of Vienna.- Geography :The Donaustadt district is in the northeast part of Vienna and is the largest of the districts in area, occupying about one-quarter of the Vienna city area, 102.24 km².It borders the...
Vienna was named after the architect - 2007 The exhibition Josef Frank. Architect and Outsider , The Jewish Museum ViennaJewish Museum ViennaThe Jüdisches Museum Wien, or the Jewish Museum Vienna, is a museum of Jewish history, life and religion in Austria. The present museum was founded in 1988 in the Palais Eskeles in the Dorotheergasse, Vienna, and has distinguished itself by a very active programme of exhibitions.- History :The...
field office Judenplatz - 2010 Was honored with a Google Doodle on July 15 in honor of his 125th birthday.
Major projects
- Exhibition design of the East Asian Museum in Cologne (1912)
- House Wilbrandtgasse 12, Vienna (1914) with Oskar Wlach and Oskar Strand
- Municipal housing Hoffingergasse in Altmannsdorf (Vienna), (1921–24), together with Erich Faber
- Residential Building Wiedenhoferhof, Vienna (1924–25)
- Residential Building Winarskyhof (1924–26), together with Adolf LoosAdolf LoosAdolf Franz Karl Viktor Maria Loos was a Moravian-born Austro-Hungarian architect. He was influential in European Modern architecture, and in his essay Ornament and Crime he repudiated the florid style of the Vienna Secession, the Austrian version of Art Nouveau...
, Peter BehrensPeter BehrensPeter Behrens was a German architect and designer. He was important for the modernist movement, as several of the movements leading names worked for him when they were young.-Biography:Behrens attended the Christianeum Hamburg from September 1877 until Easter 1882...
, Margarete Schütte-LihotzkyMargarete Schütte-LihotzkyMargarete Schütte-Lihotzky was the first female Austrian architect and an activist in the Nazi resistance movement. She is mostly remembered today for designing the so-called Frankfurt Kitchen.-Training:... - Duplex in the Weißenhofsiedlung, Stuttgart (1927)
- Residential Building Sebastian-cup-Gasse 1–3, Vienna (1928–29)
- House Beer (1929–30 with Wlach)
- Residential Building Simmeringer Hauptstraße 142–150, Vienna, (1931–32) with Oskar Wlach
- Residential Building Leopoldine-Glöckel-yard in Vienna (1931–32)
- Management of the Werkbundsiedlung in Vienna and Project for a house at Woinovichgasse 32 (1932)
- Five villas in FalsterboFalsterboFalsterbo is a town located at the south-western tip of Sweden in Vellinge Municipality in Skåne County. Falsterbo is situated in the southern part of the Falsterbo peninsula. It is part of Skanör med Falsterbo, one of Sweden's historical cities.-History:...
, southern Sweden (1927-1936)
Publications
- Architecture as Symbol: Elements of New German Building, 1931 (in German)
- The International Werkbundsiedlung Vienna 1932, 1932 (in German)
Further reading
- Botstein, Leon; Stritzl-Levine, Nina : Josef Frank, Architect and Designer: An Alternative Vision of the Modern Home, Yale University Press, 2000
- Long, Christopher: Josef Frank: Life and Work, University Of Chicago Press, 2001