Finding aid for the Josef Franz Maria Hoffmann papers, 1895-1950
Carl Wuellner
Descriptive Summary
Title: Josef Franz Maria Hoffmann papers
Date (inclusive): 1895-1950
Number: 850997
Creator/Collector:
Hoffmann, Josef Franz Maria
Physical Description:
3 Linear Feet
(6 boxes)
Repository:
The Getty Research Institute
Special Collections
1200 Getty Center Drive, Suite 1100
Los Angeles 90049-1688
reference@getty.edu
URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10020/askref
(310) 440-7390
Abstract: Correspondence, manuscripts,
photographs and other papers of the Austrian designer and architect, Josef Hoffmann,
document his involvement in the arts and crafts movement and his writings in art education.
The bulk of the papers date to the 1920s and 1930s.
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Language: Collection material is in
German
Biographical Note
Josef Franz Maria Hoffmann (1870-1956) was one of the most influential architects and
designers to emerge from Austria in the early twentieth century. He graduated with
distinction in 1895 from the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts, where he was a student of Otto
Wagner. Two years later, along with Gustav Klimt, he became a founding member of the Vienna
Secession, a group dedicated to creating more exhibition opportunities for
avant-gardeViennese artists. Hoffmann began teaching at the Vienna Kunstgewerbeschule in
1899, a position he held until 1936, and was artistic director of the Austrian Werkbund
until 1933. He and fellow artist Koloman Moser founded the Wiener Werkstätte in 1903. This
renowned artist-run group of workshops was devoted to the melding of handicraft with high
design, and took as its primary goal the complete integration of environment, architecture,
art, furniture, and objects of daily life. Although a great success artistically, it was
plagued by frequent fiscal difficulties, and in 1931 its financially-strapped workshops
ceased operation. Hoffmann remained active as a designer and lecturer until the end of his
life. He died in Vienna.
Administrative Information
Access
Open for use by qualified researchers.
Publication Rights
Preferred Citation
Papers of Josef Franz Maria Hoffmann, 1895-1950, Getty Research Institute, Research
Library, Accession no. 850997
http://hdl.handle.net/10020/cifa850997
Acquisition Information
Acquired in 1985
Processing History
The Hoffmann Papers were partially processed by staff at the Getty Research Institute in
1985. Carl Wuellner completed the processing of the archive and wrote the finding aid from
October-December, 1995.
Scope and Content of Collection
The Josef Hoffmann papers document Hoffmann's career as an architect, designer, and
educator. They date from the year he graduated from the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts to only
a few years before his death. The bulk of the material is from the 1920s and 1930s, and
includes many of Hoffmann's writings for public presentations in the years 1924-1932. There
are also letters and correspondence, photographs, architectural drawings, printed matter and
ephemera. Much of the material is not dated.
Upon Hoffmann's death, this collection passed to his friend and biographer, Leopold
Wolfgang Rochowanski. Later it passed through the hands of rare-book dealer Oscar Schreyer,
who scripted English summaries of a number of the manuscripts and letters. There are also
photocopies of many of the original papers, though these were not part of the collection
initially. Specific manuscripts and letters from the collection are referenced in Eduard
Sekler's catalogue raisonné of Hoffmann's architectural work as "Estate L.W. Rochowanski."
(see Bibliography)
The papers deal with the following topics: the relationship between craft and art;
handicraft-oriented vs. machine-oriented means of production; the dignity inherent in manual
labor; the evolution of the Wiener Werkstätte and its roots in the example of Otto Wagner;
the Viennese Secession and the English Arts and Crafts Movement; management of the Wiener
Werkstätte; art education; furniture, interior, and fashion design; architecture and
architectural projects; the Kunstgewerbeschule; the Viennese Academy; and the Austrian
Werkbund.
Indexing Terms
Subjects - Names
Hoffmann, Josef Franz Maria
Subjects - Corporate Bodies
Wiener Kunstgewerbe-Schule
Wiener Werkstätte
Oesterreichische Werkbund
Akademie der Künste
Subjects - Topics
Furniture design
Decorative arts -- Austria
Architecture -- Austria -- 20th century
Arts -- Study and teaching
Arts and crafts movement
Genres and Forms of Material
Photographs, Original
Photographic prints -- 20th century
Architectural drawings -- 20th century
Contributors
Vágó, József
Singer, Susi
Snischek, Max
Roller, Alfred
Schroeder, Any
Hoffmann, Josef Franz Maria
Rix, Kitty
Kopriva, Erna
Powolny, Michael
Likarz, Maria
Peche, Dagobert
Loew, Jakob
Lurje, Victor
Baudisch, Gudrun
De Fiori, Ernesto
Dülfer, Martin
Jastrzembiec, Ludwig
Bibliography
Kallir, Jane.
Viennese Design and the Wiener Werkstätte.
(New York: Galerie St. Etiene/George Braziller: 1986). Rochowanski, Leopold Wolfgang.
Josef Hoffmann, Eine Studie geschrieben zu seinem 80. Geburtstag.
(Vienna: Verlag der Österreichen Staatsdruckerei, 1950). Sekler Eduard F.
Josef Hoffmann: The Architectural Work. (Princeton: Princeton
University Press, 1985).
Series I.
Letters from Hoffmann
1925-1938
Scope and Content Note
Letters arranged chronologically by subject, most neither dated nor addressed, many
with typewritten English synopses prepared by Oscar Schreyer. These letters document
Hoffmann's differences with the administration and management of the Wiener Werkstätte,
his role in the Austrian Werkbund and his reasons for leaving it, and his attempts to
defend himself against official criticism after the annexation of Austria in 1938. (see
Box 3 for photocopies)
box 1, folder 1
Four letters,
ca. 1926-1931, n.d.
Scope and Content Note
To Hermann Neubacher (president of the Austrian Werkbund and member of the board of
the Wiener Werkstätte) regarding the current state of the design arts (1931); to
Heinrich Bischoff (1931); and two unaddressed and undated, discussing the Stoclet
House, Brussels, as a model, and elucidating the idea that education should be a
process of integrating all of the arts into everyday life.
box 1, folder 2
Six letters,
1928, n.d.
Scope and Content Note
One letter concerns financial constraints imposed on an exhibition of the Wiener
Werkstätte (1928); five undated letters debate how to surmount the financial
difficulties of the Werkstätte and maintain the quality of the educational
program.
box 1, folder 3
Seven letters,
undated
Scope and Content Note
Includes a letter to Làszlò Gabor explaining reasons for leaving the Austrian
Werkbund (quoted in part in Sekler, 209, as "Estate Rocho[wanski]," see Bibliography);
a fragment of a letter, no addressee, expresses concern that the Werkbund is growing
too far from its roots as a native artists' cooperative; a letter to "Sehr geehrter
Herr Ministerialrat" written after the 1938 annexation of Austria, in which Hoffmann
defends himself against official criticism; and a letter to "Hochgeehrter Herr
Bundespräsident," explaining political reasons for refusing to accept an award from
the state at an exhibition in Paris (cited in Sekler, 516, n.16, as "Estate
Rocho[wanski]," (see Bibliography.)
Series II.
Letters received,
1902-1940
Scope and Content Note
Twenty-four postcards and letters from friends, colleagues, students, and unknown
correspondents, all of a personal, informal character, arranged chronologically. (See
Box 3 for photocopies.)
box 1, folder 4
Twenty-four items,
1902-1940, n.d.
Scope and Content Note
Letters and postcards of an informal, personal nature received from students,
friends, and colleagues. Correspondents include Dagobert Peche, Adolph Vetter, Camilla
Eber-Birke (plus 2 photos), and Alfred Roller.
box 5, folder 1-15
Photocopies of many of the above letters.
Series III.
Manuscripts by Hoffmann,
1895-1938
Scope and Content Note
Sixty-six manuscripts (forty-two holographs; seven holographs with annotated
typescripts; seventeen typescripts) are arranged chronologically by subject. Mostly
unpublished, these are drafts and transcriptions of speeches, lectures, essays, articles
and memoranda. English synopses prepared by Oscar Schreyer accompany the majority of
them. Subjects include most of the topics listed above. (see Box 3 for photocopies)
box 1, folder 5
Seven items,
1895-1924
Scope and Content Note
Included are partial typed drafts of two early articles published in
Der Architekt I (1895) and III (1897); a handwritten draft
of an article published in
Das Kunstblatt 8 (1924) on
the schooling of architects; three handwritten and one typed manuscript, reprinted in
Sekler as follows:
Speech About Otto Wagner, 1909;
My Work, 1911; and
Vienna's
Future
, originally published in Der Merker, December 1919. See
Bibliography.
box 1, folder 6
Ten items,
1926-1933, n.d.
Scope and Content Note
Writings on the Wiener Werkstätte, including essays on the following topics: the role
of the artistic manager in an organization such as Wiener Werkstätte (1928); artistic
principles of the Werkstätte (1930); the Werkstätte in its historical context (1933);
the Werkstätte in its Austrian/Viennese context (undated); why the city of Vienna
should lend financial assistance to the Werkstätte (1926 and undated)
box 1, folder 7
Five items,
1933-1935, n.d.
Scope and Content Note
Writings on Hoffmann's relationship with the Austrian Werkbund and the Neuer Werkbund
Österreichs, the group he formed upon resigning from the Austrian Werkbund, including
an essay expressing his differences with the Austrian Werkbund (1933) and two
introductions to
Das befreite Handwerk, the first
exhibition by the Neuer Werkbund Österreichs (1935 and undated.)
box 1, folder 8
Seven manuscripts,
undated
Scope and Content Note
Includes essays/speeches on the following topics: how interior decoration should
complement the way we live in the modern world; the interiors of the Werkbundsiedlung
Wien housing colony; the fragmentation of the contemporary system of art education;
the integration of art, industry, and handicraft to create a national style.
box 1, folder 9
Notes: Eight items,
1933, n.d.
Scope and Content Note
Notes on various topics in architecture and fashion, including the following: the
blending of practicality and aesthetic appeal in workers' clothing to enhance the
inherent dignity of labor (undated); the re-establishment of the defunct Wiener
Werkstätte (undated); the absurdities of thoughtless imitation of past styles in the
arts and architecture (undated); a new concert hall and international cultural complex
for Vienna (undated); the Vienna Ringstraße and the urban landscape (undated). There
is also a forward to an unidentified architectural book (1933).
box 2, folder 1
Manuscripts: Four items,
1926, n.d.
Scope and Content Note
Essays/speeches on the following topics: the differing qualities of mass-produced and
handicraft objects; that a return of hand-craftsmanship will yield objects of high
quality and useful design (undated); the future of
Kunsthandwerk (1926); the decline in quality of everyday objects due to
commercialized, mass-produced imitation of older styles (1926).
box 2, folder 2
Manuscripts: Ten items,
1932, n.d.
Scope and Content Note
Essays/speeches on the following topics: that all branches of art and architecture
should be products of their own time and place; that the traditional workshop is the
ideal setting for this approach to making art (undated); that architecture should
incorporate traditional local materials as well as modern technical innovations
(1932); and that comfort and convenience for all should take precedence over lavish
splendor for a few (undated.)
box 2, folder 3
Manuscripts: Sixteen items,
1938, n.d.
Scope and Content Note
Essays/speeches on the following topics: unification of the various academies and
schools of art (1938 and undated); that artistic talent can only be inspired and
awakened from within by a competent teacher (undated); that a degree from the
Kunstgewerbeschule be held equal to that from a University (undated).
box 5, folder 1-15
Photocopies of many of the above items.
Series IV.
Printed matter,
1919-1945
Scope and Content Note
Four newspaper clippings of articles written by Hoffmann, 1931-ca. 1945, covering such
topics as the artistic mission of the Wiener Werkstätte, the encouragement of women
artists, the reconstruction of Vienna after World War II, and the place of the arts and
crafts in modern culture. There are eight items about or referring to Hoffmann,
including published journal articles about Hoffmann's architectural work, pamphlets and
exhibition flyers, ca. 1919-1934.
box 2, folder 4
Printed matter,
ca. 1914-1934
Scope and Content Note
Offprints and tear sheets about Hoffmann's work. Of special note is a checklist of
works shown in an exhibition held at the Österreichischen Museum in honor of
Hoffmann's sixtieth birthday (1930.)
box 2, folder 5
Clippings,
ca. 1931-1945
Scope and Content Note
Four newspaper clippings of articles written by Hoffmann. Of interest is a newspaper
article in which Hoffmann encourages the participation of women artists in the arts
and crafts movement. Also a clipping of an article in which Hoffmann pleads for a
sensible approach to rebuilding the city of Vienna after World War II.
box 3, folder 1-15
Photocopies of many of the letters, some manuscripts in Boxes
1-2.
Architectural drawings, photographs and graphic arts,
undated
Scope and Content Note
Four architectural drawings, bearing the Wiener Werkstätte stamp, for a casino/hotel
with adjacent house in Kapfenburg, Austria. There are approximately 195 photographs, in
two binders, including portraits of Hoffmann and other artists associated with the
Wiener Werkstätte; photographs of ceramics, glassware, textiles, lamps and other
functional and decorative objects designed by Werkstätte artists; three photographs of
architectural drawings; and one color lithograph by an unknown artist labeled "Herta
Zuckerman, Aged 14 Years."
box 4
Photographs,
undated
Scope and Content Note
Binder contains approximately ninety-five photographs. Includes portraits of Hoffmann
and other artists associated with the Wiener Werkstätte; and photographs of
architectural drawings, ceramics, glassware, textiles, lamps and other functional and
decorative objects designed by Werkstätte artists, A-P. Artists whose works are
included: Gudrun Baudisch, Herta Bucher, Lotte Calm, Otto Czechska, Alice Ehmann,
Mathilde Flögl, Erna Kopriva, Maria Likarz, Jakob Löw, Victor Lurge, Dagobert Peche,
Michael Powolny.
box 5
Photographs
undated
Scope and Content Note
Binder contains approximately one hundred photographs. Includes photographs of
artists associated with the Wiener Werkstätte; and photographs of ceramics, glassware,
textiles, lamps and other functional and decorative objects designed by Werkstätte
artists, R-W, and collaborative works, unidentified works. Artists whose work is
included: Felice Rix, Kitty Rix, Rochowanski, Irene Schaschl, Hedwig Schmidl, Any
Schröder, Susi Singer, Max Snischek, Grete Spannring, Vally Wieselthier.
Architectural drawings,
undated
Scope and Content Note
Four design drawings bearing the stamp of the Wiener Werkstätte, labeled "Bau: Casino
in Kapfenburg für Herrn Consul Böhler."
box 6*, folder 1
Plan: Parterre des Hauses Gallerie des Saales
box 6*, folder 1
Plan: Souterrain des Hauses Parterre des grossen Saales
box 6*, folder 1
Plan: 1 Stock des Hauses dach des Saales
box 6*, folder 2
Color lithograph,
undated
Scope and Content Note
with the Wiener Kunstgewerbeschule stamp, artist unknown, labeled "Herta Zuckerman,
Aged 14 Years."
Series V.
Ephemera
1909-1950
Scope and Content Note
Twelve items referring to Hoffmann, to objects produced by the Wiener Werkstätte, and
to the role of the Werkstätte in Viennese cultural life, 1909-1950, arranged
chronologically. Also invoices and receipts from the Wiener Werkstätte, 1928-1930.
box 2, folder 6
Manuscripts: Twelve items,
1909-1950
Scope and Content Note
Includes an annotated typescript of an article by Ludwig Jastrzembiec on the poet
Peter Altenberg, with a handwritten dedication to Hoffmann (1909.) Also a typed list
of tributes to Hoffmann by other noted architects and artists in honor of his
eightieth birthday (1950.)
box 2, folder 7
Invoices and receipts,
1909-1950
Scope and Content Note
Twelve items, principally between the Wiener Werkstätte and the firm of Franz
Unterberger (1928-1930.)
