Otto Wagner (Protomodernism)

Life

Otto Wagner was born in Penzing, Austria on July 13, 1841. He was educated by private tutors and French governesses until the age of nine when he began schooling at the Akademisches Gymnasium in Vienna for two years before beginning boarding school. His mother decided that Wagner was to be trained as a lawyer while in school, however, Wagner hated life at boarding school that at one point, he ran away to Vienna where his mother had to convince him to return. After forcedly completing the humanist education, he studied at the Polytechnic Institute of Vienna where, because of his good reports, was exempt from military service and was able to continue his education at Koenigliche Bauakademie in Berlin. In 1861, Wagner returned home to Vienna and completed his studies at the Academy of Fine Arts. In 1963, Wagner won his first competition (for a casino in the Wiener Stadtpark) and also married his wife, Josefine, with whom he  had three children with. Shortly after his mother's death in 1880, he divorced Josefine and  remarried Louise Stiffel who was 18 years younger than him. With Louise, Wagner had an additional three children.  In 1915, Louise took ill and he began journal entries that would eventually turn into letters that he would sign 'Your Otto' or something similar. After Louise's death, Wagner lived quietly as by then the war made it's way into his studio saying that he was, 'greatly oppressed by the lack of an assistant' and while his son, Otto, was also a professional architect, he was not considered a good assistant as Wagner stated, ' I have never seen anybody with so little artistic flair and with so little taste. This worries me greatly, for what are all my buildings going to look like if it is left to him to complete them.' Wagner died on Aprill 11, 1918 of erysipelas (a bacterial skin infection) and is buried in his family  vault which he had build in the Hietzing Cemetery.

Design Philosophy
In his manifesto that he wrote in 1896 (Modern Architecture), Wagner  expressed his ideal of practical and efficiently designed architecture. I argued that, 'the purpose of beauty was to give artistic expression to function. Extraneous ornament, therefore, was not only impractical and inefficient, it was also decidedly unmodern.' His approach to design was related to that of the Secession (a progressive group of Austrian artists, architects, and designers who pursued artistic rejuvenation). Secessionist architects believed in the idea of Gesamtkunstwertk or the 'total work of art' meaning they believed that all aesthetic elements were subordinated to the whole effect.

Main Works

Pavilion on Karlsplatz
Pavilion on Karlsplatz was built in 1989 in the course of Stadbahn construction. Wagner's design was revolutionary in Art Nouveau architecture which is shown in the many decorative details. Metal and wood were painted green with golds and white marble added throughout the design as well.

Austrian Postal Savings Bank

The Postal Savings Banks is considered a Gesmtkunstwerk  (total work of art) and is believed to perfectly epitomize Wagner's approach to building design. It is seven stories high and occupies an entire city block. The plan is trapezoidal with the rectilinear central block occupying the main banking hall. The frame of the building is steel while the central banking hall isf a glass atrium. In the design, Wagner hoped to maximize efficiency and minimize the amount of daily cleaning and future repairs. This was achieved through selecting materials for the durability as well as their functionality.

 These are just a few of his many works. Here is a link to an article that discusses more of his contributions to architecture:

 https://www.vienna-unwrapped.com/otto-wagner-vienna/

Modern Applications: