Description
The jewelry of the Wiener Werkstätte blurs the lines between gorgeous ornament and miniature sculpture
The Wiener Werkstätte, or Vienna Workshops, was once founded in 1903. The firm’s artistic cofounders, Josef Hoffmann and Koloman Moser, subscribed to the English Arts and Crafts ideal of exceptionally well-made objects designed by artists and executed by specialized craftsmen. Following the instance of close to contemporaries René Lalique and Louis Comfort Tiffany, Hoffmann and Moser shared the conclusion that jewellery will have to be valued for its artistic merit and no longer simply for its monetary price.
This opulent publication highlights masterpieces created by the Wiener Werkstätte between 1903 and the early 1920s. It features significant pieces by Josef Hoffmann, Koloman Moser, Carl Otto Czeschka and Dagobert Peche, among others. Supplemental materials come with relevant periodicals, design drawings and pictures of prominent clients.