Collection
Production
- design: Henry van de Velde, Antwerp, 1898
- execution: Anonym, Brussels, 1898
Material | Technique
- Eschenholz,
- z.T. geschnitzt,
- hochglanz politiert; Eichenholz,
- naturbelassen; Messing,
Measurements
- height: 98 cm
- width: 283 cm
- depth: 103 cm
Inventory number
- H 2039
Acquisition
- dedication, 1954
Department
- Furniture and Woodwork Collection
Inscriptions
- label: W s Nr. Oppenheim
Description
-
The works and theoretical writings of Flemish architect and designer Henry van de Velde made him one of the most important artists of the overall Art Nouveau movement and also had a lasting influence on Vienna’s “artistic spring”. Van de Velde’s designs
are based above all on the deliberate interplay of curving lines and empty spaces; his statement, “A line is a force”, from his Kunstgewerbliche Laienpredigten [Arts and Crafts Sermons by a Lay Preacher] of 1902 points to a consistent quality of his entire design oeuvre. Van de Velde presented this desk to the public in 1900 at the 8th exhibition of the Vienna Secession. Although its design differs greatly from that of Viennese furniture from the same period, it is still based on similar ideals: the unity of form and function. The vertical pieces, being constructive elements, are ornamentally shaped—making ornamentation an integral and explanatory component of the overall construction.
(Hackenschmidt, Sebastian)
Last update
- 06.12.2024
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