Design, Performance, and Media in Modern Vienna

Viennese Modernism is typically associated with the architectural and design style known as Jugendstil. Famous architects such as Otto Wagner, Josef Hoffmann, and Adolf Loos designed buildings and interiors that catered to the needs of modern men and women. They incorporated medical considerations and contemporary fashion trends into their designs. Two leading trends emerged: the Secessionist movement of Hoffmann and the artist Gustav Klimt, and the Expressionist movement of Loos and the artist Oskar Kokoschka. The former promoted the idea of a total-art-work and the beautification of individuals, while the latter encouraged a psychological understanding of people as members of a community. Women professionals such as art critic Berta Zuckerkandl, artist Broncia Koller-Pinell, photographer Madame d'Ora, and designer Fanny Harlfinger-Zacucka played critical roles in broadening the representation of national, feminist, psychological, and decorative aspects of Viennese modernism. In this course, we will explore how leading architects, designers, journalists, and dancers fostered the fruitful relationship between design, performance, and media in early twentieth-century Vienna. We will explore how these professionals approached social class, consumerism, avant-garde dance, and scientific discourse. Additionally, we will examine the cultural networks of these protagonists and how their works represent the influence of Western modernist and Orientalist artistic trends.

The course will include the following topics:

• Vienna’s Imperial Ringstrasse and its cultural heritage
• The Viennese Secession: The cultures of modernism and Jugendstil art and architecture
• Design in the service of beauty: Josef Hoffmann and the Wiener Werkstätte
• Design in the service of the client: Adolf Loos: cultural criticism and modern architecture and design
• Vienna’s Women’s Modernity: patrons, photographers, artists and designers
• Mass media, consumerism, and entertainment in Vienna 1900
• Design and Orientalism: Colonialist fantasies in art and advertising
• Avant-Garde Dance Performances in Vienna 1900

 

Requirements: Attendance and participation in class discussion constitute 25%, presentations 25%, and a written final paper 50% of the grade.