Alexander Gault A46 527S Urbanism since 1850 February 09, 2017 Mumford, TA Kaety Prentice Otto Wagner’s Role in Vienna The late 19th century was a time of transformation in Austria with the break from old rule and the horizon of the secessionist movement. Otto Wagner made a profound effect on the urban environment during this time between the collapse of the monarchy, the rise of the leftist, before WWI. Through economic/ social forces, new technologies, urban thinking and a pride of place, Otto Wagner spearheaded a transformation of the way citizens used cities. With less strength going the monarchy and more to the proletariat a shifting liberal trend in art, architecture and design was taking place. The most important buildings were no longer Churces, palaces but rather constitutional institutions that innovated arts and science. “The parliament, the Rathaus, the Burg theater and the Univeristy in the new city was developed on a broad belt of land formerly occupied by massive fortifications” (Borsi, 14) These new institutions were symbols of a shifting liberal agenda and many of them were influenced by Otto Wagner’s artistic hand or theoretical principles. “Political liberalism introduced a world ruled by peace and law against tradition” (Borsi, 14) So Otto Wagners, and his colleagues, set out to create new designs based off these principles they believed were better. The first proof of a shifting design ideology occurred when Otto Wagner set out to physically and metaphorically bridge the gap between architect and engineer. Wagner was trained as an artist and craftsman who believed strongly in these principles. But he also began to acknowlege the viewpoint of the engineer, “who responded only to a structural and economic calculations and therefore ‘spoke a language unsympathetic to man.”’ (Mallgrave, 120) This was important because it is a prelude to when designers begin to strip away ornament and rely on the material properties only. “Wagner demanded in 1982 that the design of buildings for the rail lines no longer be entrusted to the engineer but be turned over to the artist. Wagner was subsequently appointed chief architectect of the Vienna Stadtbahn.” (Mallgrave, 121) First, the opportunity for a transportation network was only available due to the gap left from the Ringstrase, so this largely public commission was now being entrusted with an artist which reinforced the shifting liberal ideas. Wagner was changing what functional design had been in
the past because the metropolis was expanding and the new design demanded a response to the public ideas of the time. Wagner designed the Karlsplatz Station, the Court Pavilion in Hietzing, Stadtpark and Rossauer Lande. In addition to his rail lines, there are examples of Otto Wagner changing the urban environment through his canal stations. The Control Building on the lock of the Danube Canal was built from 1904-1908. He was merging material properites with aesthetic beauty which was becomes the basis for modernism down the line. The external façade satisfies the weatherproofing requirement while creating a unique building in appearance. It was again thanks to the metropolis’ need for expansion beyond the walls that there were infrastructure commissions available. He built in the spirit of the citizens at that time. It was also thanks to new buildings materials such as sheet metal and glass that Otto Wagner could start to rethink the fundamental aspects of architecture and design. The most common example of using a reduction of materials while retaining functionalism is the Postal Savings Bank built form 1902-1906. The columns supporting the canopy are made from aluminum creating a light slender effect that shows how architecture can be less heavy. The columns function fine while also making a type of statement. Wagner still decorates the building (not all ornament had been stripped from the design vocabulary yet) but they are made of aluminum. The statues placed atop the building are a sort of neo-futuristic figures. The exterior façade is cladding (a new idea in engineering) of aluminum sheets and the supporting hardware (rivets) become the ornament. So he is playing with structure as sculpture and evoking others to do the same. “It reflected a functional logic that eliminated almost all traditional forms and it introduced elements that were striking in their modernity and were to become classics of modern architecture.” (Borsi, 62). Vienna was thriving during this period (late 19th/early 20th c) and the period of expansion seemed infinite. The large number of jobs created a strong economy and large purchasing power. Urban development continued to accelerate, including whole building blocks and modifications of the street network. Otto Wagner did more to improve the urban environment than challenging materials and buildings. He took the opportunity to examine how this infrastructure would look in the future too. Otto Wagner presented his model plan for the infinitely expandable city comprising of “an extendable net of semi-autonomous districts. He resolutely rejected the green
belt created in 1905, the last ring-shaped spatial configuration, as an obstacle to growth.” (Sarnitz, 21) In this proposal Wagner imagined a city of 4 million inhabitants and if that number grew this new plan could accommodate it. He disliked the Ringstrasse because he thought the historic city center was not linked to the surrounding suburbs. Wagner saw the streets as vast cuts through the urban fabric stretching far into the distance. Otto Wagner’s strongest belief could possibly be his pride of place. With his designs, he strived to embody the Viennese culture. The struggle between parliamentary government and liberal life was prevelant throughout the city and so he knew his buildings were a declaration about the performance of architecture in culture. Before the social turmoil of Nazi Germany there was a magical moment when the images, sights and sounds created by various artists was gaining momentum. Started informally and later gaining popularity this group was titled the Secessionists. This avant-garde movement represented Austria as a link between politics and art. Lingusitics, mathematics and scientific logic were all challenged. Gustav Klimt started decorating the city’s most important buildings. Otto Wagner slightly preluded the Secessionist movement. I believe he inspired a group of makers and thinkers to look at everything with the perspective of a creative scholar and not as a person limited to a monarch. The Secessionists began using his principles of engineering and material strength to begin simplifying each of their own crafts. “People became obsessed with stripping, slimming down and removing everything that hindered or concealed simplicity. Adolf Loos, built to make emptiness visible. The composers of the second Viennese school invented music that was already starting to revolve around the concept of silence. Under Ludwig Wittgenstein, philosophy discovered the boundaries of language, and next to them, silence.” (BubnovaÌ, 12) It was this attitude of reduction that the entire modernist movement is founded on. Otto Wagner, through his bold, daring and challenging work had an influence that stretched past Vienna, to the rest of Europe and beyond. He combined forces of architecture and engineering and monarchs and proletariats. His manifesto guided the liberation of forms and symbols. Emotions were related to logic in a new and creative way which left an impact on the urban environment and on the rest of society.
Works Cited Borsi, Franco, and Ezio Godoli. Vienna 1900: Architecture and Design. New York: Rizzoli, 1986. Print. BubnovaÌ, Jaroslava. Vienna Secession: 1898-1998: The Century of Artistic Freedom. Munich: Prestel, 1998. Print. Mallgrave, Harry Francis. Otto Wagner Reflections on the Raiment of Modernity. University of Chicago Press, 1993. Print Oechslin, Werner, and Lynnette Widder. Otto Wagner, Adolf Loos, and the Road to Modern Architecture. Cambridge, U.K.: Cambridge UP, 2002. Print. Sarnitz, August, and Renate Banik-Schweitzer. Architecture in Vienna. Wien: Springer, 1998. Print. Sarnitz, August. Architecture Vienna: 700 Buildings. Wien: Springer, 2008. Print. Schezen, Roberto, Adolf Loos, and Joseph Rosa. Adolf Loos: Architecture 1903-1932. New York: Monacelli, 1996. Print. Topp, Leslie. Architecture and Truth in Fin-de-sieÌ€ cle Vienna. Cambridge, U.K.: Cambridge UP, 2004. Print.