Else Unger was an Austrian designer of the decorative arts. Unger was connected to the

Vienna Secession The Vienna Secession (german: Wiener Secession; also known as ''the Union of Austrian Artists'', or ''Vereinigung Bildender Künstler Österreichs'') is an art movement, closely related to Art Nouveau, that was formed in 1897 by a group of Austr ...

movement.

Education

Unger was a student of the

Kunstgewerbeschule A Kunstgewerbeschule (English: ''School of Arts and Crafts'' or S''chool of Applied Arts'') was a type of vocational arts school that existed in German-speaking countries from the mid-19th century. The term Werkkunstschule was also used for thes ...

Wein (School of Applied Arts, Austria).

Work

A member of the

Wiener Werkstätte The Wiener Werkstätte (engl.: ''Vienna Workshop''), established in 1903 by the graphic designer and painter Koloman Moser, the architect Josef Hoffmann and the patron Fritz Waerndorfer, was a productive association in Vienna, Austria that b ...

, Unger designed many decorative objects, including fabric, vases, furniture. Unger made a splash at the Exposition Universelle (1900) with a secretary desk carved with a

hydrangea ''Hydrangea'', () commonly named the hortensia, is a genus of over 75 species of flowering plants native to Asia and the Americas. By far the greatest species diversity is in eastern Asia, notably China, Korea, and Japan. Most are shrubs tall, ...

motif. This piece in particular brought together both a curved style and botanical patterns that were associated with Secessionist designs. Art critic Ludwig Hevesi noted that the piece's motif was "taken from less frequently tread areas of botany." Unger's carved desk fit nicely with the Secession motto "Ver Sacrum" (Sacred Spring). Unger was a part of a larger group of

Wein students participating in the exhibition who gained critical recognition of their skill with objects and fabrics deemed appropriate for the home. Unger, along with her colleagues Jutta Sicka and Marietta Peyfuss, contributed fabric embroidery designs to the magazine ''Wiener Mode;'' their contributions largely worked to elevate such a handicrafts section in a magazine to a higher art form. The magazine published the designs in the "Handarbiet" section, so that at-home readers could reproduce them. Unger was a founding member, along with

Gisela Falke von Lilienstein Gisela Falke Von Lilienstein (born 1871; death date unknown) was an Austrian designer who designed ceramics, glassware, jewelry, lighting, and furniture for the Wiener Werkstätte. Her work was exhibited in Vienna Secessionist exhibitions and inter ...

and

Josef Hoffmann Josef Hoffmann (15 December 1870 – 7 May 1956) was an Austrian- Moravian architect and designer. He was among the founders of Vienna Secession and co-establisher of the Wiener Werkstätte. His most famous architectural work is the Stoclet Pa ...

, and others, of the Wiener Kunst im Hause (Viennese Art in the Home), an exhibiting group, established in 1901. During the winter of 1901–1902, the group showcased three fully furnished interiors — a bedroom, a men's room, a dining room — to show that rooms could be well-designed on a budget. The group's women artists produced the decorative objects, including the rugs, linens, porcelain, and silver; these objects received more critical attention than the items made by the men of the group. Wiener Kunst im Hause exhibited in other artistically styled rooms in different periodicals like the style magazine ''Das'' ''Interieur'' and the feminist periodical ''Dokumente der Frauen'' (co-founded by Marie Lang.) Examples of Unger's work are held at the

Museum of Applied Arts, Vienna The MAK – Museum of Applied Arts (German: ''Museum für angewandte Kunst'') is an arts and crafts museum located at Stubenring 5 in Vienna's 1st district Innere Stadt. Besides its traditional orientation towards arts and crafts and design, the mu ...

References

External links

Else Unger's work at the Museum of Applied Arts, Vienna.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Unger, Else Members of the Vienna Secession Austrian designers Embroidery designers