Hans Hollein (30 March 1934 – 24 April 2014) was an Austrian

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

and

designer A designer is a person who plans the form or structure of something before it is made, by preparing drawings or plans. In practice, anyone who creates tangible or intangible objects, products, processes, laws, games, graphics, services, or exper ...

"Architekt Hans Hollein gestorben"
, in ''Frankfurter Rundshau'', 24 April 2014 and key figure of

postmodern architecture Postmodern architecture is a style or movement which emerged in the 1960s as a reaction against the austerity, formality, and lack of variety of modern architecture, particularly in the International Style (architecture), international style adv ...

. Some of his most notable works are the

Haas House The Haas House is a building in Vienna, Austria, at the Stock-im-Eisen-Platz. Designed by the Austrian architect Hans Hollein, it is a building in the postmodernist style and was completed in 1990. The building is located at the site of the fo ...

and the Albertina extension in the inner city of

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

Biography

Hollein was born in

, and graduated in 1956 from the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna,Czaja, Wojciech
"Architekt Hans Hollein gestorben"
in ''Der Standard'', 24 April 2014 where he studied in the master class of

Clemens Holzmeister Clemens Holzmeister (27 March 1886 – 12 June 1983) was a prominent Austrian architect and stage designer of the early twentieth century. The Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, Austrian Academy of Fine Arts listed his life's work as containing 673 pro ...

.Jaeger, Falk
"Zum Tod von Hans Hollein: Spiel und Form"
in ''Der Tagesspiegel'', 24 April 2014 During 1959 he attended the

Illinois Institute of Technology The Illinois Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Illinois Tech and IIT, is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Tracing its history to 1890, the present name was adopted upon the m ...

and then in 1960, the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...

, where he completed his Master of Architecture degree. During these years he met

Mies van der Rohe Ludwig Mies van der Rohe ( ; ; born Maria Ludwig Michael Mies; March 27, 1886August 17, 1969) was a German-American architect, academic, and interior designer. He was commonly referred to as Mies, his surname. He is regarded as one of the pionee ...

Frank Lloyd Wright Frank Lloyd Wright Sr. (June 8, 1867 – April 9, 1959) was an American architect, designer, writer, and educator. He designed List of Frank Lloyd Wright works, more than 1,000 structures over a creative period of 70 years. Wright played a key ...

and

Richard Neutra Richard Joseph Neutra ( ; 8 April 1892 – 16 April 1970) was an Austrian-American architect. Living and building for most of his career in Southern California, he came to be considered a prominent and important modernist architect. His most ...

.The Hyatt Foundation
"Hans Hollein Biography"
retrieved 24 April 2014 In 1963 he exhibited, ''Architecture'', along with Walter Pichler at Galerie nächst St. Stephan in St Stephen Vienna, highlighting their ideas for

utopian architecture Utopian architecture is architecture inspired by utopianism. Examples for such an architecture are Phalanstère, Arcology and Garden Cities. Earthships are realizations of the utopia of sustainable living and autonomous housing. Also, the concep ...

. Afterwards, he worked for various architectural firms in

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

and the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

before returning to Vienna, founding his own office in 1964. Hollein's early works were small scale designs, such as the Retti candle shop in Vienna, which notably featured a facade constructed of anodized aluminum. In 1972, Hollein designed a series of glasses for the American Optical Corps. Hollein was a guest professor at

Washington University in St. Louis Washington University in St. Louis (WashU) is a private research university in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Founded in 1853 by a group of civic leaders and named for George Washington, the university spans 355 acres across its Danforth ...

on two separate occasions, the first being 1963–64 and the second in 1966. During this period he was also a visiting professor at the Yale School of Architecture. He was a professor at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf between 1967 and 1976, after which he became a professor at the University of Applied Arts Vienna.Hans Hollein
"About"
retrieved 24 April 2014 Hollein worked mainly as an architect but also established himself as a designer through his work for the Memphis Group and the Alessi Company. Additionally, he staged various exhibitions, including for the

Venice Biennale The Venice Biennale ( ; ) is an international cultural exhibition hosted annually in Venice, Italy. There are two main components of the festival, known as the Art Biennale () and the Venice Biennale of Architecture, Architecture Biennale (), ...

. In 1980 he designed the stage for a production of

Arthur Schnitzler Arthur Schnitzler (15 May 1862 – 21 October 1931) was an Austrian author and dramatist. He is considered one of the most significant representatives of Viennese Modernism. Schnitzler’s works, which include psychological dramas and narratives ...

's drama ''Komödie der Verführung'' (''Comedy of Seduction'') at Vienna's

Burgtheater The Burgtheater (; literally: "Castle Theater" but alternatively translated as "(Imperial) Court Theater", originally known as '' K.K. Theater an der Burg'', then until 1918 as the ''K.K. Hofburgtheater'', is the national theater of Austria in ...

. In 1985 Hollein was awarded the

Pritzker Prize The Pritzker Architecture Prize is an international award presented annually "to honor a living architect or architects whose built work demonstrates a combination of those qualities of talent, vision and commitment which has produced consisten ...

. Hollein achieved international fame with his winning competition designs for the Abteiberg Museum in Mönchengladbach (1972–82) and an underground Guggenheim Museum branch in Salzburg (1989). The later hasn't been built, but his ideas for an underground museum still materialised in the Vulcania European Centre of Vulcanology in Auvergne in France (1997–2002). Starting from the late 1990s, Hollein designed large-scale projects, including bank headquarters in Lichtenstein, Spain and Peru. Starting from 2010 he worked with Ulf Kotz and Christoph Monschein at the Hans Hollein & Partner ZT GmbH. Hollein died on 24 April 2014 in Vienna, after a long illness, at the age of 80. His son Max Hollein is the Director of the

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art, colloquially referred to as the Met, is an Encyclopedic museum, encyclopedic art museum in New York City. By floor area, it is the List of largest museums, third-largest museum in the world and the List of larg ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. Previously he was Director and CEO of the

Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco (FAMSF), comprising the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park and the Legion of Honor in Lincoln Park, is the largest public arts institution in the city of San Francisco. FAMSF's combined attendance was 1,1 ...

, the umbrella organization of the de Young Museum and Legion of Honor Museum. He is the former Director of the Städel Museum, the Liebieghaus and the Schirn Kunsthalle in

Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...

, Germany.

Main works

*1964–65: Retti candle shop,

, Austria *1967–69: Feigen Gallery, New York, USA *1972–74: Schullin Jewellery shop, Vienna *1972–82: Abteiberg Museum Mönchengladbach *1977–78: Glass and Ceramics house,

Teheran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District. With a population of around 9.8 million in the city as of 2025, ...

, Iran *1979–90: Ganztagsschule, Vienna *1983–85: Rauchstrasse apartments in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

, part of the International Building Exhibition *1985–90: Haas-Haus in Vienna, Austria *1987–91: Museum für Moderne Kunst in Frankfurt am Main, Germany *1989: Guggenheim ('Museum im Mönchsberg'), Salzburg, Austria (unbuilt) *1992–2002: Niederösterreichisches Landesmuseum, St. Pölten, Austria *1994–2000: Generali Media Tower

Donaukanal The Donaukanal (, ''Danube Canal'') is a former arm of the river Danube, now regulated as a water channel (since 1598), within the city of Vienna, Austria. It is long and, unlike the Danube itself, it borders Vienna's city centre, Innere St ...

, Vienna, Austria *1996–2001: Austrian Embassy in

, Germany *1996–2000: Interbank Headquarters,

Lima Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 as the Ciudad de los Reyes (, Spanish for "City of Biblical Magi, Kings"), is the capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rive ...

, Peru *1997–2002: Centrum Bank in

Vaduz Vaduz (; or ; High Alemannic pronunciation: [])Hans Stricker, Toni Banzer, Herbert Hilbe: ''Liechtensteiner Namenbuch. Die Orts- und Flurnamen des Fürstentums Liechtenstein.'' Band 2: ''Die Namen der Gemeinden Triesenberg, Vaduz, Schaan.'' ...

, Liechtenstein, in collaboration with Bargetze+Partner *1997–2002: Vulcania – European Centre of Vulcanology in Auvergne, France *2001–03: Albertina Museum extension, Vienna, Austria *2004–08: Hilton hotel, Vienna, Austria *2004–07: Sea Mio, Apartment-Towers,

Taipei , nickname = The City of Azaleas , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Taiwan#Asia#Pacific Ocean#Earth , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country ...

, Taiwan *2006–11: Pezet 515,

, Peru *2011–2013: Kaohsiung Apartments , Gate to the Muesum,

Kaohsiung Kaohsiung, officially Kaohsiung City, is a special municipality located in southern Taiwan. It ranges from the coastal urban center to the rural Yushan Range with an area of . Kaohsiung City has a population of approximately 2.73 million p ...

, Taiwan Mönchengladbach museum.jpg, Abteiberg Museum, Mönchengladbach, Germany, 1972–82 Wien - Haas-Haus (3).JPG, Haas-Haus in Vienna, 1985–90 Museum fuer Moderne Kunst Portalseite.jpg, Museum für Moderne Kunst, Frankfurt am Main, 1983–91 Be Austrian Embassy 01.JPG, Austrian Embassy in

, 1996-2001 Albertina 1.JPG, Soravia-Wing of the Albertina, Vienna, 2001–03 Käfer ZKM GBA.jpg, Car Building, Center for Art and Media, Karlsruhe, Germany, 2011

Prizes

*R. S. Reynolds Memorial Award endowed by the

American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C. AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach progr ...

(1966 and 1984) *Prize for Architecture of the City of Vienna, (1974) * Grand Austrian State Prize for Architecture (1983) *

Pritzker Architecture Prize The Pritzker Architecture Prize is an international award presented annually "to honor a living architect or architects whose built work demonstrates a combination of those qualities of talent, vision and commitment which has produced consisten ...

(1985) *

Austrian Decoration for Science and Art The Austrian Decoration for Science and Art () is a state decoration of the Republic of Austria and forms part of the Orders, decorations, and medals of Austria, Austrian national honours system. History The "Austrian Decoration for Science a ...

(1990) *Gold Decoration for Services to Vienna (1994)Austrian Ministry for Education and Women
"Ein Fest für Hans Hollein"
31 March 2009 *Grand Merit Cross of the

Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (, or , BVO) is the highest state decoration, federal decoration of the Federal Republic of Germany. It may be awarded for any field of endeavor. It was created by the first List of president ...

(1997) *Officer of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

(France, 2003) *Honorary Medal of the Austrian capital Vienna in Gold (2004)Universalmuseum Joanneum
"Hans Hollein: Biografie"
retrieved 26 April 2014 * Grand Decoration of Honour in Gold for Services to the Republic of Austria (2009) *Golden Rathausmann (2009)

References

External links

*
Pritzker Prize gallery
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hollein, Hans 1934 births 2014 deaths Architects from Vienna Illinois Institute of Technology alumni Members of the European Academy of Sciences and Arts Postmodern architects Academy of Fine Arts Vienna alumni Academic staff of Kunstakademie Düsseldorf Pritzker Architecture Prize winners Commanders Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Honorary Fellows of the American Institute of Architects Recipients of the Austrian Decoration for Science and Art Recipients of the Grand Austrian State Prize Officers of the Legion of Honour Recipients of the Grand Decoration for Services to the Republic of Austria UC Berkeley College of Environmental Design alumni