Incredible. The silver teapot by Hoffmann achieved almost 150,000€ in the auction on 1 Dec and also other items of the Austrian designer were above the estimated price. Thus the carpet, which he designed 1906 for the country house of the family Primavesi, gained 56,260 Euro. Even the unusual cake shovel was sold for 11,250€ – twice as much as originally estimated. These results are further evidence that his decorative luxury items for the Wiener Werkstätte are not only of high interest but are also highly regarded. This trend has already been apparent in the Dorotheum for over 10 years. Josef Hoffmann is hot and popular.
Hoffmann’s name is inseparably combined with the term “Gesamtkunstwerk” and the Wiener Werkstätte. Inspired by the Arts & Crafts movement, Josef Hoffmann created countless designs and luxury products, in close cooperation with qualified craftsmen for over three decades. As a co-founder of the Vienna Secession he was a leading figure of the constructive Art Nouveau. As an architect he focused not only on geometry and, above all, the square, but also floral and organic elements were part of his ornaments, whether in jewellery, textile design or in his graphic works.
Silver teapot, designed in 1905. Executed by the Wiener Werkstätte. Sold for €149,900
Carpet from the living room of the Primavesi family country house, 1914. Executed by Johann Backhausen & Söhne. Sold for €56.250.
Jardinière, 1910. Executed by the Wiener Werkstätte. Sold for €40,000
Cake server from the “Round model” series, 1907. Made by Wiener Werkstätte, sold for €11,250.