Wotruba, An Important Austrian Sculptor

By Billie Ann Lopez   Wotruba b. April 23, 1907, Vienna d. Aug. 25, 1975, Vienna The Church of the Holy Trinity on Georgenberg (Kirche zur Heiligsten Dreifaltigkeit auf dem Georgen berg) in the Twenty-third District was built in 1974-76, the abstract vision of the Austrian sculptor, Fritz Wotruba, found its expression in 152 massive blocks of concrete interspersed with large panes of clear glass which were transformed into a church. Wotruba, who died before his design became a reality, traced his vision to a long-ago visit to Chartres. For Wotruba, Chartres embodied the spirit of Europe and became the measure of his own work. Wotruba, who was primarily a sculptor, worked in collaboration with the Austrian architect Fritz G. Mayr. After Wotruba's death, it was Mayr who carried the project through to its completion. The church startles at first glance, resembling more an enlarged piece of abstract sculpture. It provides visitors with the unique opportunity to enter into an art form more often viewed on a much smaller scale. The church, which borders the Vienna Woods, is 30 meters long, 22 meters wide, and 15.5 meters high. The site once housed barracks used by the German Wehrmacht during the Third Reich. Today the Kirche zur Heiligsten Dreifaltigkeit auf dem Georgenberg looks down on Vienna and far into the Marchfeld through a profusion of trees and shrubbery - a fitting blend of nature's beauty and one man's vision of a temple to God in today's modern world. The Heiligsten Dreifaltigkeit Church is located on Rysergasse/Georgsgasse in the Twenty-Third District. For those of you who would like to visit some of Wotruba's sculptures, the following list of sites will help you get started: Second District - Dianabad (on the lawn) Fifth District - Heu-und Strohmarkt, Baugruppe VI (above the underpass), Reinprechtsdorfer StraBe 1-3 Eighth District - Friedrich-SchmidtPlatz 6 (on the lawn) Fifteenth District - Vogelweidplatz, Stadthalle (next to the lawn) Nineteen District - Silbergasse -Nu13waldgasse Twenty-second District - Gänsehäufel (Linnegasse)

More About Him From Artcult.Com

Fritz Wotruba worn born in Vienna in 1907 and started to study engraving at 14. It was only in 1925 that he decided to become a sculptor studying in the studio of Anton Hanak. Wotruba worked alone from 1929 while Josef Hoffmann, the founder of the Wiener Werkstätte, showed a great interest in his works. He was then considered as a talented technician and took part in many exhibitions, notably in 1929 in Paris where his «Male Torso» much impressed Maillol who found it hard to believe that such work had been produced by a 22-year-old artist. His "Crouching Man" of 1931, now in the Museum of Vienna, contributed to establish his fame. He showed his works in 1931 in Essen an in Zurich and then in Basel in 1942 and in Bern in 1943. Following the annexation of Austria by Germany in 1938, Wotruba sought refuge in Switzerland and lived in Basel and in Bern. The sculptures he produced during his Swiss exile marked a return to some archaic precision in a Roman style. Back in Vienna in 1945, he was elected as member of the Academy of Fine Arts and took part in several major international exhibitions, notably in Venice in 1945 and in 1950, in Paris from 1953, in Kassel in 1959 and 1964. He also exhibited his works at the Museum of Modern Art of Paris in 1945 the year he decided to start again from zero however keeping the theme of the human body and organising volumes for themselves in order to keep the essence of the stone material in what he called «the human cathedrals» such as the «Feminine Rock» from 1947-48 now in the Middelheim Park Museum of Antwerp or «the big reclining form» of 1951. Balancing between figurative and abstract art Wotruba produced rigid or soft cylindric forms before adopting a more rigorous constructive style. Several of his works can be seen in various squares and cemeteries of Vienna. He died in 1975. Source: http://www.artcult.com/wotruba.html

About the Author

Billie Ann Lopez was an American freelance writer, born and raised in Kansas. For many years she called Vienna, the city she loved, home. Billie Ann's articles tell you about the legends, places in Austria not often on the tourist maps and subjects close to her heart. Informative, descriptive and interesting she acquainted you with her Austria. Billie Ann Lopez passed away September 13th, 2003. She enriched our lives through her friendship, caring and writings. Billie Ann, you are greatly missed. Silvia McDonald

©Virtual Vienna Net 1998-2005