Josef Frank

Born in Austria, Josef Frank studied architecture at the Vienna Polytechnic Institute. From 1919 to 1927 he worked as a teacher at the Applied Art School in Vienna. From 1925 to 1934 he managed with Oskar Wlach and Oskar Strnad an interior design company, Haus & Garden. He had many connections with the artistic movement Wiener Werkstatte. Attracted both to modern architecture and neo-classical pieces of furniture, Frank was influenced by a wide variety of styles including Chippendale, the Italian Renaissance, Asian and central European art. In 1933 he started designing for Svenskt Tenn. In 1935 he moved to Stockholm to serve as the chief designer of the company. There, very influenced by the Arts and Craft movement, he started designing textiles and played an important role in forging what is known as Scandinavian Modern design. Frank called for a more humane modernism, one that responded to people's everyday needs, one that left room for both sentimentality and historical influences. Looking at his designs one has the impression that his fabrics are timeless.