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THE COLLECTION

August Chwala, Vienna

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From the illustrated book

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  • Oskar Kokoschka. Shepherd, Stag and Fox (Hirt, Hirsch und Fuchs). Illustration for the shadow play The Speckled Egg (Das getupfte Ei) (plate 1) from the First Theater Program of Kabarett Fledermaus (Cabaret Fledermaus). 1907
    Shepherd, Stag and Fox (Hirt, Hirsch...
    1907
    Oskar Kokoschka. Shepherd, Stag and Fox (Hirt, Hirsch und Fuchs). Illustration for the shadow play The Speckled Egg (Das getupfte Ei) (plate 1) from the First Theater Program of Kabarett Fledermaus (Cabaret Fledermaus). 1907
  • Berthold Löffler. The Diseuse Marya Delvard (plate 2) from the First Theater Program of Kabarett Fledermaus (Cabaret Fledermaus). 1907
    The Diseuse Marya Delvard (plate 2)...
    1907
    Berthold Löffler. The Diseuse Marya Delvard (plate 2) from the First Theater Program of Kabarett Fledermaus (Cabaret Fledermaus). 1907
  • Fritz Zeymer. The Dancer Gertrude Barrison (plate 3) from the First Theater Program of Kabarett Fledermaus (Cabaret Fledermaus). 1907
    The Dancer Gertrude Barrison (plate...
    1907
    Fritz Zeymer. The Dancer Gertrude Barrison (plate 3) from the First Theater Program of Kabarett Fledermaus (Cabaret Fledermaus). 1907
  • Fritz Zeymer. Illustration for the play Pyramus and Thisbe: A Pumpkin Comedy (Eine Kürbiskomödie) (plate 4) from the First Theater Program of Kabarett Fledermaus (Cabaret Fledermaus). 1907
    Illustration for the play Pyramus and...
    1907
    Fritz Zeymer. Illustration for the play Pyramus and Thisbe: A Pumpkin Comedy (Eine Kürbiskomödie) (plate 4) from the First Theater Program of Kabarett Fledermaus (Cabaret Fledermaus). 1907
  • Carl Otto Czeschka. Front cover from the First Theater Program of Kabarett Fledermaus (Cabaret Fledermaus). 1907
    Front cover from the First Theater...
    1907
    Carl Otto Czeschka. Front cover from the First Theater Program of Kabarett Fledermaus (Cabaret Fledermaus). 1907
  • Carl Otto Czeschka. Back cover from the First Theater Program of Kabarett Fledermaus (Cabaret Fledermaus). 1907
    Back cover from the First Theater...
    1907
    Carl Otto Czeschka. Back cover from the First Theater Program of Kabarett Fledermaus (Cabaret Fledermaus). 1907

About this illustrated book

Heather Hess, German Expressionist Digital Archive Project, German Expressionism: Works from the Collection. 2011.

The program for the first season of the Cabaret Fledermaus in Vienna provides a permanent record of the nightclub's ephemeral entertainments. In October 1907, the Wiener Werkstätte, a cooperative of architects, artists, and designers as well as the preeminent producer of luxury goods and furnishings in the city, opened the nightspot and performing arts space. It was created to dispel boredom with doses of avant-garde theater and poetry readings taken with the latest cocktail creations. As recorded in the program, this mix of high and low culture included a shadow play by the young Expressionist Oskar Kokoschka, music and dance performances, and a parody of a mythological love story.

Designed by Carl Otto Czeschka, this program exemplifies the then-current idea of the Gesamtkunstwerk, or total work of art, in which all components, no matter how humble or disposable, follow the same aesthetic idea. The book's square format, Vienna's favorite symbol of modernity, mirrored the dominant decorative motif throughout the cabaret, while Czeschka's playful marginal decorations suggested the increasingly ornamental style that took hold at the Werkstätte at this time. The flat, stylized patterning of the four illustrations contributed by Oskar Kokoschka, Berthold Löffler, and Fritz Zeymer show the widespread influence of folk sources and the rejection of traditional academic standards in modern Viennese art.

Various Artists with Fritz Zeymer (Austrian, 1886–1940), Berthold Löffler (Austrian, 1874–1960), Oskar Kokoschka (Austrian, 1886–1980), Carl Otto Czeschka (Austrian, 1878–1960)

The Illustrated Book

Kabarett Fledermaus (Cabaret Fledermaus)

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Author:
Peter Altenberg(Prologue)
Date:
1907
Medium:
Theater program with six line block reproductions (including front and back cover)
Dimensions:
page (each): 9 5/8 x 9 1/4" (24.5 x 23.5 cm); overall: 9 5/8 x 9 1/4 x 1/16" (24.4 x 23.5 x 0.2 cm)
Paper:
Cream, smooth, laid.
Publisher:
Wiener Werkstätte, Vienna
Printer:
August Chwala, Vienna
Edition:
unknown
Credit Line:
Purchased with funds given by Mrs. Henry I. Cobb and Mrs. Melville Wakeman Hall
MoMA Number:
709.1993.1-6
Themes:
City Life, Dance & Leisure
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