Skip to main content

Michael Powolny

Austrian, 1871-1954

As both a designer and a teacher, the Austrian ceramicist and glassware designer Michael Powolny was an important figure in the development of modernist aesthetics in Vienna at the turn of the 20th century. His romantic sculptural pottery figures embrace the lush, dynamic stylings of Gustav Klimt and other progressive artists, while his functional pieces — such as glass bowls and vases — employ the simple linear and geometric ornamentation that marked the work of Josef Hoffmann and other members of the Wiener Werkstätte community of designers and craftsmen.

     Powolny received classical training in ceramics from his father, a potter, and at the Vienna School of Applied Arts, but later joined in the modernizing movement in the Austrian arts at the close of the 19th century. In 1897, Klimt, Hoffman, Koloman Moser and other artists and architects founded the Vienna Secession, a group that fought for freedom of expression against the city’s tradition-bound arts establishment. Powolny’s work reflects the changing times. He used classical figures in his ceramics — female nudes, cherubs — yet would dress them in modern ornament such as garlands of abstract, geometric flowers. Pieces from Powolny’s ceramics company were sold through the Wiener Werkstätte (Viennese Workshops) founded by Hoffmann and Moser, and Hoffman later hired Powolny to create ceramic ornamentation for his architectural masterpiece, the Palais Stoclet in Brussels.

     Powolny would go on to design glassware that combines elegant, tapering forms with precise linear decoration. His most influential work may have come as a professor at the School of Applied Arts, where he taught both Lucie Rie, the great Austrian-British modernist ceramicist, and the American potter Viktor Schreckengost, creator of the “Jazz Bowl,” an icon of the Streamline Moderne design. As you will see from the items on offer, Michael Powolny’s works have a double appeal: in their sprightly, endearing forms and as artifacts that document a period of signal change in the history of modern arts and crafts.

Michael Powolny Four Seasons Putti Sculpture, Glazed Ceramic, 1906
Michael Powolny Four Seasons Putti Sculpture, Glazed Ceramic, 1906

Michael Powolny Four Seasons Putti Sculpture, Glazed Ceramic, 1906

By Wiener Keramik Werkstätte, Michael Powolny

Located in Klosterneuburg, AT

four seasons Putti, Michael Powolny, Wiener Keramik, ca. 1906 Michael Powolny's renowned design is one of the most famous example of Jugendstil ceramics. They were produced by Wiene...

Category

Early 1900s Austrian Jugendstil Antique Michael Powolny

Materials

Ceramic

Michael Powolny Rare Pottery Pair Sparrows Figure c.1907
Michael Powolny Rare Pottery Pair Sparrows Figure c.1907

Michael Powolny Rare Pottery Pair Sparrows Figure c.1907

By Michael Powolny

Located in Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire

A delightful and rare Austrian Wiener Keramik pair of pottery sparrows by renowned sculptor and ceramicist Michael Powolny (Austrian, 1871-1954) and dating from around 1907. Michael...

Category

Early 1900s Austrian Art Nouveau Antique Michael Powolny

Materials

Pottery

Bohemian Loetz Red Tango Glass Vase w. Black Accents by Michael Powolny
Bohemian Loetz Red Tango Glass Vase w. Black Accents by Michael Powolny

Bohemian Loetz Red Tango Glass Vase w. Black Accents by Michael Powolny

By Loetz Glass, Michael Powolny

Located in Bad Säckingen, DE

This antique Art Nouveau art glass vase by Michael Powolny for Loetz is an impressive and highly sought-after art piece from the early 20th cen...

Category

1910s Austrian Vienna Secession Vintage Michael Powolny

Materials

Glass, Art Glass, Blown Glass

'Spring', Putto With Flowers, by Michael Powolny, Vienna Ceramics, 1910-1912
'Spring', Putto With Flowers, by Michael Powolny, Vienna Ceramics, 1910-1912

'Spring', Putto With Flowers, by Michael Powolny, Vienna Ceramics, 1910-1912

By Michael Powolny

Located in Vienna, AT

Excellent and rare Art Nouveau ceramic piece from a series of the four seasons: Naked putto in a wide striding position, his blond head tilted to the left and holding a cascade of fl...

Category

1910s Austrian Art Nouveau Vintage Michael Powolny

Materials

Ceramic

Michael Powolny Art Nouveau glass footed bowl for Loetz/Bohemian glass Czech.
Michael Powolny Art Nouveau glass footed bowl for Loetz/Bohemian glass Czech.

Michael Powolny Art Nouveau glass footed bowl for Loetz/Bohemian glass Czech.

By Bohemia Crystal, Michael Powolny

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Beautiful solid green glass and dark blue rim footed bowl . Traditional style for Michael Powolny .

Category

Early 20th Century Czech Art Nouveau Michael Powolny

Materials

Glass

Ceramic 'Autumn' Putto by Michael Powolny for Gmundner Keramische Werkstatte
Ceramic 'Autumn' Putto by Michael Powolny for Gmundner Keramische Werkstatte

Ceramic 'Autumn' Putto by Michael Powolny for Gmundner Keramische Werkstatte

By Michael Powolny

Located in Brisbane, QLD

A large and rare ceramic monochromatic putto holding grapes (Autumn from "The Four Seasons") by Austrian designer Michael Powolny for Gmundner Keramische Werkstatte. First designed b...

Category

1910s Austrian Vienna Secession Vintage Michael Powolny

Materials

Ceramic

'Donauweibchen', Danube Mermaid Box, Michael Powolny, Vienna Ceramics, 1910-1912
'Donauweibchen', Danube Mermaid Box, Michael Powolny, Vienna Ceramics, 1910-1912

'Donauweibchen', Danube Mermaid Box, Michael Powolny, Vienna Ceramics, 1910-1912

By Michael Powolny

Located in Vienna, AT

Oval, straight-sided lidded box on four ball feet, with a slightly domed lid featuring a fully sculpted group of figures: the naked 'Danube Maiden', the legendary Danube mermaid, emb...

Category

1910s Austrian Art Nouveau Vintage Michael Powolny

Materials

Ceramic

Original and Unique Ceramic Fountain by Otto Prutscher and Michael Powolny, 1914
Original and Unique Ceramic Fountain by Otto Prutscher and Michael Powolny, 1914

Original and Unique Ceramic Fountain by Otto Prutscher and Michael Powolny, 1914

By Otto Prutscher, Wiener Keramik Werkstätte, Michael Powolny

Located in Vienna, AT

Executed by Michael Powolny for the Wienerberger Keramikwerkstätten, ceramic and stoneware, ochre colored, body holding a dish in her outstretched arms standing above a three-tired C...

Category

Early 20th Century Austrian Jugendstil Michael Powolny

Materials

Ceramic, Stoneware

Browse all Furniture from Michael Powolny
Shop Now

Michael Powolny Sale Prices

Sold DateSold PriceCategoryMaterialCreation Year
2025$250VasesBlown GlassCirca 1925
2025$2,297VasesArt Glass1914-1915
2025$1,890CandlesticksPorcelainCirca 1907
$1,713
Average sold price of items in the past 12 months
$250-$3,000
Sold price range of items in the past 12 months

Creators Similar to Michael Powolny

Michael Powolny furniture for sale on 1stDibs.

Michael Powolny furniture are available for sale on 1stDibs. These distinctive items are frequently made of ceramic and are designed with extraordinary care. There are many options to choose from in our collection of Michael Powolny furniture, although gray editions of this piece are particularly popular. Many of the original furniture by Michael Powolny were created in the Art Nouveau style in europe during the early 20th century. If you’re looking for additional options, many customers also consider furniture by Dagobert Peche, Ernst Wahliss, and Gustav Gurschner. Prices for Michael Powolny furniture can differ depending upon size, time period and other attributes — on 1stDibs, these items begin at $1,044 and can go as high as $160,819, while a piece like these, on average, fetch $4,300.