Rare Carl Auböck Book Rack, Austria
View Similar Items
Rare Carl Auböck Book Rack, Austria
About the Item
- Creator:Werkstätte Carl Auböck (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 7 in (17.78 cm)Width: 11.5 in (29.21 cm)Depth: 10 in (25.4 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1950s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Original patina / ware, has not been polished...
- Seller Location:Los Angeles, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU133422276602
Werkstätte Carl Auböck
In Vienna’s Neubau district, a beautiful Biedermeier townhouse has been home to the Werkstätte Carl Auböck for more than 100 years. Inside the workshop, where production continues to this day, countless objects line the shelves, walls, tabletops and desktops.
The Viennese artist and designer Carl Auböck II was one of the quirkiest and most delightful and collectible of modern designers. A rather odd duck in the world of decorative arts, he was a peculiar talent whose specialties included smaller desk accessories and tabletop pieces such as corkscrews, paperweights, letter openers, bookends and bottle stoppers. He rendered these pieces in a combination of metal — most often brass — and such elemental materials as leather, knobby wood and animal horn, creating forms that could be almost Surrealist, from hands and feet to keys, birds and amoebae.
As a boy, Auböck was precocious and artistic. He studied drawing and at the same time trained in the workshop of his father, Karl Heinrich Auböck, a popular maker of traditional bronze figurines and collectibles. In 1919, Carl II went to Germany to study at the Bauhaus, where he was a pupil of the progressive artist and theorist Johannes Itten. While the Bauhaus is most associated with the rigidly ordered, functionalist architecture of its directors Walter Gropius and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, the school was in reality a liberal, spirited place — a crucible for imaginative, playful and avant-garde art and design. It was this spirit that imbued Carl II’s work from the time he left in 1921.
In 1922 or ’23, Carl Auböck II returned to Vienna to help care for his ailing father, and he took over the business. He created the Werkstätte Carl Auböck and a legacy that earned his objects cult status among collectors. The business was passed on to his descendants, who run the atelier that is still in operation today. Today, objects designed by Carl II make up 90 percent of Werkstätte Carl Auböck’s production, joined by the creations of architect and designer Carl IV, his grandson.
Vintage Auböck designs have a special character, a patina that only emphasizes how much the pieces have been loved and used. Carl Aubock II’s small furniture items — leather- or caned-sling magazine racks; free-edge wooden side tables with tubular bronze legs; wicker serving trolleys with turned beechwood wheels — are elegant and purposeful. His bijoux desktop objects, library tools, ashtrays and barware pieces evince a kind of mirthful practicality. They seem to ask: “If you need a corkscrew, or a paperweight, or a candlestick, why not make it fun as well as functional?” And indeed, why not?
Find a collection of vintage Werkstätte Carl Auböck mirrors, seating, tables, decorative objects and other furniture on 1stDibs.
- Planters or Umbrella Stands Architectural Pottery Marilyn Kay AustinBy Marilyn Kay AustinLocated in Los Angeles, CACalifornia design bisque clay with burgundy and azure gloss glazes no drain holes or damage minor wear / patina great for indoors or outCategory
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Planters and Jardinieres
MaterialsCeramic
- 'Head of a Woman' Large Sculpture after Carl Nesjar for PicassoBy Carl NesjarLocated in Los Angeles, CAA rare piece to come up for sale. It appears to be a maquette done by Carl Nesjar for Picasso. The photo example shown is of another one from the book "The sculpture of Picasso...Category
Mid-20th Century Unknown Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures
MaterialsSteel
- Mid Century Modern Credenza Georg PetersensBy Georg Petersens MøbelfabrikLocated in Los Angeles, CAClassic Danish modern design. Rosewood veneer with great tambour door design. Solid wood legs. Original vintage condition with a great patina consistent with age. Solid and sturdy. G...Category
Mid-20th Century Danish Mid-Century Modern Credenzas
MaterialsRosewood
- Large "Wok" Planter Architectural Pottery Lagardo TackettBy Lagardo TackettLocated in Los Angeles, CACalifornia design. From a post + beam house Beverly Hills. Rare custom scale. White glaze with bisque bottom. One water drain hole. Small nicks one spot (please see pic) Over-a...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Planters and Jardinieres
MaterialsPottery
- Plywood Dining Chairs Charles + Ray EamesBy Charles EamesLocated in Los Angeles, CAclassic California design Herman Miller manufacturer mixed woods, birch, ash and walnut unfortunately, they were once painted black they've been restored back to natural satin wi...Category
Antique Mid-19th Century American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsWood
$3,000 / set - Occasional Poufs Albert Frey AttributedBy Albert FreyLocated in Los Angeles, CAThese ottomans appear to be custom one-offs. Their provenance is unknown. There are only one or two others that are known to exist that are very similar to these. Simple organic upholstered...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Ottomans and Poufs
MaterialsWood
$2,500 / set
- Carl Auböck Model #3808 Black Leather and Brass Magazine RackBy Werkstätte Carl AuböckLocated in Glendale, CACarl Auböck model #3642 black leather and brass table designed in the 1950s, this incredibly refined and sculptural magazine rack is executed in beautifully grained black cowhide lea...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Austrian Mid-Century Modern Magazine Racks...
MaterialsBrass
- Carl Auböck Model #4488 Cognac Leather and Brass Magazine RackBy Werkstätte Carl AuböckLocated in Glendale, CACarl Auböck model #4488 brown leather and brass table. Designed in the 1950s, this incredibly refined and sculptural magazine rack is executed in beautifully grained brown cowhide l...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Austrian Mid-Century Modern Magazine Racks...
MaterialsBrass
- Very Rare Magazine Rack by Carl AuböckBy Werkstätte Carl AuböckLocated in Munich, DEManufactured by Werkstätten Auböck. brass and leather.Category
Vintage 1940s Austrian Mid-Century Modern Magazine Racks and Stands
MaterialsBrass
- Carl Auböck Midcentury Brass & Cognac Leather Magazine Rack, 1950, AustriaBy Werkstätte Carl AuböckLocated in Biebergemund, HessenTimeless Mid-Century Modern newspaper/magazine stand no. 3808 designed by Carl Auböck II from early 1950s, signed and manufactured by Auböck Werkstätte in Vienna. It's made of solid ...Category
Mid-20th Century Austrian Mid-Century Modern Magazine Racks and Stands
MaterialsBrass
- Carl Auböck Magazine Rack in Leather and Brass, Austria 1960sBy Werkstätte Carl AuböckLocated in Berlin, DECarl Auböck Magazine Rack, Austria 1960s.Category
Vintage 1960s Austrian Mid-Century Modern Magazine Racks and Stands
MaterialsBrass
- Carl Auböck Magazine Rack in Leather and Brass, Austria 1960sBy Werkstätte Carl AuböckLocated in Berlin, DECarl Auböck Magazine Rack, Austria 1960s.Category
Vintage 1960s Austrian Mid-Century Modern Magazine Racks and Stands
MaterialsBrass