Artist Name: Josef Frank
Swedish/Austrian, 1885 – 1967
Josef Frank has had an massive impact on the graphic design and print history in Sweden. He is famous for his original prints for the Swedish brand “Svenskt Tenn”.
Art Style: Unclear but modernism
Inspiration: Nature, flowers & colors
Associated with: Colorful prints
Facts: Josef Frank was born in Austria, 1885. He grew up in a jewish family in Vienna and studied architecture. In 1925 he started an interior design firm together with architect colleagues. Josef Frank was apart of the early Vienna modernism but started to question it’s ”boringness”. Frank was drawn to a more artistic style ideal and started to develop his version of modernism were colors were in focus. He wanted to include the nature’s forms and colors. In 1934 he moved to Sweden and started working for “Svenskt Tenn” which is a famous interior and textile gallery/store in Sweden. Here he did a huge success and had an international breakthrough. His art was appreciated by it’s brave contrasts, both when it came to his choosing of materials, colors and patterns. It got a lot of attention and it became the model for the term Swedish Modern. During the World War 2 Frank had to escape, so he went to New York. Here he continued producing textile patterns and after a couple of years there he returned to Sweden. He passed away 1967 but Josef Frank is a name most Swedish people knows of due to his famous textile prints (Svensktenn, 2019).
Do I like his pieces? Yes! I would day most Swedish people does. It has sort of become a part of the Swedish culture. I love his more “tropical” with white background and colorful flowers.
Reference: Svensktenn, (2019). Josef Frank. Retrieved from https://www.svenskttenn.se/sv/om-svenskt-tenn/sedan-1924/josef-frank/
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