Seating ensemble Otto Wagner J. & J. Kohn ca. 1902

Otto Wagner (Vienna 1841 – 1918 Vienna) was one of the pioneering architects of Viennese Modernism, who led Austria to abandon the overloaded historicist style. Both in architecture and design, he implemented his postulate that form must follow function and systematically used new materials in his projects, such as aluminium or bentwood.

His main works include the Postsparkassengebäude (postal savings bank building) and the Steinhof church in Vienna, as well as the three Wienzeilenhäuser (residential houses). He also set urban development standards with his project for the Vienna tramway network.
As an already established architect, he taught at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna from 1894 to 1915 and thus exerted great influence on the next generation of Viennese architects.

In the years 1899 to 1905, he was a member of the Viennese Secession and became an important mentor of renowned students and co-workers, including Joseph Maria Olbrich, Josef Hoffmann and Gustav Siegel.

With his buildings, he proclaimed the architectural style of the 20th century, as Berta Zuckerkandl put it, and he created iconic classics in his furniture design, with a sense of aesthetics far ahead of their time.

The Moravian company Jacob & Josef Kohn, originally specialized in the wood trade, expanded its business activities from 1867 to include the production of bentwood furniture. Until that time, the company “Gebrüder Thonet” had a monopoly on the production of bentwood furniture. With this new technique, beech wood was bent into the desired shape under the effect of steam and thus enabled the serial production of modern utility furniture. With the innovative idea of having their furniture designed by important designers of Viennese Modernism, J. & J. Kohn became one of Thonet's strongest competitors. The company commissioned some of the most sought-after architects of the time, such as Otto Wagner, Adolf Loos, Josef Hoffmann, Koloman Moser and Gustav Siegel, to design furniture. With their high-quality furnishings, the company was successful at many world exhibitions (World Exhibition in Vienna 1873, World Exhibition in Paris 1900, International Exhibition in Turin 1902, to name but a few). Aesthetically in tune with the times, the modern furniture from J. & J. Kohn became popular with the wealthy middle classes throughout Europe and overseas. The great international success was also due to the dense distribution network of the company, with branches in all major European cities. With the company motto "semper sursum" (always upwards) Jacob & Josef Kohn advanced to become one of the most successful furniture manufacturers in the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy. Seating sets, display cabinets and typical Jugendstil living accessories (tiered tables, flower columns, shelves, etc.) from the period up to around 1914 with the original label or brand stamp "Jacob & Josef Kohn, Wien" are today sought-after collector's items worldwide.