Friedrich Achleitner (23 May 1930 – 27 March 2019)[1] was an Austrian poet and architecture critic. As a member of the Wiener Gruppe, he wrote concrete poems and experimental literature. His magnum opus is a multi-volume documentation of 20th-century Austrian architecture. Written over several decades, Achleitner made a personal visit to each building described. He was a professor of the history and theory of architecture at the University of Applied Arts Vienna.
Friedrich Achleitner | |
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![]() Achleitner in 2010 | |
Born | (1930-05-23)23 May 1930 Schalchen, Austria |
Died | 27 March 2019(2019-03-27) (aged 88) Vienna, Austria |
Education | Academy of Fine Arts Vienna |
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Awards | Schelling Architecture Theory Prize |
Achleitner was born in Schalchen, Upper Austria, the son of a farmer.[1][2] He attended the Höhere Bundesgewerbeschule in Salzburg,[3] and then studied architecture at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna from 1950 to 1953 with Clemens Holzmeister.[4][5] He supervised architectural projects until 1958,[4] such as the restoration of the Rosenkranzkirche in Vienna.[1]
In 1955, Achleitner joined the Wiener Gruppe, which had at its center H. C. Artmann, Konrad Bayer, Gerhard Rühm and Oswald Wiener [de], henceforth participated in its literary cabarets, and wrote poems in dialect, montages, and concrete poems.[1] His experimental quadratroman was published in 1973.[5]
He began to work as an architecture critic for Austrian daily papers, from 1961 anonymously for the Abendzeitung,[3] then especially from 1962 to 1972 for Die Presse.[1][6] He established a new quality of thinking about architecture.[4] From 1961, he lectured at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna about the history of building construction.[4] In 1983, he was appointed professor of the history and theory of architecture at the University of Applied Arts Vienna,[1] a post he held until 1998.[7]
He began his magnum opus, Österreichische Architektur im 20. Jahrhundert, a guide to Austrian architecture in the 20th century in several volumes, in 1965. The first volume appeared in 1980 and the fifth shortly after his 80th birthday.[6][8] A sequel about Lower Austria remained unwritten.[6] He visited each building personally and documented it.[1][9] The archive is held by the Architekturzentrum Wien.[1][9] The book is known as Der Achleitner among professionals.[8]
Among his many awards,[3] Achleitner received the Schelling Architecture Theory Prize for 2008.[10]
Achleitner died in Vienna on 27 March 2019 at the age of 88.[1][8] He was cremated at Feuerhalle Simmering.[11]
His works include:[3]
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National libraries | |
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