“A certain modest luxury”

Ernst Krenek’s desk in the estate in Krems

When Krenek, borne by the success of Jonny spielt auf, moved back to Vienna from Germany in 1928, he undertook his “only attempt in this world at reasonably stylish living.” He furnished the apartment in Mühlbachergasse (with a view of the Küniglberg and in the direction of the Lainzer Tiergarten) with furniture fashioned by the architects Josef Frank and Oskar Walch. Krenek saw their design as being oriented on the “Viennese Workshops,” with emphasis on functionality combined with a touch of modest luxury and elegance. Among these furnishings was a desk made especially for Krenek, which “was very long and of light wood, and had a black linoleum work surface.”

After Krenek’s emigration, this desk was sold by Krenek’s mother to Alfred Schlee, who as responsible editor at Universal Edition had championed Ernst Krenek’s works.

Thanks to the Cultural Department of the State of Lower Austria and the Archiv der Zeitgenossen, the desk has now found its way to the Ernst Krenek Institute. The estate collection of Alfred Schlee is kept in the archive of Archiv der Zeitgenossen.