Ex-libris (bookplate) - FW (Fritz Waerndorfer)

This ex libris, prepared for the Ver Sacrum in 1903 recalls the typical shapes of the Viennese architect - several similar drawings by Hoffmann had been published by the periodical, all characterised by the dominant motif of the «Gothic» line figure. On this ex libris, the inscription fits in the puncture ribbon frame and the long lines that end in stylized female heads. Hoffmann's art was greatly influenced by the Glasgow school, especially by Mackintosh, who created the principle of the human figure as a linear ornament. This principle is apparent in these long figures. The stressed linear vertically and the punctured surface division fit well in Hoffmann's oeuvre. On the bases of the strange FW initials it is supposed that this ex libris was made for F. Waemdorfer, an important contemporary sponsor of arts.