Powolny, Michael (1871 - 1954)
2 items found (by artist/maker)
Sculptor and ceramist. He studied at the Fachschule fiir Tonindustrie in Znaim (Znojmo) between
1891 and 1894 and at the Kunstgewerbeschule in Vienna between 1894 and 1901. In 1897 he was one
of the founders of the Wiener Secession group of artists, which played a pioneering role in the
establishment of the new style. Up to 1903 he mainly worked as a sculptor. In 1905 he joined up with
Berthold Löffler to found Wiener Keramik, a ceramics workshop turning out small production runs of
objects designed by them. He was also employed by other acclaimed ceramics and porcelain factories
in Vienna (Wienerberger, Goldschneider, Josef Böck, Augarten.) Between 1909 and 1933 he was a
professor at the Kunstgewerbeschule in Vienna, where he educated generations of ceramists. He was a
member of the Austrian and the German Werkbund. His works earned him many awards at
international exhibitions. Besides his ceramics, his works in glass, stucco and metal were also
important.
