Fish Werkstätte Hagenauer Wien ca. 1950

The Werkstätte Hagenauer is renowned for its numerous stylized animal figures. From the 1950s onward, Karl and Franz Hagenauer increasingly worked with wood, which they combined with metal to create decorative objects of distinctive character and expression.
In this piece, the fish’s body is carved from finely worked wood, its surface adorned with a stylized scale pattern. The fins and additional details are crafted from brass sheet metal, featuring delicate chasing that highlights the exceptional craftsmanship for which the workshop was known.

Tsame brass metal is used to form abstract wave shapes, upon which the fish appears to float effortlessly. The contrast between the warm, organic quality of the wood and the shiny surface of the metal creates a dynamic tension, lending the piece ist unique visual appeal.
The clearly reduced, abstracted formal language, combined with the rich tone of the wood, reflects the modern design approach of the 1950s and 1960s—an interpretation of the international Mid-Century style that the Werkstätte Hagenauer made distinctly ist own.