Powder Box, c. 1919

Together with Michael Powolny (1871–1954), Bertold Löffler (1874–1960) set up a company, Wiener Keramik, in 1905. It collaborated closely with the Wiener Werkstätte and was eventually taken over by Gmundner Keramik in 1913 and successfully continued under the name of Vereinigte Wiener und Gmundner Keramik. This powder box goes back to a design of architect, designer, and graphic artist Dagobert Peche (1887–1923) from 1912 and is a product from the time after the merger of the two manufactories. With its geometric shapes, it is still visually informed by the Jugendstil of the Viennese denomination. The cylindrical body of the vessel is decorated with a repeat of white-black-white contoured lozenges, while the mostly black lid has a black-and-white ribbon around the edge.

MR, 2021