Royal Vienna /Royal vein /

Factory foundation -1717

Liquidation of the factory -1869

In 1717, the second porcelain factory in Europe (after Meissen) appeared in Vienna, which soon had all the Meissen secrets of production, so carefully hidden. Keeping Betger as a prisoner in the Al-Brechtsburg castle in Meissen did not help - there were factory workers who spied on the secrets of production and sold them to rich patrons. The initiator of the creation of the factory was Claudius Innocentius Du Paquier, a Dutchman by birth, who was in the service of the Austrian Emperor Charles VI. At first, he experimented himself, trying to discover a way to produce porcelain, but these tests did not yield results. In 1917, he managed to lure several workers from the Meissen factory to Vienna, among whom were Christoph Hungerand Samuel Stelzl. But these workers were disappointed by the modest financial conditions that Du Paquier offered them, and soon left Vienna without fully revealing what they knew. Initially, the artist Johann Gregor Gerold took part in the work of the Vienna factory, who, however, already in 1720 moved to Meissen, where he received fame and recognition. However, Du Paquier, a talented chemist, managed to finish the job on his own and completely mastered the difficult secrets of porcelain production.

The first period of operation of the Vienna factory falls on 1717-1744 and is called by the name of the founder "the period Du Pacquier". The oldest known product of the Viennese factory, as well as presumably the very first product, is a white cup for drinking chocolate with a saucer, marked May 3, 1719. The next dated product dates back to 1721 - it is a vase painted with blue flowers, with handles in the form of camel heads. The products of 1925 are very rare, since only later the production of Viennese porcelain became widespread. The products of the first years had a yellowish gray color and a much larger weight than in Meissen, the walls were thick and opaque. True, the quality of Viennese products gradually increased, but still did not equal Meissen. At that time, the mold for the products was taken from vessels made of silver. Plastic decor was limited to modeling side handles, legs and figures on lids on large items of tableware, most often in the form of animals. The herald introduced Chinese and Japanese motifs (Imari style) into the painting, which were used until the early thirties. After 1730 the Baroque style with its characteristic ribbon ornament and lattice pattern began to prevail in the decoration. The theme of the decoration was local flowers, mythological scenes or cupids (putti). In addition to the underglaze blue, the main colors were red, green, blue, yellow and black. Gilding was applied moderately. After a short period, the activities of the Herald were supervised by Danhover and Gelchis. In 1730-1736, the talented Wroclaw artist Ignacy Bottengruber also collaborated with the factory. In addition to tableware, the factory produced porcelain decor elements for furniture and interiors. The best works of Vienna at that time include the equipment of the boudoir, which was ordered for his palace by Count Dubsky. Despite the assistance received from the state, the factory was experiencing financial difficulties all the time. In order to save it from complete collapse, Du Paquier sold all the enterprises to the state in 1744.

The second period began, covering 1744-1784. The patronage of the state for a long time reduced the material difficulties that plagued the factory. Large stocks of products accumulated in the warehouses of the factory in the last period were sold as lottery prizes at low prices. An important event was the discovery in Hungary of deposits of kaolin clay of much higher quality than previously imported from Passau in Bavaria. This allowed the factory not to depend on the supply of foreign raw materials, as well as to improve the quality of the porcelain mass so much that it equaled the Meissen. In addition, it turned out to be extremely profitable to attract Johann Joseph Niedermayer, a teacher at the Vienna Academy, as the head of the art workshop in 1747, who immediately created a sculpture department that had not existed at the factory before. Niedermayer not only designed many models himself, but also attracted many of his colleagues, sculptors from the academy. Painted and glazed figurines appeared, which, however, were not such masterpieces as Kendler's Meissen works, but still had a high artistic level. In addition to the popular girlish figures at that time, often interpreted symbolically (for example, as the seasons), and love scenes typical of rococo, Niedermayer also introduced genre themes into the sculpture. In a whole series of figures, he depicted characteristic Viennese types: a waiter with a tray in her hands, a flower girl, saleswomen of various goods (fish, strawberries, etc.), a cook and a peddler. A significant product of the factory was a large group of figurines made in 1766 by order of the yard. They depicted the engagement of Archduchess Maria Cristina to Duke Albert in the presence of Empress Maria Theresa. Another multi-figure composition of those years represents the worship of shepherds in Bethlehem. Women's figurines were also beautifully executed, of which the most decorative is an elegant lady with a peacock. In 1777, the factory opened two factory stores in Poland - in Lviv and Berdichev. With the idea of Polish consumers, a small group of figurines was created, called the Polish family. Unfortunately, it is nothing but the name, not similar - neither in spirit, nor in the care in the image of costumes - to those Polish gentry, whom Kendler portrayed. In addition to figurines, which were a novelty in the then assortment, the Viennese factory improved the painting of large dining sets and small sets for coffee, tea and chocolate. In the second period, light and decorative rococo prevailed, displacing the previously dominant heavy Baroque. The artists in the style of fashionable rococo were Gottfried Klinger, Johann Sigismund Fischer and Philipp Ernst Schindler, the creator of scenes in the spirit of Watteau, hunting and equestrian motifs. Despite all efforts, the factory did not generate income, and in 1783 it was decided to lease it or sell it. But, despite the tolerable conditions, there were no buyers or tenants, and then Emperor Joseph II ordered further maintenance of the factory, subject to improved management. The Emperor made a good choice, entrusting in 1784 the directorship to Baron Konrad Sorgenthal, who had previously managed a large weaving factory in Linz.

Sorgenthal's period (1784-1805) was the most successful in the history of this factory. Sorgenthal, taking care of the technical quality, concentrated his main efforts on the decoration of products. Of the five hundred people who worked at the factory, one hundred and thirty worked in art workshops. Prominent artists who worked at the factory at that time include Joseph Leitner and Georg Perl. Some of the themes were taken from the wall paintings in Pompeii and Herculaneum, which had just been discovered, and reproduced in a whole series of copper engravings. Another source was the Vatican frescoes by Raphael. Paintings from the imperial gallery were also often copied in miniatures. The palette of colors corresponded to the richness of the theme. Following the example of Sevre, the dishes were covered with colored enamels, the scale of which Leitner significantly expanded. One of the shades he discovered is called "Leithner's azure" (Leithnerblau). The invention of this artist is iridescent enamel, similar to polished copper. Another of the mentioned artists - Pearl was a specialist in gilding. Gilding played a very important role in the decoration of Viennese products. Pearl was not satisfied with smooth gilding of large surfaces (for example, inside cups), he also did relief gilding and engraving patterns on gold with agate grinding files. There were reproaches that the surface of the products of this period is too densely covered with gold and colored enamels, and therefore a very important effect from the contrast of the whiteness of the porcelain background and the color of the decor disappears. Small coffee sets were especially richly decorated: for one person, the so-called tapeworm, and for two - tete-a-tete. After Niedermayer, the talented sculptor Antonio Grassi, who had been working in Vienna since 1778, began to direct the modeling workshops. The figures made in his time were initially glazed, and then, following the example of Sevre, they were made biscuit. Classical sculptures modeled by Grassi or under his direction brought Vienna European fame. The most famous of them are the compositions "The Court of Paris", "The Scene in the artist's studio", "The Court scene of kissing a Lady's hand", Grassi, "The Abduction of Europe" by Dangl, as well as the beautiful symbolic composition "Tragedy". Grassi also made a statue of Emperor Joseph II designed by Fuger. Among other sculptors, Grassi's students, Johann Schaller and Elias Hutter, the creators of a series of busts of philosophers, poets, as well as members of the royal family, stood out. At the beginning of the XIX century, the Empire style entered the decoration of Viennese products. Sorgenthal's death in 1805 closes this most beautiful period of the Viennese manufactory.

The fourth period, from 1805-1825, is characterized by a slow but gradual decline in the artistic level of products. Matthias Niedermayer, the son of the famous Johann Joseph Niedermayer from the second period, became the head of the factory. His merit was the preservation of the factory during the Napoleonic Wars. The last major work of the factory was a series of large vases made in 1815, which were presented to the crowned guests by the Austrian emperor during the Congress of Vienna.

In 1862, the Austrian Parliament decided to liquidate the factory due to its long-term unprofitability. This decision was approved in 1866 by Emperor Franz Joseph I. The final liquidation took place in 1869 .

The Vienna factory put the date of production together with the factory stamps: in the period from 1790 to 1800, these were the last two digits of the year (for example, 92 means 1792), and after 1800 - three digits (for example, 803 means 1803, etc.).

АУГАРТЕН

Основание фабрики - 1992 г.

О силе любви венцев к ликвидированной фабрике и неослабевающем спросе на ее изделия свидетельствовало появление на рубеже XIX-XX вв. множества мелких керамических мастерских, которые производили фарфор на манер «Старой Вены» или делали фальшивки под нее.

В 1922 г. возникло предприятие, целью которого было возобновление работы давней Венской мануфактуры. Эта фабрика, находящаяся в замке Ау- гартен, делает копии старых фигурок и чашек с блюдцами по оригинальным узорам и формам, сохранившимся в модельной мастерской. Другим видом изделий являются фигурки, сделанные по проектам современных скульпторов, а также современные сервизы.

М. Б. ГРОССБАУМ

М. Б. Гроссбаум около 1889 г. вырабатывал фарфор по образцу Венской фабрики периода Конрада Зоргенталя.

ФИЛИПП АЙГНЕР

Около 1900 г. Ф. Айгнер делал в маленькой мастерской столовый фарфор,

украшенный модными в то время мотивами в стиле сецессион.