1904
Architect: Hans Thaler
Friedrichstraße 3, Munich
The four-story Art Nouveau corner building with rich plaster and stucco ornamentation was built in 1904 according to plans by architect Hans Thaler on Friedrichstrasse in Munich-Schwabing.
In 1890, with the incorporation of the city, a building boom had begun in Schwabing. Numerous new apartment buildings were constructed and the studio apartments on the top floors were ideal for artists.
The Academy of Fine Arts was nearby and numerous painting schools were located in Maxvorstadt, a neighboring neighborhood to the south of Schwabing.
Literary figures and poets such as Frank Wedekind, Lion Feuchtwanger, Erich Mühsam, Stefan George and Oskar Maria Graf left their mark on the neighborhood. In addition, there were painters around the artists‘ association Der Blaue Reiter, which included Wassily Kandinsky, Franz Marc, Paul Klee, Gabriele Münter and Marianne von Werefkin.
In 1896, two influential magazines were launched – Simplicissimus and Jugend, which gave its name to the art movement of Jugendstil.
Countess Franziska zu Reventlow, who had thrown in the towel with her aristocratic family and led an unconventional life in Munich as the Countess of Schwabing, created a literary monument to the artistic scene in the novel „Herr Dames Aufzeichnungen oder Begebenheiten aus einem merkwürdigen Stadtteil“.
She invented the nickname Wahnmoching for Schwabing, which took into account both Schwabing’s village-like and idealistic character.
All of the design elements typical of Art Nouveau are present on the listed apartment building on Friedrichstrasse: geometric and floral forms in the façade decoration, ornate gables, bay windows, balconies, and a raised corner design.
The rich geometric shapes and floral motifs can be found on the facade as well as on the wrought-iron balcony grilles.
Friedrichstrasse in Munich-Schwabing, on the corner of which stands Hans Thaler’s Art Nouveau house, is named after Emperor Frederick III, the father of Wilhelm II.