Munich: Apartment Building Friedrichstrasse

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.