Approximately 1,000 students
are currently enrolled at the University of Applied Arts in Vienna. One-quarter
of them come from abroad which illustrates that University is a centre
of international exchange. Some 200 professors, assistants and adjunct
faculty are engaged in teaching and research; they are supported by 100
university staff.
Artistic Discourse with Society
The University of Applied Arts was established in 1867 as the Vienna
School of Arts and Crafts and was initially part of the Museum of Art and
Industry. The objective of this school was to train "masters" in the artistic
sense of the word, and the unity of theory and practice as well as learning
and creativity have been central concerns of this institution since its
inception. Shortly after its establishment, this centre of creativity and
instruction was recognised as one of the most important schools of art
in Europe. Around the turn of the century, the School of Arts and Crafts
of the Austrian Museum of Art and Industry became a centre of the avant-garde,
and the most renowned members of the Viennese
The Third Reich's Anschluß of Austria in March 1938 ended the
free instruction of art. The Nazis dismissed all faculty members they found
politically suspicious or racially "undesirable," among them, such famous
figures as Albert Paris Gütersloh. Many students had to leave the
institution and were forced to emigrate. The curriculum was revised to
conform completely with Nazi ideology, and the school was renamed the "Reich's
Academy for Applied Art."
After the liberation of Austria by the Allies in 1945, the University
could reinstate those faculty members who were dismissed in 1938. However,
the hiatus caused by National Socialism was so great that it was impossible
to resume work at the qualitatively high level of previous decades.
In 1970 new legislation promoted the transformation of the institution
into a modern, internationally recognised and active university, and since
then it has enjoyed a status comparable to that of other universities in
Austria.
Since then, internationally acclaimed artists and designers have taught
as guest professors and guest lecturers at the University for Applied Arts
in Vienna, among them, Karl Lagerfeld, Jil Sander, Vivian Westwood, Alessandro
Mendini, Ettore Schottass, Bazon Brock, Joseph Beuys and Jan Hoet. The
University also organises a extensive spectrum of events such as exhibitions,
presentations, competitions and symposia which complement instruction,
and it publishes a broad range of catalogues and books documenting the
work of students and faculty. Furthermore, the University organises exhibitions
for important artists on a regular basis at its own exhibition facility
in the Heiligenkreuzerhof in central Vienna. The University Library has
approximately 75,000 volumes in its collection as well as 10,000 units
of microfilm, microfiches and slides covering the entire spectrum of disciplines
taught at the University. The Reading Room provides students with access
to some 300 current professional periodicals.
Students may chose among degree programs in twelve major fields taught
in five departments -Architecture, Design; Visual Communications; Fine
Arts and Art Education - consisting of master classes, professorial chairs
and institutes. Every student enrols in one of the twenty-three master
classes, which provides the basis for the respective courses of study.
The University also places workshops and studios at the disposal of students.
Admission to the University depends upon each applicant's artistic ability.
Applicants are required to submit a portfolio of their own work and pass
an entrance examination. Knowledge of German is not an admission requirement.
However, after being enrolled for two semesters, students have to demonstrate
that their knowledge of German is adequate because all courses are taught
in German.
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Adressen
University of Applied Arts in Vienna)
(Hochschule für angewandte Kunst in Wien)
A-1010 Wien, Oskar Kokoschka-Platz 2
Tel. *43/1/71133-0,
Fax 71133222
Applications and Admissions:
(Studien- und Prüfungsabteilung)
A-1010 Wien, Oskar Kokoschka-Platz 2
Tel. *43/1/71133-214 and 71133-215,
Fax 71133-222
Stipendienreferat
A-1010 Wien, Oskar Kokoschka-Platz 2
Tel. *43/1/71133-215, Fax 71133-222
Austrian National Union of Students
(Österreichische Hochschülerschaft)
A-1010 Wien, Oskar Kokoschka-Platz 2
Tel. *43/1/71133-224, Fax 7128773 |
