Josef Wenzel Viktor Josephu was born at Kendlerstrasse 32, Breitensee, Vienna in 1889, which still exists today. There is some discrepancy of the actual date. Josef insisted his birthday was January 12. While some documents support that, others indicate the birth to be on February 12. He married Olga Maria Kohn in May of 1918. One daughter, Micaela Stepanie, born October, 19, 1919. Josef died in New York on September 13, 1970.
After studies in Graz, he returned to Vienna in 1904 with his family and entered the K.K. Staats-Gewerbeschule (State Trade School of Vienna). Later, in 1907, he entered the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts. He interrupted his studies during World War I, where he recieved a serious head wound, but later continued his studies at the Academy, and was granted the title of ‘professor’ by the Professoren-Kollegium der Akademie Bildenden Kunst in July of 1919. [more]
During his studies, Josef received numerous monetary awards: From 1908-1911 he won the Gsellhofer-Stipendium (stipend) 170 Kronen annually; then the 1911/12 Aushilfsfon-Stipendium of 200 Kronen, the 1912/13 Aushilfsfon-Stipendium of 240 Kronen, the 1913/14 Goethe-Stipendium of 800 Kronen, the 1914/15 Aushilfsfon-Stipendium of 120 Kronen, and the 1918/19 Cochs-Stipendium of 300 Kronen. In 1913 Josef received the Hof-Preis: II Preis Silver-Medal and 6 Ducats, in 1919 the Duba-Preis of 1460 Kronen.
His father, Wenzel, was a landscape architect with a family home at Amerlingstrasse 19 in the 6th district. Some of Josef’s known Vienna addresses were Neubaugasse 19, which also was the some of some of his siblings, then Lacknergasse, and he eventually settled at Fasangasse near the famous Belevedere. He had several studio spaces including at Neulinggase 16 and Rennweg 108 (which no longer exists).
More to come….