Otto WagnerArticle Free Pass Otto Wagner, (born July 13, 1841,
Penzing, near Vienna—died April 11, 1918, Vienna), Austrian
architect and teacher, generally held to be a founder and leader
of the modern movement in European architecture. Wagner’s early
work was in the already-established Neo-Renaissance style. In
1893 his general plan (never executed) for Vienna won a major
competition, and in 1894 he was appointed academy professor. As
a teacher, Wagner soon broke with tradition by insisting on
function, material, and structure as the bases of architectural
design. Among his notable works in the Art Nouveau style are a
number of stations for the elevated and underground City Railway
of Vienna (1894–97) and the Postal Savings Bank (1904–06). The
latter, which had little decoration, is recognized as a
milestone in the history of modern architecture, particularly
for the curving glass roof of its central hall. Though much
attacked at first, Wagner became widely influential. His
lectures were published in 1895 as