Visit to Damascus 1956, view of mosque
© Architekturzentrum Wien, Collection, photograph: Karl Mang
On his numerous visits to the Orient Austrian architect Karl Mang followed in the footsteps of Le Corbusier. Alongside the plans in his architectural estate, his extensive collection of slides is also part of the Architekturzentrum Wien holdings.
In 1911 Le Corbusier – in strong contrast to the tradition of what was called the “Grand Tour” (which usually was based around visits to the sites of classical antiquity in Italy) – decided to visit the Orient and to make Constantinople (Istanbul) his goal. During this journey he made innumerable sketches, drawings, water-colours, photographs and written records, which were first published in book form in 1966 under the title “Le Voyage d’Orient”. Visits to different places provided the architect with a source of inspiration and an instrument for learning.
6,000 Colour Slides take us to Far-Away Lands
As the Viennese architect Karl Mang (1922–2015) worked for the Austrian Chamber of Commerce for more than 40 years he was able to make innumerable visits to “exotic” countries. In the period 1952–1972 his “useful trips” brought him to Damascus, Istanbul and Edirne as well as Kuwait, among other places. As documentary material the slide collection is most impressive, while at the same time Mang’s examination of other cultures through the medium of photography illustrates his yearning for an “architecture of stillness”.
