1903 von Berlepsch-Valendas Jugendstil Wine Cooler for Winhart & Co.

German Art Nouveau (München Jugendstil) hand-hammered copper and cast bronze weinkühler (wine cooler) designed and sculpted by Hans Eduard von Berlepsch-Valendas (German/Swiss, 1849-1921) for the firm of Josef Winhart & Co., Munich (Circa 1903-4). The bat theme on this piece is consistent with the brief design craze at the beginning of the 20th century with all things nocturnal and bat-like. Dimensions: 10”(H) x 11.25”(W).

This exact Berlepsch-Valendas weinkühler is pictured in Dekorative Kunst Vol. VII (#3), December 1903 in the article, “Und Kunstgewerbe in Munchen” (bound later in Die Kunst Vol. X, pg. 115). See middle vase in the last picture.

Hans Eduard von Berlepsch-Valendas (German/Swiss, 1849-1921) was born to parents of noble descent in St. Gallen, Switzerland. His family moved in 1862 from St. Gallen to Zurich, where Hans attended the Federal Polytechnic, now the ETH, and studied architecture under Gottfried Semper, who had created among other things, his own high school and as probably most famous building is the opera in Dresden. von Berlepsch-Valendas eventually specialized in interior design, architecture and the decorative arts in the early 1870s. He was one of the pioneers of the Jugendstil aesthetic in German-speaking Switzerland. He designed Villa Tobler in Zurich, one of his major works in 1898 -1900, under the new concept of gesamtkunstwerke, in which building, design and objects were harmoniously constructed such that a "total work of art" was generated. von Berlepsch-Valendas later moved to Munich in 1875, where he completed more interior design work included the design of public and private spaces, public transport, such as Gebäulichkeiten, and even ships. In addition to his interior design major work, Berlepsch-Valendas was also a draftsman, designer and writer, born from the idea that art is not just for its own sake, but to renew all walks of life and to contribute to improved living conditions.