Interiors and the Art of Furniture Design Companies AK Cie (1880–1914) Albert Köhler Cie (AK Cie) was an Austrian company founded in Vienna around 1880 by Albert Köhler. In 1900, it was taken over by the German company WMF, which used the AK Cie brand for sales in the Austrian market until approximately 1914. This brand was the market leader in Austria during the Art Nouveau period in the manufacture of pewter products. Erhard und Söhne (1844 – the present) The company Erhard und Söhne, which specialised in production using metals, was founded in 1844 by Carl Gottlieb Erhard and his two sons, Carl and Julius, in the German town of Schwäbisch Gmünd. A special aspect of its production was the manufacture of miniature furniture sets for dolls, with which it garnered success mainly in England and the United States of America. Since the turn of the 20th century, the company has obtained approximately seventeen patents and registered trademarks. Argentor Between 1902 and 1970, the Austrian company Argentor produced dining cutlery, table vessels, candlesticks, clock cases, mirror frames and other objects of everyday use, including designs by artists working for the Wiener Werkstätte, a production community of visual artists and designers. It presented its products at exhibitions of decorative arts. I. Ginzkey (1844–1948) The I. Ginzkey company producing carpets and coverings in Vratislavice (Wratislawitz), near Liberec, was founded by Ignaz Ginskey in 1844. The company quickly earned a name for itself and its products were for many years among the world’s finest. Its collaboration with prominent creative personalities who contributed to shaping the Art Nouveau period in various parts of Europe dates from 1898, and includes F. Myrbach, J. M. Olbrich, H. Christiansen, C. F. A. Voysey, J. Hoffman and A. Mucha. For the Paris World’s Fair in 1900, the I. Ginzkey company prepared a collection of six hand-woven carpets and coverings, for which it won the Grand Prize. This collection also contained a carpet executed according to a design by A. Mucha. In 1945, the company was placed under national administration by the Beneš decrees, and in 1948 it was nationalised. It continued to operate under the names Toko and Bytex until the 1990s. Kayserzinn (1862–1925) In 1862, the Kayser family established a foundry in the German town of Krefeld, which was under the direction of Jean Kayser. The company received awards at the World’s Fairs in Paris (1900), Turin (1902), Düsseldorf (1902) and St. Louis (1904) for its unleaded pewter and silver alloy, called Kayserzinn, which was very shiny. Artists from the Engelbert Kayser art studio in Cologne designed utilitarian and decorative objects for the company, which terminated production in 1925. Orion (1903–1906) The Nuremberg company Orion was founded in 1903 by Georg Friedrich Schmitt (1859–1938). The most prominent designer working for Orion was Friedrich Adler. The company operated for only a brief period of time, during which it managed to produce some two hundred fifty different product models. In 1906, Orion was acquired by its competitor, Orivit. Firma Jiří Vedral (established 1894) Jiří Vedral founded his own textile company in Libštát, near Semily, in 1894. It produced mainly linen damask textiles intended for household use, such as tablecloths, towels, handkerchiefs and bed linens. At the Ethnographic Exhibition in Prague in 1995, it received an honorary diploma and a state medal for its textiles. Initially, designs were based on Czechoslavic national motifs; later, the company employed visual artists who created designs based on Art Nouveau ornamentation. WMF (Würtembergische Metallwarenfabrik) (1880 – present) Würtembergische Metallwarenfabrik was founded in 1853 by Daniel Straub in the German town of Geislingen. At the end of the 19th century, WMF acquired several other companies and workshops, including the prominent Warsaw pewterware company Plewkiewitz Co. Designs for WMF were provided by Peter Behrens, Hans Peter, Albin Müller, Albert Mayer, Rudolf Mayer, Franz von Stuck, Herman Obrist and Hermann Dürrich.