Oskar Laske

Biography

Oskar Laske was born in Czernowitz (Cernivci/Ukraine) in 1874. He worked as a painter, graphic artist, set designer, illustrator and architect. Oskar Laske studied architecture at the Vienna Technical College from 1892 to 1898 and at the Viennese Academy of Fine Arts under Otto Wagner from 1899 to 1904. He also received private tuition in painting from Anton Hlavacek, a Viennese landscape painter. This versatile artist embarked on extensive study trips throughout Europe, the Middle East and North Africa. He rapidly developed his own unique style of painting, which combines a formidable narrative talent with a penchant for comic and scurrilous elements. Oskar Laske was a member of the Hagenbund, the Vienna Secession and the Vienna Künstlerhaus. His unusual oeuvre has gained an important place in 20th century Austrian art.