Architect, Austria Early on, Hermann Czech studied architecture, philosophy, and film while working as a theorist and publicist of architecture. The Viennese architects Adolf Loos and Josef Frank left a lasting impression on his theory and, subsequently, on his work. Czech’s development as an architect was further influenced by the architectural work of Arbeitsgruppe 4 and the theoretical positions of Konrad Wachsmann. According to Kenneth Frampton, Czech’s work reflects a subtle mixture of a postulation of oblique ironies and a directly reflected modest reality. His field of intervention is the interior of the building that, after completion, looks like nothing has happened. However, at the same time, these spaces display residual qualities available for the distraction of the inattentive mind. In 1980 Czech wrote, “Architecture is not life. Architecture is background. Everything else is not architecture” (Czech, in Frampton, 1980). In his Kleines Café/Little Café (1970, 1973–74; Vien...