Hans Hollein (1934–2014) was an Austrian architect and designer and a key figure of postmodern architecture. Born in Vienna, he studied in Clemens Holzmeister's master class at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, then at the Illinois Institute of Technology and the University of California, Berkeley. He opened his own office in Vienna in 1964, designed objects for the Memphis Group and Alessi, and received the Pritzker Prize in 1985.
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Among his early small works is the Retti Candle Shop in Vienna (1965), with a façade of anodised aluminium. His competition win for Museum Abteiberg in Mönchengladbach (1982) brought him international fame, and the building is seen as a high point of postmodern design. The Haas House in Vienna (1990) stands beside St Stephen's Cathedral and has been controversial for its contrast with it. The Museum für Moderne Kunst in Frankfurt (1991) fills a triangular plot, which earned it the nickname "piece of cake". At Vulcania in Auvergne (2002) he finally built the underground museum he had first proposed for a Guggenheim in Salzburg. Hans Hollein's buildings are studied for postmodern collage in the historic city.
