SwissArtGallery · Documented identity
The Austrian painter and architect Friedensreich Hundertwasser developed, from the mid-1950s onwards, an artistic practice that he called “transautomatism”, a theory he presented as derived from Surrealism. Serpentine lines, mosaic-like compositions and recurring spirals are visual reference points in this practice, with the spiral described as a signature motif. Born in Vienna in 1928 under the name Friedrich Stowasser, he adopted the name Friedensreich Hundertwasser after a trip to Italy and his meeting with the painter René Brô.
After completing his secondary school-leaving examination in 1948, he attended the winter term of 1948–1949 at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna for three months, then abandoned his studies. His first exhibitions were held in Vienna in 1952 and 1953, followed by presentations in Milan in 1955 and in Paris in 1954 and 1956. In 1964, his works were included in the painting department of Documenta III in Kassel.
Le Grand Chemin, dated 1955, provides an example of this approach: this canvas, measuring 1.62 × 1.60 m, is described as characteristic of his work, with red, blue and green arranged in a spiral. In 1958, Hundertwasser wrote the “Mould Manifesto against Rationalism in Architecture”, extending his interest in architectural forms through writing. He also designed buildings and campaigned for environmental protection. Built between 1989 and 1991, the Kunsthaus Wien houses a Hundertwasser Museum.
From 1975 onwards, he designed postage stamps; original works for stamps were issued in Austria that same year, and then in Senegal in 1979. His work also extended to film: from 1969 to 1971, he worked with the director Peter Schamoni on the film Hundertwasser Regentag. Regentag is also the name of the boat he acquired in Venice to cross the Atlantic. The drawing 991 Doodle, dated 1998, is described as executed in coloured pencil and pencil on paper, measuring 297 × 210 mm; it bears a paraph in the lower right and a date in the upper left.
This profile brings together identity references for Friedensreich Hundertwasser and paintings, drawings and works on paper documented in auction catalogues.
7 references are documented at Germann, Piguet, Lempertz. Each record links to its source; the amounts are not a general valuation of the artist’s work.
Watercolour on paper
Aus: La Lune en Rodage
Aquarell auf Papier
Auction date : 2016-06-04
Published result : 4960 EUR
Including buyer’s premium
Estimate : 4000
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Coloured pencil and pencil on paper.
991 Doodle, 1998
Farbstift und Bleistift auf Papier.
Date to be documented
Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed
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Watercolour and collage on paper laid on white-primed wrapping paper
Ohne Titel, aus: "La Lune en Rodage", 1953
Aquarell und Collage auf Papier auf weiss grundiertem Packpapier.
Date to be documented
Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed
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Watercolour and pink fluorescent paint on thin cardboard primed with white chalk
Haus in Rosa Leuchtfarben (Wien, Obere Donaustrasse 12), 1952
Aquarell und rosa Leuchtfarbe auf Halbkarton, mit weisser Kreide grundiert.
Date to be documented
Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed
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Mixed media on wrapping paper
The third consequence of a German earth becoming now a Spidernet, 1961
Mischtechnik auf Packpapier.
Date to be documented
Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed
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Watercolour
r "La Lune en rodage"
aquarelle
Catalogue period : 2022-06-15
Published result : 8000 CHF
Fees not specified in the available data
Estimate : CHF 8000–12000
View the lot at the auction house ↗These references are shown separately because of their attribution or lot composition. Each record states the reason.
Mixed media on canvas
Les flammes et les gouttes de pluie qui passent - The three Raindrops, 1959
Mischtechnik auf Leinwand.
Date to be documented
These references are shown separately because of their attribution or lot composition. Each record states the reason.
Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed
View the lot at the auction house ↗SwissArtGallery documentary note based on the cited sources. Titles, media and qualifications are provided in the profile language; the original catalogue wording remains available in each record.
Documentation updated : 2026-10-19
