Dust jacket with obi back and front

A wonderful story told through the Leica camera of pioneering Austrian skier and photographer Stefan Kruckenhauser. Dr. Fritz Schindler, mayor of Kennelbach (Austria) and the owner of Textilwerke Schindler (Schindler Textile Works) decided to build housing community for his employees. Schindler’s philosophy was basically that the person who is both free and happy is the better worker. His original plan was to build seventeen houses in one year. Any employee who had worked more than fifteen years in his company – and had at least one child – could apply. A total of twenty-two families applied, so the successful applicants were to be decided by lottery shortly before Christmas 1949. Well aware that five of these families would have a very unhappy Christmas, Schindler made the last minute decision to build twenty-two houses, and each family was presented with 1100 square meters of adjoining land. Building work on the project began in May 1950, with the owners-to-be working alongside the professional tradesmen. The village was finished in June 1951, and remains a testament to the success of this and similar social housing schemes.
The illustrated part of the book opens with aerial views of the textile works and close up photographs of workers at their machines. This is followed by four pages of ground plans. After this pictorial introduction the story unfolds, and we see page by page how Ein Dorf wird (A village is born).

Stefan Kruckenhauser explains in his afterword why he decided to take on this project, 12 years after his previous book publication with the philosophy: “Falling down permitted, staying down prohibited.” (Fallen erlaubt – liegenbleiben verboten). Kruckenhauser also explains that after bringing all his equipment to the location, including his Linhof-Technica 13 x 18cm, he decided to use only Leica cameras as they gave him the necessary flexibility.

Selected by the Austrian Publishers Association as one of the most beautiful Austrian books of 1952, an obi band was added to advertise this fact.

10 pages of preface by Dr. Fritz Schindler in German, English and French

3 pages of afterword “EIN BUCH WIRD” (A BOOK IS BORN) by Stefan Kruckenhauser in German, English and French

111 photographs and 4 pages of ground plan

Published in an edition of 2000 copies by Otto Müller Verlag – Salzburg in 1952

Hard cover with dust jacket

132 pages

App. 24.4 x 26.6cm

Dust jacket back and front

Cover back and front. Illustration by Karl Weiser

DIE SCHÖNSTEN ÖSTERREICHISCHEN BÜCHER DES JAHRES 1952
(THE MOST BEAUTIFUL AUSTRIAN BOOKS OF THE YEAR 1952)

Cover back and front

This small catalogue showcases the ten books selected by the Austrian Publishers Association (Österreichische Verlege-Verband) as the most beautiful Austrian books of 1952.
Ein Dorf wird was one of them. This booklet gives detailed technical information on each of the ten books, including author and designer, title, page count, format, printer, and typeface. A picture section at the end of this brochure shows the cover and a double page from each book.

Herausgegeben vom Verband der österreichischen Buchhändler – Wien
Published by the Austrian Booksellers Association Vienna

Soft cover
11.6 x 18.2cm
32 pages (including front and end papers)