Post Office Savings Bank
The Post Office Savings Bank (constructed between 1904 and 1912) in Vienna, Austria, was designed by Otto Wagner and became an important early work of modern architecture. It was Wagner's first move away from Art Noveau and Neoclassicism.
The facade of the bank clearly owes something to classicism, it is massively simplified. Wagner's key idea was to celebrate modern materials by developing new forms. To this end, the white marble plaques decorating the frontage are held in place by visible aluminium bols, which themselves form a pattern. Inside, the atrium has a floor of glass blocks through which the basement is lit, and a frosted glass ceiling pierced by columns.
