Josef Frank

Gifted by the artist to Emma Charlotte Jacobsson, née Stiasny (1883-1977), born in Vienna, was an Austrian-Swedish botanist and textile designer. She was married to Malte Jacobsson, the governor of Gothenburg and Bohuslän. Emma Jacobsson was childhood friend with the architect Josef Frank, who later designed furniture for the family's various homes.

Josef Frank was born in Austria and studied architecture in Vienna. As an architect, he worked with private home areas, villas and apartment buildings. In 1925 he started his own interior design firm Haus und Garten together with two architect colleagues. In connection with the advance of the Nazis, he emigrated to Sweden and was employed in 1934 at Svenskt Tenn. After the outbreak of World War II, Josef Frank, who came from a Jewish family, was forced into exile in New York. At Svenskt Tenn, he made an impact on the product range for four decades; especially when it comes to furniture and fabric prints.