Friedenstreich Hundertwasser; Painter, Architect

Friedenstreich Hundertwasser, 71, Austrian painter and architect who was known for his wavy forms and bright colors. Although he gained the most recognition from his architecture, Hundertwasser was first and foremost a painter who fought for environmental causes, saying an artist’s job was to “improve the world and make it more beautiful.” Born in Vienna as Friedrich Stowasser, he entered the Vienna Academy of Art but left after only three months. In 1949 he adopted the name Hundertwasser and in 1953 painted his first spiral, which became his trademark symbol. He vehemently eschewed straight lines, calling them “tools of the devil,” and even carried his disdain for symmetry into his personal appearance, favoring different colored socks for each foot. His building designs with rooftop gardens earned him a reputation as a leading environmentalist. In 1980, in Washington, D.C., he planted 100 trees on a self-declared “Hundertwasser Day.” After winning the Austrian State Prize, the country’s highest cultural award, in 1981, Hundertwasser used his position to campaign against nuclear power and what he called “degenerate” modern art and the “Mafia” that produced it. Perhaps his most visible projects are Vienna’s 1983 Hundertwasser-Haus and its 1991 Hundertwasser Museum. The artist, who in recent years spent much of his time in New Zealand, also designed a proposed flag for that country and license plates for Vienna. On Saturday aboard the Queen Elizabeth II cruise ship, of a heart attack.