Essl, Karlheinz senior

Essl, Karlheinz Sr., b. Hermagor (Carinthia), April 16, 1939, industrialist, father of Karlheinz Essl Jr. and Martin Essl. Enlarged the Schömer construction company in Klosterneuburg and established bauMax AG (DIY centres) with locations throughout Austria as well as in Central and Eastern Europe. 1985 commissioned H. Tesar to construct a new administrative building in Klosterneuburg, where E.'s large collection (largest private collection of contemporary art, over 4,000 works, which he put together with the help of his wife Agnes E., née Schömer) of Austrian postwar paintings was housed until 1999. In 1999 a new museum building, also designed by H. Tesar, was opened for the collection at Klosterneuburg. In the same year, E. handed over the management of bauMax AG to his son Martin E. and himself took over the presidency of the supervisory board.

Literature: Sammlung bauMax, catalogue 1990; W. Schmied (ed.), Malerei in Österreich 1945-1995. Die Sammlung Essl, 1995; G. Bösch (ed.), Sammlung Essl - The First View, 1999.