Indianerhof, Municipal housing complex in Meidling, Vienna, Austria
Indianerhof is a protected residential complex comprising 19 buildings with roughly 735 apartments distributed across several streets including Aichholzgasse, Ratschkygasse, and Hohenbergstraße. The site brings together different architectural styles by Camillo Fritz Discher and Karl Dirnhuber, and now contains residential units alongside a youth center and theater housed in a former laundry facility.
Built between 1929 and 1931 on the Grünberg, on the grounds of the former Gatterhölzl, the complex was designed by Camillo Fritz Discher and Karl Dirnhuber, who worked independently on separate sections. On the morning of 14 February 1934, heavy fighting broke out here between the Republican Schutzbund and government troops, who were supported by machine-gun fire from the nearby Meidlinger Trainkaserne and an armoured car. The Schutzbund soon capitulated, and the complex was informally renamed Fey-Hof after Heimwehr leader and Vice-Chancellor Emil Fey.
The complex's informal name comes from a colored figure of a Native American above the entrance at Rotenmühlgasse 64, placed there by architect Camillo Fritz Discher. A second figure, a child carrying books, sits above the entrance at Spittelbreitengasse 44. After the February 1934 fighting, the complex was unofficially renamed Fey-Hof after Heimwehr leader Emil Fey.
The complex is a residential estate, not a visitor attraction, so access is limited to public streets and courtyards. Enter from Ratschkygasse or Hohenbergstraße and follow the lanes between the blocks; the former laundry building at Ratschkygasse/Aichholzgasse now houses a youth centre and theatre. The site lies on the Grünberg slope, so expect inclines between sections.
A colored figure of a Native American above the entrance at Rotenmühlgasse 64 gave this large social housing project its informal name. The name stuck and is used today by locals and visitors alike, even though the original meaning of the figure has faded from memory.
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