Early Life, Family and Training Franz Lerch was born on 30 August 1895 in the parish of St Othmar, Vienna. He grew up in a household defined by the tactile nature of craft, as his father worked as a bookbinder and his mother, Eleonore, was born Soukup. Before finding his way into the studio, his life followed a more administrative path. He spent time working in the office of a construction company, handling the paperwork of building projects, until his service in World War I interrupted his early years. The years following the war brought him to the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna. Between 1…