Margot Wittkower
German-American Interior designer and art historian specializing in neo-Palladian architecture and Italian Renaissance and Baroque period
About Margot Wittkower
Lived 1902 – 1995 (aged 92). Margot Wittkower was a German and American art historian and designer.
Margot Wittkower, née Margot Holzmann (August 28, 1902 – July 3, 1995), was a German-American Interior designer and art historian specializing in neo-Palladian architecture and Italian Renaissance and Baroque period.
Life and work Born August 28, 1902, as Margot Holzmann in Berlin, Germany.
Rudolf began teaching at Cologne University in 1932, but because Wittkower was Jewish, she was forced to leave Germany due to Nazi control. In 1933 the couple moved to London. Margot specialized in apartment interiors and furniture design at this time and both husband and wife were drawn to neo-Palladian architecture. Starting around the mid-1950s she co-authored various books with her husband, many of which are significant today in the area of Italian Art History. Together they documented in their writings the change from craftsmen to artist during the Renaissance. She died at age 93 at her home in Manhattan.
Publications Gian Lorenzo Bernini: The Sculptor of the Roman Baroque (1955, co-authored with Rudolf Wittkower, Howard Hibbard, Thomas Martin) Born Under Saturn: The Character and Conduct of Artists: Documented History from Antiquity to the French Revolution (1963, co-authored with Rudolf Wittkower) Divine Michelangelo: The Florentine Academy's Homage on His Death in 1564 (1964, co-authored with Rudolf Wittkower) Sculpture: Processes and Principles (1977, co-authored with Rudolf Wittkower) Congress: Process and Policy (1978, co-authored with Randall B. Ripley) Selected Lectures of Rudolf Wittkower: The Impact of Non-European Civilization on the Art of the West (1989, co-authored with Rudolf Wittkower, Donald Martin Reynolds) Partnership and discovery, Margot and Rudolf Wittkower (1994)
Don’t just read it —
keep it.
Full-length biographies made to live with: read them, listen on the way to work, watch them tonight.
- E-book
- Audio
- Video
Instant download · yours to keep · every purchase keeps this site free
Important facts
People in Margot Wittkower's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Contemporaries
People whose lives overlapped Margot Wittkower's
Frequently asked questions
Who was Margot Wittkower?
German-American Interior designer and art historian specializing in neo-Palladian architecture and Italian Renaissance and Baroque period
When was Margot Wittkower born?
Margot Wittkower was born on 28 August 1902 in Berlin.
When did Margot Wittkower die?
Margot Wittkower died on 3 July 1995 in Manhattan.
What was Margot Wittkower's occupation?
Margot Wittkower was an art historian and designer.
What nationality was Margot Wittkower?
Margot Wittkower was German and American.
Sources & further reading
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Margot Wittkower. https://biography.guide/margot-wittkower/
MLA: "Margot Wittkower." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/margot-wittkower/.
Chicago: "Margot Wittkower." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/margot-wittkower/.
Data last updated: 2026-09-22 · Spot an error? Report a correction.
Page generated 2026-09-27 05:01 UTC