Alexander Leydenfrost

Who is Alexander Leydenfrost?

Alexander Leydenfrost was an Hungarian-born American industrial designer and illustrator. He was a baron in the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, with his family title dating back to the 16th Century. Upon moving to America in the 1920s Leydenfrost altered the spelling of his name in an attempt to correct the mispronunciation of his name, and also changed his name from Sandor to the American equivalent, Alexander.

Leydenfrost studied at the Royal Academy of Fine and Applied Arts of Budapest. In 1919, he was appointed as a professor of 'industrial design' at the Royal Joseph Technical University, also in Budapest. Middle European financial and ethical collapse forced him to emigrate to the United States in 1923 where he began working for the well known artist-illustrator William Andrew Pogany, designing stage sets and painting large murals, as well as being a featured regular in Magazine publications. In 1929, Leydenfrost went to work for world-renowned Industrial Designer Norman Bel Geddes, developing Toledo Scale designs and also the re-design of the Chrysler Airflow. He was also involved with the design of the 1939 World's Fair Pavilion for General Motors.