Children’s Hospital

Josef Warkany (1903-1992)
1940s
Print, 8 x 10″
Gift of Steve Warkany, 2016.10

Josef Warkany is generally remembered for his work in medicine, not his artistic ability. His is called the father of teratology, which is the scientific study of congenital abnormalities and abnormal formations. He is renowned for his work in prenatal medicine and credited with the idea that environmental disorders can cause birth defects. Two genetic syndromes are named after him: Warkany syndrome 1 and Warkany syndrome 2 and his most notable achievements included shifting the attention of medicine to include treating the first nine months in the womb.

Born in Vienna, he studied at the medical school of the University of Vienna, but moved to Cincinnati in 1931 where he became a local hero of the medical community. In most articles written about him, his medical achievements are prominently described and his artwork, if mentioned at all, is included in a short sentence towards the bottom.

Despite the overwhelming focus on Warkany’s professional life, his etchings are charming renditions of some of the most famous scientists of the 20th century: Otto Szasz and Albert Einstein, while his images of Cincinnati and the riverfront beautifully portray aspects of the city familiar to any local. His artworks were fairly well known during his time and his work has been shown in galleries in Cincinnati as well as in the Library of Congress.