Her splashbacked, single-surfaced, cubbyholed, foldaway paradise revolutionised kitchen design. But Austrian architect Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky came to regret her world-conquering creation

On the sixth floor of a quiet residential street in central Vienna, a tiny kitchen offers a masterclass in stylish functionalism. Every inch has been designed for efficiency, yet the first impression is one of warmth and comfort. The kitchen’s deep orange splashback and the dark green cabinets with red interiors are all bathed in natural light, with sweeping views of the city rooftops beyond.

This is the work of Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky , the architect, activist and resistance fighter who in 1926 designed the Frankfurt Kitchen – the prototype for the modern fitted version now standard in the west. It introduced many features we now take for granted: continuous countertops, built-in cabinets and drawers optimised for storage, a tiled splashback – all designed as a complementary whole.