Franz West was born on February 16, 1947, in Vienna, Austria. His father was a coal dealer while his mother was a dentist who had an interest in art herself. His mother would travel to go view different works of art, especially those in Italy. Even though he had been around art his whole life due to his mother’s interests he didn’t begin to study art with intent until his twenties. 

West began his studies of art in 1977 at the age of 30 at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna under the direction of the modern artist, Bruno Gironcoli. He first started out with drawing and moved to paint shortly after. Eventually, Franz moved to sculpture where he found the most success in his career. Materials that he would use were, paper-mache, aluminum, wire, and so many other materials. From the 1980s until his passing, on July 25, 2012, he worked on his sculptures and today can be found at the Museum of Applied Arts, Vienna located in Vienna, Austria.