City of Arts and Culture
Today’s post examines my love affair with Vienna, the one of the great cities of Europe. I visited Vienna in June this year.
Brief History
Vienna developed from Celtic and Roman settlements into a medieval city. In 1683, Vienna became the capital of the Austro-Hungarian Empire ruled by the Habsburg dynasty.
Landmarks and Museums
Vienna is known for its cultural heritage and landmarks such as the Hofburg Palace, the State Opera House, and St. Stephan’s Cathedral. In the 1800’s the city fortifications were replaced by City Hall, Parliament, and The University of Vienna. Countless beautiful museums, churches, streets and parks are found throughout Vienna.
Not only are the structures themselves spectacular, the columns, arcades, staircases and ceilings are works of art.
Musicians and Artists
Renowned musicians and artists called Vienna home. Mozart, Beethoven, Haydn, Brahms, Schubert, Mahler, and Schoenberg worked there and made Vienna the “City of Music”. Viennese designers, artists, and architects contributed to Art Nouveau, the Secession, and the early Modern Movement.
Museums Galore
The Habsburg emperors were avid collectors. The Museum of Art History houses their primary collection, with works by van Eyck, Dürer, Titian, Brueghel, Caravaggio, Rembrandt, Vermeer, etc. It also includes extensive Egyptian, Greek, and Roman Antiquities.
The Leopold Museum houses Austrian Art from the 19th century and Modernism, highlighted by works by Egon Schiele, Gustav Klimt, Oskar Kokoschka, and Alfred Kubin.
The Albertina Museum collection spans French Impressionism, German Expressionism, the Russian Avant Garde and Modernism. It includes masterpieces by Dürer, Rubens, Schiele, Cézanne, Monet, Klimt, Kokoschka, Picasso, Beckmann, Chagall, etc.
The Upper Belvedere Palace exhibits art- from Medieval through to Contemporary. It includes Gustav Klimt’s ‘The Kiss’.
The Weltmuseum is the largest anthropological museum in Austria with ~400,000 ethnographic objects from Asia, Africa, Oceania, and America.
The Museum of Natural History has a collection of 30 million items, including meteorites, fossils, and minerals.
Infatuated!
It was a joy to wander the streets, window shop, and absorb the ambience. I admit I was infatuated with the glitz, glamour and the opulence of Vienna. I was seduced by the extravagance of the decoration- the gold, bronze and marble, the sculptures, carvings and embellishments. Like infatuation it was a brief romance for the senses.
Sightseeing Overload
A week of dedicated touring of galleries and museums was both amazing and daunting. The quantity and quality was astounding. Every gallery in every museum displayed hundreds of artworks. What I sampled was amazing, yet countless others were equally worthy of attention.
The Candy Shop
In Vienna I was a ‘kid in a candy shop”. Vienna was a feast, an all-inclusive buffet of art. There were so many temptations, so many choices. Unfortunately my appetite was large, but my capacity was not.
Saturation and Satiation
Despite my enthusiasm, my eyes and my mind quickly reached saturation. I had to make instantaneous judgments of what appealed. After a quick scan of each gallery, I focused on one or two ‘objets d’art’ for a few minutes before moving on. For a week I binged on museums, art and culture until I was fat with overconsumption. I became a over-indulged visual glutton.
I couldn’t sustain my appetite before overwhelm and optical indigestion overtook the experience. When I returned to Canada my brief affair with Vienna was like a beautiful dream. I was sad that the romance was over, and I was back to reality.
Love Actually
More than the whirlwind attraction to Vienna, I felt a deep affection and devotion to the artwork and artifacts. If I had a year to savour what I was trying to cram into a week, I would never tire of Vienna. Art and craftsmanship were evident everywhere. I loved the museums, the architecture, the sophistication. Vienna must have a vibrant community of artists and artisans to create all this. I can understand why Vienna has been named the best city to live in.
Inspired by my Vienna memories, I painted the rainy scene of the State Opera House after a wonderful ballet and opera performance.
Infatuation: a foolish and usually extravagant passion or love or admiration… an object of extravagant short-lived passion
Vocabulary.com“Love: an intense emotion of affection, warmth, fondness, and regard towards a person or thing.“
Synonyms: Love, affection, devotion all mean a deep and enduring emotional regard,… Love may apply to various kinds of regard: … reverent adoration toward God .., romantic feelings .., etc. Affection is a fondness … that is enduring and tender, but calm. Devotion is an intense love and steadfast, enduring loyalty …; it may also imply consecration to a cause.
Colins Dictionary
Vienna’s Dark Side?
Are there aspects of Vienna that may not be so wonderful? That is the topic of my next blog.
I know the feeling!
Thank you Ron for sharing some of the highlights of your trip! With so much art available, I can see why it would become easily overwhelming. I’m very happy for you that you were able to ‘feast’ with utter disregard for over consumption.
We would now like to trace your steps on a trip of our own. I found the history very interesting too.
Congratulations on you new painting as well. Beautiful work!
On a separate topic, you are featured in the Nature Trust publication that came out this month. Well done Ron!
Dear Ron, Your coverage of that incredible city should be shown to the Vienna Tourist Board. Just imagine someone writing a similar article to the situation in Halifax!!!!!!
We have a long way to go.
Loved the photo of you and Egyptian Heads, that in itself , could conjure up a great subject for discussion.
You discovered more museums than I remember on our trip about 10 years ago.