Golden Austria

We arrived in Vienna by train as planned and settled into The Kaiserhof, our home for the next few nights. Just down the road was a restaurant with its own microbrewery (very much to Peter’s approval) and we chose the Tafelspitz, which is a local speciality we wanted to try and excellent it was. By accident we ordered one portion to share and it was just as well. There was no way we would have managed a portion each!
Today has been an Art day, in particular one Gustav Klimt. I’m a fan and couldn’t return to Vienna, his home town, without a pilgrimage to admire his work once more. Peter was a little unsure exactly what he was going to see and I must admit to keeping him slightly in the dark, which was undoubtedly a good move.
We started out at The Belvedere, a baroque palace built by Prince Eugen of Savoy, a celebrated Hapsburg general. He used the the reward monies for his victories during the war of Spanish Succession to undertake one of the most ambitious building projects by an individual to create his summer residence. There is an Upper and Lower Palace joined by what was once a classic Le Notre French style garden, which is sadly in poor shape, clearly due to the box hedging being ravaged by the dreaded moth. It is in the process of being replaced and consequently a complete remodel is underway. The interiors of the palace are beautiful and pure baroque and are now devoted to art and there is much to see beyond Klimt.
However, there is only so much time, so the Secession movement was our focus (well, make that mine). Works by Klimt, Egon Schiele & Richard Gerstl dominate, with the odd Monet thrown in (a contemporary), plus some stunning paintings created by women, who of course were wildly underestimated at the time.
The famous Marble Hall is spectacular and was the setting for the signing of the state treaty to guarantee the re-establishment of a free and democratic Austria in 1955, some ten years after the end of the 2nd World War. It was signed by the four allied and associated powers,
USA, Great Britain, Russia and France, plus the Austrian foreign minister Leopold Figl. The agreement was then announced from the balcony to a massed crowd that had gathered below.
We moved on to Karlskirche, a striking baroque church it is difficult to describe. All I will say is it is a vision in white and gold. I will include photos which will tell the story better than I ever could. To our surprise it is dedicated to Charles Borromeo of the Isola Bella and Madre family, the patron saint of the fight against the plague and was built in 1715-1757 to thank God for delivering Vienna from the epidemic of 1713. We knew a little of Charles Borromeo and his sainthood from our visit early in the year to the Italian Lakes, but not enough to not be surprised at his coming into the picture in Vienna.
Our final port of call for the day was to the Secession Building. The Secession movement was founded by Gustav Klimt and a group of like minded artists in 1897. It was a breakaway from the traditional artistic view of the Viennese elite. This incredible building was designed as as an exhibition venue in 1898 and conceived as an ‘art temple’ of early modernism and a key work of Viennese art nouveau. It must have been startling and controversial when it was first opened, but has stood the test of time and still is a shining beacon of modern architecture today. In 1902 its first major exhibition was dedicated to Ludwig van Beethoven, for which Gustav Klimt created his famous Beethoven frieze.
The fresco paid homage to Beethoven’s 9th symphony and in particular the Ode to Joy anthem. It was originally displayed in the large white exhibition hall, with a window in the wall showing a famous sculpture of Beethoven outside as part of the installation. The frieze was later moved to its permanent position in a basement space. The room is a rectangular white box, empty apart from the fabulous art work that circumnavigates the top of three of the walls. I accept it is possibly an acquired taste. We walked in and Peter gazed around looking somewhat puzzled: “is this it then?” was the comment. Perhaps I had overdone the majesty of the work! It is of course all in the eye of the beholder and whilst to me it is a masterpiece, to others maybe less so. We sat down and talked it through - I don’t think he is convinced. Art lesson completed, but a failure!
It was time to find supper in the shape of a great fish restaurant in the Naschmarkt. A beer always helps .Læs mere