Whirlwind Wien

Well, I finally made it out of Germany. I haven't been trying too hard because Munich has been so damn great, but when opportunity strikes...go to Vienna. Having learned a great deal from the previous weekend's lack of planning, I got together a game plan on thursday to get on a train to Vienna, Austria and see what it had in store for me. Courtney had come from there when she visited, and she left me a map of the city and a recommendation. I was going it alone this time. It would be the first time I've ever travelled somewhere that I didn't go with or meet someone there, a whole city just to myself. How exciting.

I decided to book a bed at a hostel, rather than sleep on the streets again. So that worked out well. I had a map and a bed to sleep in. Everything was comin' up Curtis...Austria is a German speaking country so the language I was used to, and it worked tremendously in my advantage. I was easily able to handle the communication, although people in Vienna seemed more eager to help me out with my German than in Munich. I felt good being able to order food, ask directions, etc., without having to "impose" my language on them. There was a good flow to the whole trip, here's how it unfolded.

I arrived in Wien at 1 in the afternoon and immediately set out for the cathedrals. I studied Romanesque and Gothic architecture before moving to LA and the interest has not subsided. In fact, coming to Europe has only sparked my interest even more. I visited St. Stephan and St. Vincent cathedrals one after the other. St. Stephan's is the largest church in Wien, and is the landmark for the center of the city. The city has actually passed a law that nothing can be built taller than it within a certain radius so that no buildings obstruct it's view. The tower was so powerful from the ground that all I can do is show you a picture. St. Vincent's cathedral was a beautiful example of high gothic architecture, complete with vaulted ceilings and flying buttresses, immense alters, and a serious case of verticality. This was a great taste of the European cathedrals, and I only hope that as I see more of them, the differences will stand out from the obvious similarities.

Following the cathedrals, I headed over to the hostel and dropped of some of my stuff before going out on the town. Unlike Munich, a night out in Wien doesn't only consist of only beer swilling, you can watch Opera while you down the local brews! A little class never hurt anybody. During the summer months, the city hall acts as an open air cinema which plays films of operas and classical music. I headed over there around 7:00 and got some great food and drink, mingled with the Wieners and settled in for "Il Travatore", a tale of two brothers who sacrifice the woman they both love because of their personal beliefs. As the screen went black and the 500 audience members scrambling for public transportation, I decided it better to head back to the hostel and get some rest for the day ahead.

Rothaus Opera Film Festival


Pretty nice room for a hostel
I woke up at 8 am and was ready take in the museum scene in Vienna. The city is literally packed with museums. They've devoted several city blocks within the center to what is called Museum Quarter, and outside of that are several more museums to be had. I started off with the Sigmund Freud Museum which was based in the apartment he and his family called home from 1890-1938. He actually used the apartment for his practice during this time as well. From there I headed to the Belvedere Palace, home to 90% of Gustav Klimt's art work. An impressive collection of work housed in an opulent baroque palace overlooking the city. It was just a short train ride back to the Museum Quarter where I took in the Leopold museum and the Museum of Modern Kunst (kunst=art). Both museums were very impressive.

Belvedere Palace = Baroque extravagance
While I tend to lean towards the modern side of the arts, the Leopold Museum had nearly the entire works of Kolo Moser, one of the founding artists in the Austrian modernist movement, which was utterly astounding. His career began designing graphics for stamps and currency, moved into furniture and interior design, and ended as a respected painter in a variety of mediums. They also had a large exhibit of Paul Rotterdam's drawings. His style is strikingly graphic, but his strokes of graphite extend beyond the perceived boundary laid out by the form.

Pattern by Kolo Moser
The MOMOK was appointed with all the standard modernists, but a few exhibits stood above the rest. An entire floor was devoted to the post-modern movement in America, including a large collection of pop-art and found objects as well as study's in performance pieces(Happenings and Fluxus) and sound(John Cage). The most exciting artist of the trip, however, was Markus Huemer. He's a contemporary artist working in both digital and classical media. His large paintings were absorbing, intrusive statements; distorting natural subject matter into a poster-like graphic. His digital work was more conceptual; motion sensing computers juxtaposing the viewer and the work, and Rothko-like minimalist statements done in shades of Process Blue, the same color the projector displays when it is displaying "nothing."

"I could have painted you a political painting" Markus HuemerSo Wien was amazing. The perfect amount of culture and history to fill my head. The museums kept me inside my head and I didn't feel the need to converse aimlessly to pass the time. It felt very much like a Germany that wasn't utterly decimated in the war, so there was a greater since of heritage in the architecture of the city, and that was in-turn reflected in the attitude of it's citizens. Although I didn't have enough time to see it all, I feel that the little I did see will be enough to bring me back again. And next time I'll make it a point to extend my stay in the beautiful Austrian city of Vienna.