Lost in a World of Art

Looking at the impressive exterior, one would expect the interior to be just as regal. The Kunst Historisches Museum Wien is beyond what is presented on the outside. Walking through the doorway takes you back in time to an era where decoration was in its prime, and the feeling of quaint left far behind. The sheer size and intimidating demeanor would make anyone feel lost and as helpless as a child. Luckily for us, we had a guide into the world of art: Frau Friedrike Wide eyed and as innocent as a girl 10 years younger, I found myself following along as we reached further and further into stories of art. Although somewhat overwhelming at times, I still caught glimpses of pieces I recognized. I felt intantly at home listening to the interesting as well as entertaining analogies of Friedrike throughout all of the sections of the museum. I will never forget that first trip into the museum, walking through the countless statues and echoes of the past.

Belvedere Beauty

Reflecting on the last few months is a bittersweet thing to do.  It's unreal how quickly the time has gone by, and it feels like just last week that we had our first class with Frau Friederike at the Secession building.  From the beginning, every class with our wonderful art historian has been filled with information (2,000 years of Austrian history- as she kept reminding us!) I will definitely miss learning from Friederike and seeing her kindhearted smile.  

Of all the amazing pieces of history and places we visited, Belvedere stands out above the rest for me.  The palace and it's gardens are enchanting, with the most beautiful view overlooking Vienna. I visited Belvedere once before we had class there, without actually going inside, and I was happy to return for the full experience.  The elaborate white interior is glamorous yet simple, without being overwhelming with its ornamentation.  The artwork housed here is by some of my favorite artists; Monet, Van Gogh, and Klimt.  It was incredible to see some of these works up close, with all the detail and texture that just can't be compared to the representations of these masterpieces.  The art of Gustav Klimt surprised me with how expansive and wide-ranging his works are.  While comparing some of his portraits with the geometric style of the famous "Kiss", it's hard to believe they are by the same artist, yet this exemplifies his true mastery and understanding of his artwork.  

I can hardly believe that our quarter in Vienna is coming to it's close, and it has been such an adventure!! I will never forget all the incredible experiences we've had with our class! 

-Tori

Life is a palace

Walking into the belvedere made me instantly feel like Cinderella.the ceilings were so detailed, every inch of it was obviously made with care. This sort of work describes Vienna itself. Every building is not built to be made, but built to impress. Walking through the streets is in like to walking within a museum. History, art and culture surrounds the city in abundance. Friedicke's classes taught me to appreciate the true artwork and history that is built into the buildings. My favorite part of these classes were the many churches that we visited. All were made with such care, and such unique styles. No two churches were alike. I wasn't raised in a religious family, so to see such impressive buildings built with a similar purpose truly taught me about the power of religion. It taught me about history, about faith, about the power of the human mind. Churches, in a way, reflect Vienna. They are beautiful. They are full of history. They are impressive. I will miss walking amount these beautiful museum streets. I will miss Vienna.

Kunsthistorisches Museum

If I were to suggest anywhere in Vienna to check out, it would definitely have to be the kunsthistorisches museum. The museum has so much art from so many eras that it is astounding. Not only is the art beautiful, but the building itself is a piece of art itself. No matter what kind of art a person is into, it is most likely in this museum, whether it be ancient statues from Egypt or Greece, or portraits and paintings from histories' most recognized artists, the kunsthistorisches museum has it. 

We went there a few times for our class, and I myself have been there a couple times on my own, and each time I am able to find something new and wonderful to look at and enjoy. My personal favorite part was the "older" section (in terms of the art) which includes many mummies from ancient Egypt, ancient Greek sculptures and crypts, and even many Babylonian/Sumarian pieces of art which I have never seen before in my life. I have been to many different renowned art museums in the world including The National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C., the Prado Museum in Madrid, the Musee d'Orsay in Paris, and even The Louvre in Paris, but I must say that the Kunsthistorisches Museum blows them all out of the water.

The Wiener Gothic Light Show

Growing up in a religious family, I have always been used to spending my sunday mornings in a sanctuary. The day that stood out to me the most in my course in Vienna, was when we visited saw the magnificent Gothic architecture in Stefansdom, the Minoritenkirche, and the Franziskanerkirche. I was in amazement looking at the awe-inspiring huge sanctuaries with incredibly ornate altars and stained-glass windows. I also really enjoyed learning about the history of the Minoritenkirche tower being destroyed and rebuilt in times of war due to it being the main vantage point in Vienna.

What really took the cake for me, was when we arrived at Stefansdom and we were greeted with an absolutely incredible light show from the windows and powerful chords from the seemingly omnipotent pipe organ. I had never been in such an impressive church before, and it has been the one building in Vienna that has inspired me.












When I would discuss the places we were seeing and history we were learning about to my neighbors in the Studentenheim, they would often remark, "Wow Daniel, you're getting to know more about Vienna than I ever have and I live here!" This course really allowed me to get a holistic view of not only the thousands of years of european history in Vienna, and it enabled me to see the viennese lifestyle and learn more about myself by learning how others live. I have loved learning about the art, history, and culture, and it really made my first trip to europe a fantastic experience that I will always remember.

Kunstkammer ---- a fascination room with Europe History

It has been such an amazing experience for me in Vienna.  The most impressive visit I made with Frau Battaglia was Kunstkammer in Kunsthistorisches Museum.  According to Frau Battaglia, Kunsthistorisches Museum is one of the top ten museums in the world.  

The collection in Kunstkammer was so amazing. They all well organized. The most impressive part of this visit to me is to see how well those collections have been protected. In my mind, historical and Cultural relic should really old and shabby, since it has been existed for so long.  In China lots of Historical relics were found by archaeologist in the cemetery of the old monocracy. Those Historical relics were used to be the grave goods for royal families. After hundred years under the ground, work of art should be somber. However the Cultural and Historical relics (work of art) in Kunstkammer are all so shining.  Everything is well polished, which made it looks new.

                              

The Cellini Salt Cellar is a sculpture by Benevento, which was also used as a gift from France to Habsburgs Empire. According to Frau Battaglia, The Cellini Salt Cellar is table sculpture and there are two same boxes on the top of the little house between those two persons. Those two little boxes were used to put salt and pepper.  In 16^th Century, salt and pepper were very rare and they can be considered as luxury at that time. From this gold made sculpture we can see the wealth of Habsburg Empire. It is amazing that a small work of art can give us lots of information about a past empire. Sometimes it even played a very important role in fulfill the gap of the history. It is also the main reason I love art history.

Vienna is such a fantastic city, which recorded some important Europe history. I am so glad that I made the right choose. Thank you for Frau Battaglia showing us around and helping us know more about Vienna and the History of Europe.

kunstkammer

Look back to the 16 delightful afternoons we’ve spent together with Frau Friederike, it is really hard to say which experience was my favorite and stood our for me the most. I enjoyed visiting all kinds of churches with different architectural styles as well as the marvelous museums and impressive exhibitions. I was also amazed by the advanced equipments, effectiveness of service and the magnanimity of books of the national library. Moreover, here in Vienna with all my classmates, Gloria and Friederike, I had my first waltzing class and had an unforgettable time learning how to dance waltz and polka. However, if I had to pick one precious experience out of all, I would say that the Kunstkammer in the Kunsthistorishen Museum would be the place that I would never be bored of.

We spent three afternoons visitng the Kunstkammer and still have lots more to explore in there. The Kunsthistorischen Museum is a building with marvelous designs both inside and outside. It has several different topics of exhibitions. To me, my favorite are the oil paintings from all over the world. I really admire artists who could paint paintings which look livesome and vivid. Once I walked into the rooms with Friederike, I felt like the people in the protraits are looking at me friendly and trying to wave to me to come closer. Also thanks to Friederike's interesting stories and history of the paintings, I was able to understand and admire the paintings better. I especially like one protrait of a woman who is wearing a bracelet, which has a small protrait of a man on it. I was told by Friederike that the woman recieves that gift from her Fiance, and she wants to give the protrait of her wearing the bracelet to her Fiance as a gift to show her cherish of the bracelet he gave her. What a lovely story!  
Even though our class with Friederike ends, I would keep exploring the beautiful artworks in Kunsthistorichen Museum on my own. I really want to thank Friederike for taking us around and telling us thousands years of history. I am sure I would keep  my precious memories of the afternoons we spent together deeply in my heart. 

Dancing through Time and Dimension

In a room full of people endlessly twirling around, faces and limbs whirl by faster than the eye can register who they belong to. A feeling of sheer bliss hangs in the air like music notes dancing off the page. Here, in this dizzy room, we learn the Viennese Waltz. It is quite easy to remove yourself from this room of mirrors and laughing young students to find yourself rather in a grand hall a century ago. Although the lesson started out with a pitiful medley of clumsy trips and missed turns, by the end I felt transported back to an age of elegance and poise.

Each step colored the world of my imagination. I felt the long white dresses swishing past my own as we twirled among the other spinning couples. I heard the notes skipping through the air along with the gleeful chatter of many flirty young pairs. In this place I feel free: there is no care that can bother me when I have escaped reality. 

Time travel is a tricky task in the world of reality; the secret is to remove yourself from this reality, only then do you have the ability to travel outside your own dimension. Many afternoons with our dear Friederike provided the chance to escape our current dimension of reality. Thousands of years would pass by in a mere two hours. Naturally it is difficult to choose just one afternoon as your favorite. However since I must, as much as I enjoyed visiting the seemingly innumerable famous sites of Vienna, I simply loved our afternoon of dancing. In a heartbeat I would do it all again. I happily extend the most sincere thank you to Friederike for each and every wonderful afternoon that we all had the pleasure of spending with such a sweet and knowledgeable Austrian lady.  

Österreichische Nationalbibliothek

After we visited so many amazing places around the city with Dr. Forst-Battaglia, I have to say that Vienna is such a charming city and it is definitely worth to spend a long time to explore every interesting place.

Personally, one of these places that stood out to me the most is Österreichische Nationalbibliothek.  The Austrian National Library is the largest library in Austria and it has 7.4 million items in various collections. I was under the impression that all of libraries should be the same that full of different kinds of books in thousands of bookshelves with nothing special. However, I was surprised by the highly finished curvilinear and geometric designs inside the library. I couldn’t image how magnificent it is when I first saw the extremely normal appearance.

Moreover, the most interesting part was the book-transmission device. One of seasoned staffs showed us the big book-collecting area located on the underground floor. I started wondering how could a staff find a specific book among these countless bookshelves. Later on, the staff showed us one unexpected thing---- book-transmission device. This high-tech device consists of several tracks that round entire book area and a couple of small cars that transport books to demanders. It is worth mentioning that this device is easily to use, the operator only need to input the code for a book then press OK, and then the book-transmission will find the book automatically.

Österreichische Nationalbibliothek is absolutely a must-go place if you come to Vienna. I’ll recommend it to all the people who ask me about the experience here. And I really appreciate all Dr. Forst-Battaglia taught me during the short ten weeks. It will be forever a lifetime experience.

Der beeindruckendste Besuch

The most impressive visit with Battaglia is the one to the Österreichische Nationalbibliothek. Our university already had a very large Suzzallo library with long history, but the Austrian National library shocked me not only with its grandiose architecture but also with its huge quantity of the books.  

This book is about 500 years old. When i held it, i felt so excited that i cannot believe the book in my hand is 15 times older than me. In this library, there are thousands of books are same or older than that one. 







Following the Officer, we went to several floors under the ground. I do not know how accurate depth its has, but when we walked along the stairs to the deepest floor, i felt a little tired and had a sense of suppression in the chest. At the downstairs, there are a lot of reading rooms for public. This machine is a little robot for sending books. The officer put the book being returned from public on the blue robot and then it goes up along the track sending the book to the right place. With this machine, only several staff can handle with the order of such a huge library. 

This library is only a little part of our whole visit, and after these visits with Battaglia, i know the Vienna and the Austria deeply, and the explanation of Battaglia is really useful and interesting. Thanks a lot!  
  

Without a Retractable Roof, You're Domed!

(architecture pun anyone?) :D

Thinking back on my experiences here in Vienna, I am faced with memories of being awe-struck and often speechless while visiting some of the most historical, grandiose and decorated places here. Thanks to Friederike, who since the very beginning has positioned herself as a source for knowledge, advice, and often frightfully accurate weather predictions, I saw so much more of Vienna than I thought I would. In three months and a handful of afternoons with Friederike, I’ve seen/experienced more of Vienna than any other students I’ve met from Austria whom have been here for two years.

Which leads me to think it’s okay, and truly necessary to take extra pause when I’m trying to express what made the biggest impressions on me in this whirlwind of studies abroad. So much has happened in so little time.

I think I will always remember this beautiful place by its stylistic modge-podge of architecture. In Vienna, as Friederike has taught us, you see a little bit of everything- something I’m definitely not used to in the states. I’ve loved getting to know the styles and the architects. Baroque, gothic, modern, Loos, Hoffman and Wagner are the things that have really stuck, as well one of my favorite buildings, the Secession House. It was on our very first outing with Friederike that she pointed out the symbolic simplicity of its exterior as per the movement of the artists union. Early on, and throughout the program, I looked forward to hearing more about the long history that resulted in such drastic stylistic differences in Vienna’s architecture, and Friederike of course, always made it most enjoyable.

Thank you, Thank you and Thank you!

Afternoon of Wonder

Wow. Looking back on the last two months has been a whirlwind. Picking one adventure out with my Viennese mama, Friederike, to reflect on is a challenge. But it must be done. While I cannot lie, Waltzing was my favorite afternoon—especially the cute men—my favorite lesson was when we visited the Kunstkammer in the Kunsthistorisches Museum.

One of the best things the Hapsburgs did for the world was collect valuable objects. They saw the value in art and cherished it. Because of this, we are able to have access to world wonders that might have otherwise been lost or damaged beyond repair. But alas, we still have original ivory sculptures, Rembrandt paintings, and many sculptures and paintings of the important Madonna among many other wonders.

My favorite part of the Kunstkammer had to be the beautiful gold clocks. While there were also gorgeous gold sculptures and other objects with much historical influence—the headlining piece even has a dramatic story about it being stolen—I still was drawn to the clocks. The fact that such intricate objects could be made way back in the day always amazes me. I know that that even farther back the Romans made engineering masterpieces with very little technology, and I nod them for their accomplishments. But these clocks to me were the epitome of beauty being handcrafted with very little technology compared to today’s standards.

Not only was the Kunstkammer the hall of wonders, but it also is the hall of beauty. I am incredibly grateful that it has opened its doors again so the world can have access to objects reflecting the world’s history and legacy. Friederike did an excellent job being our teacher and mama. I am thankful for her and the opportunity that we all received in our second home of Wien these past two months.

Stacie

Schloss Belvedere, Long-Awaited

As our trip comes to a close, I think it is safe to say that both our beloved guide, Frau Friederike Forst-Battaglia, and the course she taught were the true, lasting gems of our excursion.  With a warm smile, she led us through Vienna's most important museums, churches, and neighborhoods, in an attempt to give us a glimpse into the city's past via its characteristic architecture and art.  

It's certainly no secret that I am a big fan of Art Neoveau and Expressionism, and with them, Vienna's own Gustav Klimt and Egon Schiele.  Because of this, although it is difficult to pick a museum or church or piece I loved above all others, I must say that my favorite place Friederike took us was Schloss Belvedere.  Once the glorious home of Prince Eugene, it now houses many pieces by Klimt, Schiele, Kokoschka, Monet, and many more of the world's most important modern and pre-modern artists, including a large collection of Biedermeier pieces.

But speaking of the Belvedere simply in association with the art it houses is unfair.  The castle is massive, with sphinxes and statues of warriors guarding the entrance.  On every side, there are beautiful, rolling gardens, littered with magnificent fountains and manicured (almost phallic) trees.  The opening hall and staircases are white and pristine, every inch covered in carved, decorative pieces.  These then lead into the upper and side areas, with ornately painted ceilings, gold-embellished columns, and giant windows overlooking the gardens.  Truly, Schloss Belvedere is a piece of art all its own.

From the start, I knew the Belvedere was the place I wanted to see most.  Even after visiting so many churches and museums and castles, I viewed the Belvedere as if I had just arrived in Vienna.  This city never ceases to amaze.

xoxo,

Conor

((Thank you for everything, Friederike!  We love you and will miss you so much!))