Advent Wreaths

In Austria it´s a tradition to buy an Advent wreath for the "countdown" to Christmas. Every Sunday of the Advent season we light a candle - on the 1st Sunday of Advent one, on the 2nd Sunday two and so on, until, by the last Sunday before Christmas, all four candles are lit.

Sweaters for the Trees

In September an Austrian mail order company asked people to knit pieces of 15 x 15 cm. The company received more than 1.500 pieces and will plant an additional tree for each of them in Austrian reafforestation projects. This cooperation with the Ministry of Life wants to point out the importance of trees and forests to the climate protection. The knitted pieces are currently covering several trees in Augarten.

Stage? Sculpture?

This wooden structure in Augarten reminds me of a picture stage. In this photo I used it as frame for a nice Sunday afternoon scene: grandparents take a walk with their grandchild and dog.

November Roses

“The optimist sees the rose and not its thorns; the pessimist stares at the thorns, oblivious to the rose” - Kahlil Gibran

Entrance to Augarten

There are several entrances to Augarten. This one offers a direct view of the flak tower (Combat Tower), a relict of World War II. The light in this photo is caracteristic for autumn and winter in Vienna...

Sunday Flowers #59

“Flowers are our greatest silent friends.” - Jim Brown

If you look closely, you can see some Advent wreaths hidden between the flowers. I was so busy the past few weeks that I didn´t realize that Advent is already around the corner...

Jordanhaus

The "Jordanhaus" on Judenplatz is one the oldest buildings of Vienna. In the Middle Ages Judenplatz was the center of Jewish life. In 1420 Duke Albert V ordered the imprisonment and forcible conversion of the Jews. Those that had not converted or escaped were sent off in boats down the Danube, while wealthy Jews remained under arrest, several of them tortured and stripped of their property. On March 12, 1421 Albert sentenced the remaining Jews to death and their synagogue was demolished. The inscription on the façade of the "Jordanhaus" refers to these dramatic incidents.

Austrian National Library - State Hall

The baroque State Hall was built from 1723 until 1726 according to the plans of the famous court architect Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach and carried out by his son Joseph Emanuel. The ceiling frescoes were completed in 1730 by the court painter Daniel Gran. The statue in the middle of the State Hall shows Emperor Charles VI (1685-1740) who ordered the construction of the hall for his Court Library. 

Façade Detail #18

Beautiful details of a doorway in the city center.

Vintage Mannequin

I love vintage mannequins and therefore was very happy to discover this one some days ago in the window of a  fashion store in the second district. It´s not the first time that I´ve photographed this mannequin, you can find more photos here, here and here.

People in Vienna - Last Preparations

Another station of last week´s gallery tour was the exhibition "People in Vienna" by the Austrian photographer Sabine Hauswirth on the ground floor of Künstlerhaus. As you can see, preparations were still going on...

Modern Portraits at Künstlerhaus

Vienna is participating in the current European Month of Photography: more than 200 photographic exhibitions and events on the topic of photography are on the agenda right across the city. Last Thursday I took part in a gallery tour and one of the venues we went to was Künstlerhaus where some works of a young photographer (whose name I unfortunately don´t remember any more) were set up in the beautiful staircase.

Sunday Flowers #58

“People from a planet without flowers would think we must be mad with joy the whole time
to have such things about us.” - Iris Murdoch

Candles in The Street

On my way home after a long working day I recently stumbled upon these candles in front of a clothes shop in the city center.

Courtyard of the Teutonic Order #2

Here´s another view of the beautiful courtyard of the Deutschordenshaus.

Courtyard of the Teutonic Order #1

During my last walk in the city center I discovered the quiet courtyard of the Deutschordenshaus - the seat of the Teutonic Order, a German-based Roman Catholic religious order formed at the end of the 12th century.

Photo Shoot

Last Saturday I was a model for an acquaintance of mine who is taking part in a group exhibition of portraits of the School for Photography. Here she is shooting another "model". If you are not used to it, it´s really hard to "perform" well in this setting... I will definitely have to continue to earn money in another way...

Ants Pillar

I discovered this ants pillar yesterday on the ground floor of the auction house Dorotheum, it seems to be a foretaste of the contemporary art auctions at the end of the month. These ants and interlacing tubes are characteristic motifs of the Austrian multimedia artist Peter Kogler (*1959).

That´s November to me

When I thought of a title for this photo, the first word that came to my mind was "November". The colours, the flowers, the twine of the virginia creeper without leaves - that´s November to me.

Sunday Flowers #57

"In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous." - Aristotle

Autumnal Tree

"In nature, nothing is perfect and everything is perfect. Trees can be contorted, bent in weird ways, and they're still beautiful."- Alice Walker

Façade Detail #17

A caryatid of the historicist Christinenhof in the city center.

At the Vernissage

The day before yesterday, at the vernissage of the new exhibition (photographs of contemporary Jewish Life in Vienna) at the Museum Judenplatz: While the adults were having a chat, this little guy obliviously played some game on his mother's mobile phone.

Cardboard Figure

Yesterday a colleague of mine called my attention to this cardboard figure next to our office. I did some research on the internet and came to the conclusion that it´s some kind of advertising for the new exhibition of Austrian artist Christian Eisenberger in a gallery nearby. This figure looks rather demoniacal, don´t you think?

The Danube Mermaid

This Danube Mermaid is to be found at the top of a fountain erected in the Stadtpark in 1865 to commemorate the establishment of the first water pipeline in Vienna.

The Light in The Window

During a promenade in the 19th district some weeks ago, this illuminated window caught my eyes. There´s not really much to see, but considering the beautiful building I guess that the interior is very elegant, the atmosphere yet cosy thanks to the warm light. I would love to know what was going behind the window while I was taking this photograph.

Sunday Flowers #56

 

"Happiness is to hold flowers in both hands." - Japanese Proverbs

Autumnal Augarten

 A walk in the autumnal and calm Augarten... At the end of this alley emerges a relict of World War II, one of Vienna´s six flak towers.

Façade Detail #16

Details of a beautiful doorway in the city center.

November Theme Day: The Water´s Edge

The pond in the Stadtpark is the home of a lot ducks. They usually take their nap on the water´s egde.
Click here to view thumbnails for all participants.