Football Cake

The European Football Championship is currently taking place in Poland and the Ukraine (in case you are wondering: Austria didn´t qualify). In the window of a candy store in the city center I discovered the perfect cake for football fans...

The Sky Over Vienna #1

On my way home from the movies on a recent Saturday evening I was blessed with this beautiful coloured sky.

Sunday Flowers #37

"We can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or rejoice because thorn bushes have roses." - Abraham Lincoln  

Colours

I love bright colours, so of course these windows of a designer furniture shop in the city center caught my eyes.

Wedding Car

Some people don´t need a romantic wedding carriage or a swanky limousine... I would have loved to see the newly married couple who took this minicar. I think they are young and humorous. What´s your guess?

Wedding Dress

Traditionally may is THE month for weddings. In the main window of the K. u. K. Court Confectionary Bakery Demel you can still admire this sweet (in the truest sense of the word) wedding dress. Please also note the shoes and the bridal bouquet.

Misconceivable

This boat stranded on the roof of Hotel Daniel in the 3rd district is a work ("Misconceivable") by Austrian artist Erwin Wurm. The hotel management had to get special permission for this project because the building has monumental protection. The boat will remain in place for four years. What an eye-catcher!

Kagome

Kagome is a Japanese song for children and also a special Japanese lattice. At the MuseumsQuartierWien currently it´s the name of a sandbox for children in a willow hut, a green and shady spot where the little ones (shorter than 1,40 m) can dig, shovel and excavate. The children seem to have a lot of fun in there.

Elephant Fountain

This Elephant fountain, currently out of service, is located in Schweizer Garten. This park was created in 1904 and first named "Maria Josefa-Park" after Archduke Otto of Austria´s wife (mother of Charles I of Austria, the last Emperor of Austria). After World War I the area was renamed to Schweizer Garten in gratitude to Swiss help during wartime.

Sunday Flowers #36

"One of the most attractive things about the flowers is their beautiful reserve." - Henry David Thoreau

After The Thunderstorm

Yesterday evening, when I stepped out of the gym, I saw these clouds. They made me think of cotton balls... What´s your association?

21er Haus - The Collection

Two works by Austrian artists currently on show at the 21er Haus: A sculpture by Oswald Stimm (*1923) and a painting by Friedensreich Hundertwasser (1928-2000).

Museum Behind The Trees

Yesterday I had the day off and went to see the current exhibition at the 21er Haus, a museum focusing on Austrian art of the 20th and 21st centuries and its embedding in an international context. This is the view of the museum from Schweizer Garten. For photos of the (re)opening of the 21er Haus last November please click here, here and here.

Reflections #20

Reflections on an office building in the city center. The reflections are the most beautiful aspect of the building...

Gallery Opening

Yesterday I was at the opening party of "OstLicht", a gallery for contemporary photography situated in the former Anker Bread Factory in the 10th district. With a publicly accessible library, a bookshop and a bar, "OstLicht" aims for being a meeting place for photography aficionados. On the same site you can also find some other cultural institutions and the better part of the former factory is currently being converted into lofts - the premises mostly still look like a construction area. I like this kind of atmosphere.

Banana Graffito

The spray-painted banana of German artist Thomas Baumgärtel (*1960) marks out interesting art locations all over the world. Baumgärtel started this project in 1986 and since then the art-banana has become a seal of quality and the nonofficial logo of the arts scene. I discovered this banana near a gallery in the city center.

Sunday Flowers #35

"If there were nothing else to trouble us, the fate of the flowers would make us sad." -
John Lancaster Spalding, Aphorisms and Reflections  

Lamps at the Dorotheum

When I recently walked through the foyer of the Dorotheum, one of the world's oldest auction houses (founded in 1707), these lamps at the desk where you can pore over the auction catalogues caught my eyes.

June Theme Day: Tranquility

This statue of Guanyin (the bodhisattva of compassion and healing) is located in the Hirschstetten Flower Gardens. 
The name Guanyin roughly translates as "The One who Hears the Cries of the World". The statue is a present of the government of Qingtian county of the People's Republic of China.

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Bicycle on The Wall

I discovered this frontpart of a bicycle on a building in the 15th district. According to my parents who live around the corner, the building is affiliated to a youth hostel. I´m wondering if the hostel addresses particularly young people who love to ride a bicycle or if the bicycle is just a funny "sign".

Zacherlfabrik #2

Here´s a closer look at the beautiful tiles on the façade of the "Zacherlfabrik".

Zacherlfabrik #1

The "Zacherlfabrik", built in 1888 by Austrian architect Karl Mayreder, is reminiscent of a mosque. The Persian-looking façade recalls the economic relations with the country of origin of the insect powder that used to be made there. Today the building is used for exhibitions and concerts.

Flower Head

This head with fabric roses serves as decoration in the window of a jeweler´s shop in the city center.

Sweet Sunday #13

May I introduce Vienna´s currently most popular sweets to you? Cupcakes!!

Curious Girl

A colleague of mine sneaking into the section with the "X-rated" artworks of the new exhibition at the Jewish Museum Vienna. Sorry for the blurriness, I took the photo with my cell phone.

Spittelau

After a blaze in the 1980s, the façade of the District Heating Plant Spittelau was redesigned by the Austrian artist Friedensreich Hundertwasser (1928-2000) whose vision was a life in harmony and in harmony with nature. His architectural designs use irregular forms and incorporate natural features of the landscape. For a photo of an apartment house designed by Hundertwasser please click here.

Reflections #19

Reflections on the façade of the "Haas Haus", designed by Austrian architect Hans Hollein. For more reflections on this building please click here and here.

Blue Window Frames

When I passed by this apartment house, the trees at the doorway caught my eyes at first, but looking through my camera I also noticed the beautiful blue window frames.

Balcony #8

The past few days the weather was fine again... If I was the owner of this small balcony in the 7th district I would haved passed as much time as possible sitting there, watching the people in the street, reading, eating, enyoing the sun... I love all these flower pots and the rainbow flag.

Stripes & Reflections

What a delightful window display! I would love to sit at this table and have a cup of tea...(if it wasn´t in a shop window)...

Sunday Flowers #34

 "And 't is my faith, that every flower enjoys the air it breathes." - William Wordsworth  

White Out

The sculpture "White out" by Washington based artist Mark Jenkins (*1970) is part of the exhibition "Escape the Golden Cage" that I mentioned already yesterday. Click here for Jenkins'  website.

Escape The Golden Cage

"Escape the Golden Cage", the first urban art exhibition in Austria, currently takes place at the K&K Telegrafenamt (Imperial and Royal telegraph office). The exhibition presents renowned and young artists from Austria and around the world whose works are inspired by street art, graffiti and the urban life. The exhibitions runs through May, 25; the admission is free.

Under The Arcades

Last week we had temperatures around 30° C, this week we are freezing at 10° C... If you still want to eat in an outdoor area, I recommend the small French bistro at Palais Ferstel, where you can sit outside the restaurant but inside the palace and enjoy the beautiful arcades. Fore more images of the bistro please click here and here.

The Fulfillment

In 2012 one of Austria's greatest painters would have celebrated his 150th birthday: Gustav Klimt (1862-1918). On this occasion several Viennese museums are offering special exhibitions throughout the year.

The confectionary Oberlaa honours Klimt by creating a sweet replication of his oeuvre "The Fulfillment" (1905). The original painting is a design drawing for the mosaic frieze in the dining hall of Stoclet Palace in Brussels and can be seen at the Museum of Applied Arts in Vienna.

Pallas Athena

The Goddess of Wisdom, Athena, dominates the fountain in front of the Parliament. The fountain was erected between 1893 and 1902 by Carl Kundmann, Josef Tautenhayn and Hugo Härdtl, based on the plans by Baron von Hansen.

Façade Detail #13

A beautiful golden mosaic/relief on a building in Reichsratsstraße in the first district.

Happy Mother´s Day!

Today we are celebrating Mother´s Day. How about presenting your mother with a heart shaped cake as suggested by the confectionary Gerstner?

Typical Old Viennese Courtyard

A typical old Viennese courtyard with access balconies ("pawlatsche" in German) in the city center. In the first half of the 19th century most of the middle-class houses had courtyards like this one.

Reflections #18

Old buildings reflected in the modern façade of the "Juridicum", the building of the Faculty of Law.

Art Austria

The day before yesterday I was at the opening of the "Art Austria" art fair at the Leopold Museum: Around 50 renowned exhibitors (galleries) present Austrian art from the 19th century to the present. The fair runs through May 13.

Hanging Out in The Sun

People haning out and enjoying the sun in the courtyard of MuseumsQuartier yesterday in the late afternoon.

Put a Ring on it

Hands with fancy rings in the window of a make up store in the city center.

Wiener Konzerthaus

When the Wiener Konzerthaus was officially opened in 1913 (after only two years of construction), it was one of the most modern buildings in the Danube Monarchy. Built by the renowned theatre architects Ferdinand Fellner and Hermann Helmer in co-operation with Ludwig Baumann, it set new standards for its architecture (a rare combination of Historism, Secessionism and Art Nouveau styles), visitor-friendly atmosphere, construction technology and modern facilities. From its earliest days, the Wiener Konzerthaus has held the highest cultural aims and artistic mission: «To act as a venue for the cultivation of fine music, as a meeting point for artistic endeavour, as a home for music and a cultural centre for Vienna».

Sunday Flowers #33

"Each flower is a soul opening out to nature." - Gérard de Nerval

Post Office

In the entrance area of the main post office you can see how post offices looked like in the past.

Delicious

I discovered this sign/artwork in the window of an interior designer in the city center. I like the green colour (my favourite colour) and the old-fashioned font.

Balcony #7

With the current beautiful and very summerly weather (we have temperatures around 30°C) it´s time again to take a look at the balconies of Vienna. I discovered this one in the 19th district. It´s not very spectacular and could need some flowers, nevertheless I would love to sit there and read a book or maybe enjoy a glass of wine with a friend...

A Quiet Place

A quiet corner in Volksgarten...

May Theme Day: Bakeries

"Alte Bäckerei" ("Old Bakery") - the name is deceptive: This is no bakery but a pub. What a pity! In Vienna it´s hard to find old-fashioned bakeries, they have been displaced by modern bakery chains...

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