architecture

Vienna museums – oh my!

Vienna – a city of culture with museums galore. Fabulous museums. Too many to see in just a week. But I think we did a good job with the days we spent, and I have the photos to prove it.  The first museum we visited was the Belvedere. The Belvedere Museum is located in the Belvedere Palaces which – renowned Baroque landmarks, with exhibitions in the orangery and stables as well.  I enjoyed seeing work by Gustav Klimt, including his famous painting “The Kiss”. This photo from Wikipedia, since you really couldn’t take photos in the galleries.

The Kiss by Gustav KlimtThe art was amazing, and the buildings were breath-taking. My favorite exhibit was a temporary one which featured the work of Friedensreich Hundertwasser, an artist I have admired for many years. The palace grounds were beautiful and they enhanced the excellent museum experience. Unfortunately there was a “no photos” policy inside, so my photos were VERY limited. Belvedere - upper palace sculpture entry hall Belvedere interior - Belvedereview from Belvedere PalaceHunterwasser Belvedere - lower palace

The next day we set out to see more museums – an easy task in Vienna. First up was the Albertina, partially situated in a Hapsburg Residential Palace. As usual in Europe, the building is stunning. The artwork is incredible. The Albertina houses the largest and most valuable graphical collections in the world, as well as significant collections of Impressionist and early 20th century art . You can read all about it online, I can show you a few photos but you really should see it for yourself if possible.Albertina sign Albertina exterior Albertina entry palace room 2 palace room 3 palace room palace room palace room detail palace roomThere was an exceptional show of large prints by Gunter Damisch. I took a few photos before I realized there were no photos allowed in this particular exhibit. I hope it’s alright to share a peak. Each print was about 4′ x 6′. Very impressive. I purchased a book on Gunter’s work, with photos of the actual printing process. Since I prefer working in something smaller, like 4″ x 6″, it is interesting to see how very large prints are done.Gunter Damisch exhibit work by Gunter DamischHere are a few other gems from the museum – two by Claude Monet and two by Paul Signac.

Claude Monet - House Among the Roses Claude Monet - The Water Lily Pond Paul Signat - Venice the Pink Cloiud Paul Signat - detail of Venice, the Pink Cloud Paul Signat - Antibes the TowersI must save the rest of the museums for another post. This blogging is very time-consuming, and I need to get some sleep. Hope you enjoyed what you’ve seen so far.

weekly photo challenge : the golden hour

Here’s my interpretation of this week’s photo challenge – nothing too dramatic I’m afraid. I took the photos a couple of nights ago when I was leaving the art college parking structure. I only had my phone with me, which was a shame considering the incredibly dramatic clouds in the sky. Unfortunately the clouds did not have the decency to line up with the downtown skyline, and I didn’t have time to drive around and find a better vantage point. I do apologize for that. In my defence, the truly spectacular clouds and color in the sky are generally very short-lived.

Hope you can see these photos alright. My preview looks fine, but my edit version is totally corrupted. Guess time will tell if it works…

golden clouds clouds and city

 

weekly photo challenge : curves

Here’s my response to the daily post weekly photo challenge. Several images came to mind immediately so I thought I’d post right away. I’m overwhelmed with the posts I want to do about my trip last week to San Antonio, Texas for the Surface Design Association Conference. I’m working on several smaller posts to try to capture some of the highlights. But back to the challenge…

elephant decorationThis is a detail of the painted design on a small elephant which stands outside the Witte Museum.

gate detailThis is part of a metal gate at the McNay Museum. Much of the museum is housed in a beautiful old home which belonged to the estate of Marion Koogler McNay. There is an artistic influence in many of the architectural details. It’s well worth a visit.

CIA light fixture light detailThese are my favorite curves – found on a light fixture that hangs outside the entrance to the C.I.A. (not that C.I.A. – the Culinary Institute of America). Of course they would have a fixture made of non-stick frying pans! This is located in the old Pearl Brewery complex, which has been developed into retail and residential space. Check out their website, which is loaded with San Antonio history.

 

 

 

weekly photo challenge: up

Simply had to throw in a couple of recent “up” photos. I love tall buildings and the beautiful reflections in their windows. Architecture is so amazing. I enjoy a variety of buildings – old and new, especially viewed from different angles. These are shots taken in downtown Calgary. I don’t usually spend much time in the downtown core (our parking rates are some of the highest in the world) but I’ve had occasion to pay the price lately. These are random buildings, starting with our newest – the Bow. I think it is magnificent – worthy of its own post. (coming soon) I’ve also included the Calgary Tower. The flame was lit to mark the passing of our late Alberta premier, Ralph Klein. The Calgary Tower used to be the tallest building downtown, but it has been dwarfed by many, many buildings over the years. It is still an iconic symbol of our city.

Bow facade Bow detail

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