Vienna's Museum Quarter

statue of Theseus (c) 2018 by David Ourisman, all rights reserved

Yesterday's touring took us to Vienna's Museum Quarter, a complex of large neo-classical buildings on the Ringstraße, a short fifteen minute walk from Hotel Imperial where I'm staying. We enjoyed a tour of the Kunsthistoriches Museum (Museum of Art History) which contains the Habsburgs' art collection.

After viewing the statue of Theseus (pictured above) prominently displayed at the top of a grand marble staircase, we continued to a special exhibit, Stairway to Klimt. A four ton bridge has been built, enabling museum visitors to come face to face with a series of paintings 37 feet above the floor. These were painted by Gustav Klimt (and others), the temporary bridge having been erected to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the artist's death.

I was again reminded of the value that a great guide adds to travel. Tourists all too often walk quickly and aimlessly through museum galleries, glancing at paintings on the wall, perhaps enjoying the aesthetics of various artworks, but generally not comprehending much of what they see. We saw much less but enjoyed it far more, thanks to our extremely knowledgeable art historian guide. She led us to just a few exhibits and focused on the Klimt stairway, several individual paintings by Pieter Brueghel the Elder, and a fascinating sculpture of gold that also served as a rolling salt and pepper shaker. A wonderful way to spend an afternoon!

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