Vienna 1900: Art, Life & Culture

by Christian Brandstätter, Jennifer Taylor-Gaida (Translator), Mary Dobrian (Translator)

At the turn of the 20th century, Vienna was one of the most exciting cities on earth—the central gathering spot of the European avant-garde in art, architecture, literature, music, journalism, philosophy, psychiatry, and theater. The dynamic cross-pollination among the revolutionary figures involved—Klimt, Kokoschka, the Wiener Werkstätte, Mahler, Freud, Wittgenstein, and many more—turned the Austrian capital into an extraordinary laboratory for new ideas and concepts. It is where modern was born. With more than 500 illustrations, Vienna 1900 is a unique, concise portrait of a vibrant world and its most important protagonists.

Genres: Art, History, Art History

400 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2006

Reviews

[Laurie Hertz-Kafka · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having read and enjoyed "The Painted Kiss," about Klimt's lover Emilie Floge, set in Vienna at the turn of the last century and having watched several movies about Viennese artists (including the painters Klimt, Egon Schiele and Kokoschka and musicians Mahler and Schonberg) as well as visiting Vienna several years ago, I was fascinated to learn more about this amazing and beautiful city during the period of its greatest creativity.

This book is formatted as a large set of essays and images on a variety of topics including architecture, art, literature, music, coffeehouse life, science (including psychology, of course) and the Wiener Werkstatte. The section on Viennese art is robust, with essays on individual artists, and discusses the Secession. The images include paintings, graphic arts and photographs of people and places. You can pick it up and read individual essays quickly to get a fix of art and culture. It's comprehensive and will give you perspective on what an amazing and expressive place Vienna was during this period.

[max⚜ · Rating 4 out of 5]

the writing in the essays are a bit too flowery at times for me but otherwise this is a comprehensive / nicely organized art history of vienna. the art and photography were printed in high quality n looked beautiful :)

[Raymonds009 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well organized and thorough examination of the material. The illustrations were voluminous and beautifully printed. Highly recommended.

[Savannah · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not really my cup of tea! Had some pretty art though

[Robin · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's an ample history of turn of the century Vienna arts and culture, and most definitely fed my obsession for the Wierner Werkstatte, Kolo Moser, Egon Schiele, etc. There are several contributing authors, some more articulate than others, and the architecture chapters are especially good. I liked the pictures.

[Jesse · Rating 4 out of 5]

Multiple essays systematically illuminate facets of the burgeoning art and culture scene of the Viennese fin de siècle. And the images! Over 500 in all, of high quality, generously illustrating the content of the essays. Nearly 400 pages, but I pored over every single one of them...

[Andrea Engle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wide-ranging collection of essays on various facets of Viennese culture around the turn of the twentieth century ... from Klimt and Loos to Mahler and Freud ... lavishly illustrated with mostly contemporaneous images ... most impressive ...

[Mallory]

To be honest I didn't actually read this book just looked at all the pretty pictures. The graphic design is so inspiring and I love Gustav Klimpt (beyond dorm room poster "The Kiss".