Our first stop of the day was Cafe Diglas for a morning melange. The cafe is a traditional Wiener Kaffeehaus with the red velvet cushions, situated a block away from Stephansdom but considerably low in tourist traffic. After our morning coffee, we made our way to the
Schmetterlinghaus, the imperial butterfly house in the Hofburg. It was a small greenhouse on the side of the Hofburg palace, close to our classroom. It was the neatest thing - butterflies were everywhere!!! It was humid and the place was relatively small, but there were waterfalls and ponds and bridges to walk across and see the butterflies. It was definitely worth the euros to get in. After the butterflies, we bought sandwiches and ate in the park - I believe we are starting to look more like locals (or at least students) and less like tourists.
We met our group at 2 in front of the Kunsthistoriches Museum, housed in the palace built by Emperor Franz Joseph I in 1858 to house the Habsburg's art collections. The Baroque period in Vienna, in which style this building was built, was one of opposites - enormous wealth versus grinding poverty (Parsons 173). However, the Kunsthistoriches Museum was built in 1891, in the period immediately preceding the Ringstrasse period which was marked by historicism (neo-classical, neo-baroque, neo-renaissance).
Following the baroque period was the Enlightenment in Vienna, defined through Maria Theresia and her son Joseph II. Joseph II was a radical reformer, imposing new sanitation laws, granting his Edit of Toleration regarding religion, and closing down unproductive monasteries to shift his focus to efficient secular institutions. Maria Theresia and Joseph also were large proponents of cultural enlightenment, with Joseph II embracing the notion of "Enlightened idealization of 'the people' thus prompting him to cultivate parks, theaters, and a musical culture (Beller 94). Under Maria Theresia, "artistic patronage made Vienna a magnet for a host of hopeful artists, composers and poets in addition to architects...[thus] entertainments, particularly theater and opera, flourished" (Spielman 202, 206). With the public and cultural reforms having been established by Maria Theresia and Joseph II, Emperor Franz Joseph I was only continuing in this 'Enlightened idealization of the people' with the construction of the Kunsthistoriches Museum, allowing the public access to another form of culture.
The museum is broken up into three main collections but is only large enough to show 1/3 of the artwork to the public: Greek and Roman Antiquities, Baroque art, and Renaissance Art. Our tour with Dr. O. today was a 3 1/2 hour combination of the baroque and renaissance collections, highlighting the main artists and one of their major works each. It was interesting to compare the baroque from the renaissance artwork since yesterday's church, Stephansdom, contained many architectural pieces built at this time of change between gothic, baroque, and
renaissance cultural styles (Anton Pilgrim's pulpit).The main differences between the two forms of the art involve both the time period and the incorporation of religion, but most importantly, the differences lie in the use of motion and light.
Baroque art is characterized by religious symbolism, heavy, intricate details, vibrant colors and lighting. Movement, symmetry, and excessive ornamentation were the focus. The artist's aim was often to communicate religious messages and to depict emotion and passion between the characters. Shading was used heavily and light was used creatively.
Comparatively, the Renaissance was a turn away from religion and God and a turn toward humanism, man, and enlightenment. The paintings were more static, with less light and shading. The human form rather than the glory of God was depicted, and the paintings involved intricate details of the human form and its various abilities to contort itself.
The first paintings we stopped at were by Albrecht Durer. Durer was considered the Leonardo north of the Alps, with an intellectual curiosity and a menagerie of hobbies and careers, although he was trained in the medieval way of painting. His interest lay in the deconstruction and anatomically correct portrayal of the human body, shown in his Martyrdom of the Ten Thousand. It is innately in the renaissance style, due to the curves and contortions of the bodies depicted; baroque artists would never have included so many figures, nor would they have been able to depict such a detailed landscape. 
It shows 10,000 Christians being massacred by the enemy (Roman Hadrian); since Durer didn't know what the enemy had looked like, he painted them as Turks due to the prominent threat of a Turkish invasion in his day. The painting shows a mastering of the human body, and thus Durer included himself within the painting (an extremely renaissance feature).
It shows 10,000 Christians being massacred by the enemy (Roman Hadrian); since Durer didn't know what the enemy had looked like, he painted them as Turks due to the prominent threat of a Turkish invasion in his day. The painting shows a mastering of the human body, and thus Durer included himself within the painting (an extremely renaissance feature).His second piece, the Adoration of the Trinity, shows Christ crucified on the cross with God (here, an emperor) and a dove above Him.
Again, the landscape on the bottom shows renaissance technique, as does the inclusion of both himself and the donor of the piece. Durer had originally constructed a wooden altar piece to hold the painting, but it was left in Nuremberg when the painting was transfered to Vienna. The copy at the Kunsthistoriches shows an evident theme of good versus evil, with Christ in judgment above.
After Durer, we saw Pieter the Elder Bruegel's (Netherlandish Renaissance painter) The Fight Between Carnival and Lent. There was so much religious symbolism in this painting it was overwhelming. The painting shows Carnival on the left, with drunkenness, partying, and excess. 
On the right is Lent, with emaciated characters, symbols of the poor, and people streaming out of church. In between the two is a couple following a jester. It is unsure to which side they will go, for the symbolism they carry could imply either side, but it is clear that Bruegel desired to show that there is a time and a place for each (excess and fasting); it is rather hard to show that Bruegel is taking sides.
On the right is Lent, with emaciated characters, symbols of the poor, and people streaming out of church. In between the two is a couple following a jester. It is unsure to which side they will go, for the symbolism they carry could imply either side, but it is clear that Bruegel desired to show that there is a time and a place for each (excess and fasting); it is rather hard to show that Bruegel is taking sides. Next we came to Peter Paul Ruben, a Baroque Flemish painter. His use of movement, color, and light separate his paintings from the Renaissance paintings around it. He was a busy man, fluent in six languages and running a large studio with the greatest of the Flemish painters in its employment.
He rarely painted the entirety of his paintings - only if the painting was commissioned by royalty did he undertake the painting. Often, his painters in his studio would paint his sketch, one specialized in flowers, one in animals, etc. The Christian message within his paintings, such as The Miracles of St. Francis Xavier, and The Miracles of St. Ignatius of Loyala, were quite evident. He communicated the holiness of religion and its power through these two large paintings, as well as through his others. His use of light and shadowing allow the painting to come to life, transferred from the original sketch to the larger than life wall painting.
Caravaggio was next. His use of emotions, passion, and an extreme talent of using light classifies him as Baroque. His paintings are darker, with a spot light effect, allowing the center of the painting to take precedence over all else. 
Another Baroque artist shown to us was Jan Vermeer. He was a Dutch painter, whose paintings often depicted domestic life inside the house rather than action outside of the house. His use of color and light also classify him as Baroque; his sole use of shades of blue and yellow constitute his painting The Art of Painting.
Another Baroque artist shown to us was Jan Vermeer. He was a Dutch painter, whose paintings often depicted domestic life inside the house rather than action outside of the house. His use of color and light also classify him as Baroque; his sole use of shades of blue and yellow constitute his painting The Art of Painting.Finally we came to Raphael's The Madonna of the Meadow. As a high Renaissance painter, Raphael valued serenity and harmony - symmetry - thus reflected in this painting. Aong with Michaelangelo and Da Vinci, he embodied the greatest of the high Renaissance's talent. The bold colors, the static characters and calmer emotions show a stark contrast to the impassioned characters painted by the Baroque artists.
After Raphael, our tour ended - but there is still so much we did not see. It is definitely on our list to revisit.
After the museum, we headed over to Cafe Landtmann for some much needed coffee. We then walked over to the city hall, which looks more like a gothic church than it does a government building, where during the summer each night there is a movie shown and booths of food line the sidewalk. Alcohol is served from every booth, food is everywhere (although their idea of exotic food is everything that can be found in a college town, including fried chicken), and everyone is dressed in summer dresses and slacks. It is neat to see such a large city sponsor such an interactive event for each night of the week.
Tomorrow we leave for the Alps - Wednesday we have several tours on the drive up, Thursday we spend hiking and relaxing, and on Friday we have more tours scheduled on the drive home. It will be a busy trip, but a nice break from walking all over Vienna. We'll have no service at the inn, so check back this weekend for blog updates!
Today's German Word:
Autobahn - 'highway'
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