Biedermeier

Today’s task was to take a look at the architecture that surrounds the city and talk about it’s function in a greater context than just simple function and presentation. The Ringstrasse is a beautiful thing in my opinion, it is the location of the former city wall that was torn down by Franz Joseph in the middle of the 19^th century. The main building the epitomizes the Ringstrasse era is the Parliament building because it is so bright and so grand, and with it’s function as Parliament along with the neo-classical style it screams democracy. The neo-classical style is meant to recreate a feeling of ancient Greece where democracy originated. From travelling around, it is apparent that there are many cities and countries that use this as a form of architecture to inspire the same feelings that the parliament building does here in Vienna. Another building on the Ringstrasse that is quite striking is the Rathaus, which looks like a really old building since it is in the gothic style. However, this being the Ringstrasse era, it was built in 1873. This is supposed to be like an old city hall. It is an interesting building since most of the other buildings on the Ringstrasse fit in quite nicely with each other, yet this stands out like a sore thumb, but a pretty one at that. The Hofburg, the Kunsthistorisches Museum and the Naturalhistorisches Museum are on opposite sides of the Ringstrasse and have slightly different design elements, yet they flow very nicely together. The two museums are mirror images of each other and they are both in the Renaissance style. While just across the street is the Hofburg which is a neo-Baroque palace. I think that the idea behind using the baroque style with the Hofburg was to show how the Habsburgs were the ruling power for so long during the actual baroque period.

Another significant style in Austria during the early 19^th century was Biedermeier, which leads up to the Ringstrasse era. The Biedermeier style was very simple and not too in your face such as Baroque where it is impossible not to notice what you are looking at. The Stadttempel is a building that still stands today and is a perfect example of Biedermeier. It was built in the 1820s and fits perfectly into the buildings that surround it, which is part of the reason that it survived the infamous Kristallnacht.