Albertina (Vienna)

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Albertina
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place Albertinaplatz, 1010 Vienna
Art
architect Emanuel Silva-Tarouca , Louis Montoyer
Number of visitors (annually) see Most visited sights in Vienna
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management
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View of the Albertina with the Albrechtsbrunnen from the roof of the State Opera in January 2015
Exterior view of the Albertina with Soravia Wing
Branch "Albertina modern" on Karlsplatz

The Albertina is an art museum in Vienna's 1st district, the Inner City . Among other things, it houses one of the most important graphic collections in the world.

The museum

The museum is housed in the Palais Archduke Albrecht , a historic residence of the Habsburgs. The name Albertina refers to Albert Casimir Duke von Sachsen-Teschen , son-in-law of Empress Maria Theresa , who founded the collection in Pressburg in 1776 , where he resided as Maria Theresa’s representative for the Kingdom of Hungary . In 1792 he was able to bring a large part of the collection from the Austrian Netherlands , where he later served as the representative of the Austrian monarch, to Vienna. The encyclopedic and universalistic collection comprises around one million drawings and prints from the Renaissance to the present.

Since the museum was on loan from the Batliner private collection in 2007, part of the exhibition space is no longer used for the presentation of the graphic collection, but for a permanent exhibition on classical modernism: “Monet to Picasso. The Batliner Collection ”. The Albertina collections are stored in a fully automated high-bay warehouse.

The collection

The Herzog Alberts Collection is one of the most important art collections in the world. For over 50 years he used a Europe-wide network of dealers and auctions of extensive private collections to acquire 14,000 drawings and 200,000 prints. Many of the master drawings - from Michelangelo's male nudes to Dürer's  " field hares " to Rubens' portraits of children - are now among the most famous works in art history .

Duke Albert received the most important impulses for the creation of the collection from his wife, Archduchess Maria Christine , who was interested in art and who was also able to support him financially with her enormous fortune. The ducal collection includes works by artists from the early 15th to early 19th centuries. From the beginning, Duke Albert structured his collection systematically according to art historical criteria, according to schools and art landscapes. The Germans and Austrians take first place, followed by the works of Dutch, Italian and French artists.

In the last two decades of his life, Albert increasingly acquired works by contemporary artists ("Maîtres modern"). They make up around a third of his collection of drawings. All drawings from Albert's possession are stamped with a stamp designed by the Duke himself: his monogram "AS" for Albert von Sachsen. In addition to historical and genre depictions, Duke Albert was particularly fond of landscapes. The collector preferred works that were carefully drawn and worked out in color or with washes : he was less interested in the drawing as a document of an artistic creative process, but as a work equivalent to the painting with its own aesthetic qualities inherent only in the "light" drawing.

In 1816, Duke Albert designated his collection of graphics as an indivisible and inalienable entails commission , as a result of which it fell to his universal heir and adoptive son Archduke Karl in 1822 and was then administered by Archduke Albrecht (statue in front of the palace) and Friedrich , both generals of the monarchy like Karl. As the Habsburg Fideikommiss, the building and art collection fell under the Habsburg Law after the end of the monarchy and therefore became Austrian state property in April 1919. The collection has been completely preserved to this day.

The library, comprising 25,000 volumes, and the furniture, however, were most recently the private property of Archduke Friedrich, were removed by him in 1919 and have since passed to various buyers. In recent years, however, the Albertina has purchased a number of furnishings that were essential for the original furnishings of the Habsburg state rooms in the palace.

History of the palace

The Palais Duke Alberts with the Augustinian Bastion, 1816

In 1744 Maria Theresa had the palace built for her close friend and advisor Don Emanuel Teles da Silva Conde Tarouca . The architect was Mauro Ignazio Valmaggini . In 1792 Albert and Marie Christine had to flee from Laeken Castle in the Austrian Netherlands, where they were governors, due to war and revolution . Back in Vienna, the couple needed proper accommodation, whereupon Emperor Franz II gave them the palace on the Augustinian Bastion - today's Albertina - as a present.

Albert initially had the building adapted for his graphic collection and the library and then expanded with a representative wing (between 1802 and 1804). The 150-meter-long facade impressively demonstrated to the emperor, who resides next door in the Hofburg , the Duke's financial potency and self-esteem. The pieces of equipment that were taken away from Laeken Castle, such as furniture, shutters and wall paneling, were integrated into the new state rooms. Silk coverings from Lyon , ornate inlaid floors and gold-plated crystal chandeliers complemented the magnificent appearance.

History of the collection

Vienna and the Imperial Court around 1780

During the reign of Maria Theresa, the imperial court in Vienna presented itself in courtly splendor and late baroque splendor. She ruled the countries of the Habsburg Monarchy and her husband Franz Stephan of Lorraine ruled as emperor in the Holy Roman Empire of the German nation from 1745 . The mother of the country ensured the continued existence of the dynasty with 16 children, and Franz I Stephan generated a gigantic fortune as a business magnate, which, as a family fund, would financially support his descendants. The everyday life of the imperial family was strictly regulated, which is why raising children was subject to strict guidelines. From the age of four languages, history, religion, music and dance were taught; scientific and artistic interests were encouraged early on. Archduchess Marie Christine was a talented draftswoman who copied all her life from models from Dutch and French masters. By 1765 she matured into a proud, self-confident and cultivated "grande dame" who, thanks to her education and representation, was able to meet the dynastic demands of the House of Habsburg-Lothringen.

Albert and Marie Christine

Archduchess Marie Christine, 1778

Maria Theresa saw her children as dynastic capital and did not choose the spouses of her children without political considerations. Prince Albert met 17-year-old Marie Christine in 1760 when he was visiting his aunt Maria Theresia in Vienna . It was not until the spring of 1764 that she returned his passionate feelings and the monarch granted her favorite daughter a love marriage with the dashing Saxon. The wedding ceremony took place in the Vienna Hofburg on April 2, 1766 while the deceased Emperor Franz I Stephan was mourning . The signing of the marriage contract on April 5, 1766, gave Prince Albert a woman with a fortune of 4 million guilders (approx. 63 million euros). While Marie Christine was allowed to retain the title of Archduchess throughout her life, her lower-ranking bridegroom received the coat of arms and the title of the Duchy of Teschen and from then on called himself Duke Albert von Sachsen-Teschen. The wedding was celebrated on April 6, 1766 in a small, familiar setting and "incognito" in Schloss Hof . The love marriage was followed by a happy marriage. "Mimi" and "Berti", the intimate nicknames, were linked by an intimate and passionate love throughout their lives. Maria Theresa appointed her son-in-law Reichsfeldmarschall and Locumtenens (governor) of Hungary ; from April 1766 the couple resided in the royal palace in Pressburg .

Duke Albert, 1777

Duke Albert von Sachsen-Teschen and Archduchess Marie Christine were not ruling monarchs, but due to their high birth they belonged to the European elite. Offices and dignities of the couple - she represented the dynasty in Hungary and the Austrian Netherlands (where she was co-regent of her husband), he assumed the position of Reich (general) field marshal, Locumtenens, knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece and the Austrian Imperial Leopold. Order , in the Netherlands especially as governor-general, high military, political and social positions - expressed themselves in a lavish lifestyle. Their feudal need for representation was reflected in an extensive court, illustrious festivals and select hunting parties. The royal palaces in Pressburg and Brussels as well as the Viennese palace housed unique furnishings; Magnificent tapestries from the royal French court manufactories, precious silverware, exquisite furniture and fine busts by Josiah Wedgwood . The 25,000-volume library, which was one of the most important on the continent, was particularly valued. A high level of education, an excellent understanding of art and exquisite taste identified Albert and Marie Christine as "Grand Homme" and "Grande Dame".

journey to Italy

The couple went on an educational trip to Italy from January to July 1776 . The route included visits to the courts of Marie Christine's siblings in Parma , Florence , Naples and Modena, as well as a stay in Rome . There they visited ancient monuments and baroque sacred buildings, the Vatican Museums with the Pio Clementino and the palaces of the Nobilità with their important private collections. Pope Pius VI granted the high couple several audiences and presented them with valuable gifts. In Naples, Herzog Albert was interested in natural phenomena and boarded the British Ambassador Sir William Hamilton the Vesuvius . Marie Christine spent a lot of time with the court society and her favorite sister, Queen Marie Caroline, who gave her several paintings by Jakob Philipp Hackert when she left. The couple stayed the longest at Grand Duke Leopold's Florentine court. The relationship with the brother was warm and the cultural and social life offered a lot of variety. Albert visited the magnificent collections in the Uffizi three times .

The foundation stone of the collection is laid in 1776

At the end of the Grand Tour, Albert and Marie Christine visited the Republic of Venice . According to an order from 1774 to set up a collection of graphics, the Austrian ambassador Giacomo Conte Durazzo presented them with over a thousand copperplate engravings on July 4, 1776 . The former director of the Vienna Court Theater was close friends with the couple and also wrote the Discorso Preliminare for Duke Albert, the founding document of the Albertina, in which he laid down the principles of order and the system of the collection. Based on the Discours préliminaire by D´Alembert on the Encyclopédie edited with Denis Diderot , the collection should not only serve the princely representation, but also contribute to the education and well-being of humanity. On the same day, the Founding Fathers of the United States signed the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia . It was the first constitution based on the principles of the Enlightenment . In the same year Maria Theresia abolished the "embarrassing questioning", Adam Weishaupt founded the Illuminati Order in Ingolstadt , Adam Smith published The Wealth of Nations and James Cook set out on his third and final circumnavigation.

The legacy

Cenotaph Archduchess Marie Christines. Drawing by Domenico del Frate, undated

Archduchess Marie Christine died in Vienna in 1798. Albert commissioned Antonio Canova , the most famous sculptor of his time, to design an imposing grave monument. Canova designed a pyramid-shaped cenotaph that was set up next to the Duke's palace in the Augustinian Church - the first public grave monument for a woman in Vienna.

Duke Albert spent the last decades of his life, largely withdrawn from the public, in his palace and devoted himself primarily to expanding his collection. In 1816, Duke Albert designated the collection as indivisible and inalienable entails in his will. After Albert's death in 1822, the collection, like the palace, was taken over by his heir Archduke Karl , and subsequently by Archduke Albrecht and finally Friedrich . During this time, the graphic collection was expanded further. At that time, however, like the palace, it was no longer in the private ownership of an archduke, but was part of the Habsburg family funds , which were taken over into the possession of the Republic of Austria without compensation under the Habsburg Law of 1919 .

The Albertina in the 1st Republic

View of Albrechtsplatz with the Albertina (former Palais Archduke Friedrich) and the Mozart monument , after 1920

With the end of the monarchy in 1918, the period of decline began for the representative building of the Albertina. Nothing was supposed to remind of the Habsburg roots of the collection, from now on the history of the palace was systematically suppressed, the memory of its inhabitants and the splendid classical furnishings of the state apartments took place. In April 1919 the building and collection became the property of the Republic. In 1920 the collection was merged with the stock of prints from the former imperial court library . In the same year, all the state rooms were closed to the public and used as offices, library or to store the collection. Careful handling of the precious decorations was not given, as a result of which the glamorous cultural heritage was gradually devastated. However, one can only speak of an actual will to destroy after the Second World War. The building and collection have been officially named Albertina since 1921. As much as the building suffered, the constant expansion of the collection aimed at by Duke Albert was continued from 1923 to 1934 by the then director of the Albertina, Alfred Stix. He succeeded in completing the holdings by acquiring French and German drawings from the 19th century, which until now was barely represented.

The Albertina during World War II and after

Albertinaplatz with a view of the Albertina and the subsequently demolished Philipphof (right) after the bombing of March 12, 1945

From 1934 until the end of the Second World War, Alfred Stix continued to focus on expanding the Austrian and German graphics of the 19th and 20th centuries. On March 12, 1945, the Albertina was badly damaged in an American bomb attack. Instead of rebuilding the palace afterwards, the erosion of history that began in 1919 was continued. The former Habsburg palace was in 1952 - when the "Albertina Graphic Collection" reopened - an unadorned, architecturally uninteresting building that was robbed of its historical identity. For decades, the Albertina was only open to the public for a few hours a day (around 1936: 27 hours per week, 1959: 35 hours per week) and had low visitor numbers. Its scientific directors attached much more importance to its study character than to the effect of the collection on the general public. The fact that many graphics were only rarely allowed to be exposed to light for conservation reasons contributed significantly to this attitude.

From 1962 to 1986 Walter Koschatzky acted as director. He organized over 200 exhibitions and published numerous art historical works on the graphic arts. In his era, the Albertina was publicly noticed again.

present

Insight into the deep storage

The Albertina was reopened to the public in 2003 after more than a decade of closure, extensive expansion, modernization and careful restoration. According to plan, the Albertina was to be reopened in 2002 after the renovation work started in the early 1990s. The discovery of a Roman burial ground with over 130 graves delayed the renovation. In the course of the restoration, missing parts of the façades that were chipped off in the 1950s were reconstructed and the Habsburg state rooms were restored. For the first time in 80 years, the classicist state rooms were renovated and large parts of the original furniture commissioned from Josef Danhauser by Duke Albert 1780 to 1805 and Archduke Karl in 1822, which had been scattered around the world after the First World War, were bought back. After the state rooms had been used as offices and depots for 80 years, they were opened to the public for the first time in the history of the palace. The museum entrance was restored to the original historical level of the bastion. In order to make the comprehensive presentation of the collections possible, four exhibition halls were set up and the exhibition area expanded from just 150 m² to 5,000 m². At the same time, an underground storage facility with 5,000 cubic meters was built.

Hans Hollein was commissioned with the redesign of the Entreé . In particular, the so-called “Soravia Wing”, a conspicuous canopy, was the focus of controversial and mostly rather critical media attention. With the wing, the modernization of the infrastructure of the museum was to be symbolically made clear to the outside, which is why a far cantilevered roof wing was chosen. The over 60-meter-long wing, the escalator that pierced the bastion at an angle and the panorama lift were intended to visually and technically shorten the distance between street level and the entrance to the bastion.

Since his appointment as director of the Albertina in 1999, Klaus Albrecht Schröder has been responsible for the renovation and repositioning of the building, which has been defined as a scientific institution under public law since January 1, 2000 . At the same time, the name of the museum was changed to "Albertina" in order to express the originally intended unity of the founder of the collection, palace and museum. In addition, the "Graphic Collection" was taken into account in the museum name to the fact of the loss that the Albertina now houses three large collections: in addition to the graphic collection of the architecture collection and in 2000 through the consolidation of important historical collections of graphic Federal Training and Research Institute with Photo collection founded in the photo archive of Langewieschen Verlag (Blue Books). In the following years, however, Schröder was increasingly not satisfied with presenting his own collections, but instead entered into collaborations with private partners and permanent lenders.

In terms of visitor numbers, the move away from the sole exhibition of the graphic collection turned out to be a success: These increased enormously. Today the museum is one of the most visited sights in Vienna and recorded over a million visits in 2018.

Klaus Albrecht Schröder introduced a new presentation doctrine at the Albertina that underlines the indivisibility of the artistic. The expansion of the Albertina into an art museum with four different collections (graphic collection, photo collection, painting collection, architecture collection) as well as the historical place of remembrance in the state rooms is also reflected in the number of employees at the Albertina: after 60 employees in 1999, the Albertina is today the 300 employees.

Insight into the study room

In 2008 a new study room was opened. As part of the underground, four-story research center in which u. a. the library, the restoration and the workshops of the Albertina are housed, today the collection of over a million works is made accessible in the approximately 300 m² large hall.

During heavy rainfalls in June 2009 , water penetrated the deep storage. The detectors had recognized the entry of water, but this paralyzed the robots. To avoid major damage, 950,000 collectibles had to be relocated.

ladder

  • Archducal Collection (since 1816 Fideikommiss):
    • Franz Rechberger : 1822–1827 head of the collection and 1827–1841 director of the collection
    • Carl Sengel: 1847–1863 director of the collection
    • Carl Müller: 1864–1868 director of the collection
    • Moriz Thausing : 1868–1876 head of the collection and 1876–1884 director of the collection
    • Josef Schönbrunner : 1884–1896 inspector of the collection and 1896–1905 director of the collection
    • Joseph Meder : 1905–1909 inspector of the collection, then until April 10, 1919 director of the fideikommissarische collection and then until December 25, 1920 director of the graphic collection nationalized in accordance with the Habsburg law of April 3, 1919
  • Albertina (State) Graphic Collection
    • Joseph Meder : December 25, 1920–1922 director of the Albertina
    • Alfred Stix : 1923 provisional director of the Albertina and 1923–1934 director of the Albertina
    • Josef Bick : 1934–1938 director of the Albertina and 1945–1946 director of the Albertina
    • Anton Reichel : 1938–1942 provisional director of the Albertina and 1942– February 1945 director of the Albertina
    • Heinrich Leporini : February to May 1945 provisional director of the Albertina
    • George Saiko : May to July 1945 provisional director of the Albertina
    • Josef Bick : 1945–1946 (again) director of the Albertina
    • Karl Garzarolli-Thurnlackh : March to August 1946 director of the Albertina and August 1946 to April 1947 director of the Albertina
    • Otto Benesch : May 1947 until the end of 1947 director of the Albertina and from late 1947 until 1961 director of the Albertina
    • Walter Koschatzky : 1962–1986 director of the Albertina
    • Erwin Mitsch: 1986–1987 interim director of the Albertina
    • Konrad Oberhuber : 1987–1999 director of the Albertina
    • Klaus Albrecht Schröder : since 1999 director of the Albertina

Collections

The Albertina houses three collections (as of April 2015):

  • Graphic collection: around 950,000 drawings and prints, sculptures and ceramics (160)
  • Architectural collection: 50,000 plans, sketches and models
  • Photo collection: 101,000 individual objects

The main focus of the graphic collection is:

  • Albrecht Dürer and his time
  • The Italian Masters of the Renaissance
  • Dutch art of the 16th and 17th centuries
  • Italian baroque and late baroque
  • French drawings of the 18th century
  • 19th century Austrian watercolor painting
  • Vienna around 1900
  • Classic modern and contemporary art

In spring 2007, the Albertina also received previously in Salzburg -based Batliner Collection as a permanent loan. The collection of Rita and Herbert Batliner is one of the most important European private collections. It includes important works of classical modernism, from French impressionism to the German expressionism of the “ Blauer Reiter ” and the “ Brücke ” to works of Fauvism or the Russian avant-garde from Chagall to Malevich . With this addition to the collection, the Albertina is presenting a permanent exhibition from its own holdings for the first time in its history.

On February 16, 2017, the Minister of Culture Thomas Drozda , Karlheinz Essl and the Albertina Director Klaus Albrecht Schröder announced that the Essl Collection was on permanent loan to the Albertina. The permanent loan is set until 2044. The Albertina will also take over the former museum of the collection as a depot for the next ten years.

Others

1988–2002: 20 schillings, back

The Albertina was depicted on the back of the 20-schilling note from October 19, 1988 to February 28, 2002, when the schilling was withdrawn from circulation as cash after the introduction of the euro . ( Moritz Daffinger , miniature portrait of whom is in the Albertina, was shown on the front .)

Movies

Nearby structures

See also

Web links

Commons : Albertina (Vienna)  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

literature

  • Christian Benedik and Klaus Albrecht Schröder: The founding of the Albertina - Duke Albert and his time . Hatje Cantz, Ostfildern, Germany 2014.
  • Christine Ekelhart: Descriptive Catalog of Hand Drawings in the Albertina, Volume XI, French Drawings and Watercolors of the 19th and 20th Centuries of the Albertina . Vienna 2007.
  • Heinz Widauer: Descriptive catalog of the hand drawings in the Albertina graphic collection. Volume X, The French Drawings of the Albertina. From the baroque to the early rococo . Vienna-Cologne-Weimar 2004.
  • Barbara Dossi: Collection history and masterpieces . Prestel, Munich-New York 1998.
  • Maren Gröning and Marie Luise Sternath: Descriptive catalog of the hand drawings in the Albertina Graphic Collection, Volume IX, The German and Swiss drawings of the late 18th century . Vienna 1997.
  • Eckhart Knab and Heinz Widauer: Descriptive catalog of the hand drawings in the Albertina graphic collection. Volume VIII, The Drawings of the French School from Clouet to Le Brun . Vienna 1993.
  • Luke Hermann: Descriptive catalog of the hand drawings in the Albertina Graphic Collection, Volume VII, The English School. Drawings and watercolors by British artists . Vienna 1992.
  • Veronika Birke, Janine Kertész: The Italian drawings of the Albertina. (=  Albertina publications . General directory in 4 volumes, 1992–1997, No. 33-36 ). Vienna / Cologne / Weimar.

Individual evidence

  1. a b c d e f g Christian Benedik, Klaus Albrecht Schröder: The foundation of the Albertina - Duke Albert and his time . Ed .: Albertina. 2014 (publication for the exhibition Dürer, Michelangelo, Rubens. The 100 Masterpieces of the Albertina).
  2. Kenotaph is male according to the Austrian dictionary, neuter according to Duden.
  3. a b Christian Benedik: The Albertina - the palace and the Habsburg state rooms . Ed .: Albertina. 2008.
  4. Conversion to installments , Nextroom.at (accessed June 25, 2009)
  5. The central depot of the Albertina ( Memento from May 18, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) (PDF; 90 kB)
  6. Cf. u. a. the article by Jan Tabor in Falter (weekly newspaper) of December 17, 2003, and previously Elisabeth Leopold in Kronen-Zeitung of September 14, 2003 as well as Kurier and Der Standard of December 12, 2003, attached as a web link
  7. ^ Albertina: Hundreds of protective covers soaked on ORF Vienna on June 25, 2009, accessed on June 29, 2009
  8. ^ Barbara Dossi: Collection history and masterpieces . Ed .: Albertina. 1998.
  9. ^ Klaus Schröder, Susanne Berchtold: Monet to Picasso: the Batliner Collection . Ed .: Graphic Collection Albertina. 2007 (exhibition at the Albertina).
  10. Essl Collection goes to Albertina , orf.at , February 16, 2017
  11. ^ The Essl Collection goes to the Albertina , Die Presse , February 16, 2017

Coordinates: 48 ° 12 ′ 16 ″  N , 16 ° 22 ′ 4 ″  E