Silly Supper: Vienna Secession

This month, I will aim to do a series on Secession, which was inspired by a recent trip to the exhibition "Vienna:Art & Design" at NGV. I thought it was quite 'interesting' (and rather annoying and disappointing) to note that understandably, whilst photography of the exhibit is not allowed, writing notes during the exhibition is also prohibited. Which brings me to this: how am I suppose to learn when one of my objective for visiting in the first place is to educate myself? And how logical is it that whilst written note is not permitted, "feel free to use your Ipad or Smartphone to make note of the exhibition"? NGV, you have disappointed me!

Now that I have had my say, we will take a look at Secession Vienna, a short but radical art movement which lasted for only 7 years. Founded in 1897, the Vereinigung Bildender Künstler Österreichs comprised of Viennese artists, architects and designers like Gustav Klimt, Koloman Moser, Josef Hoffmann, Joseph Olbrich, Max Kurzweil and others. What they wanted was to look beyond the confines of historical and local art as inspiration, embracing the philosophy that all forms of art having equal status and should aspire to Gesamtkunstwerk (total body of art). Which meant that all artistic disciplines should inspire and be inspired by each other - painting, architecture, graphic design, fashion, decorative art, music and ideas. Given its short stint, the legacy of this movement can be seen in the construction of the iconic Secession Hall and numerous work produced from the artistic hub of Wiener Werkstätte