Free Enjoyment of Art in Cooperation with PORR

31.05.2023

Every first Thursday of each month, from 6 pm to 9 pm, the company PORR AG offers visitors free guided tours and admission to the Leopold Museum.

The Leopold Museum continues its cooperation with the company PORR AG, affording visitors the chance to visit the museum for free every first Thursday of each month from 6 pm to 9 pm. As art patrons with special ties to Viennese Modernism, the company further offers free guided tours of the permanent presentation Vienna 1900. Birth of Modernism on PORR Nights. Since the first PORR Night in January 2022, thousands of visitors have enjoyed this free cultural experience at the Leopold Museum.

Enjoying the Summer at the Leopold Museum with PORR

This summer, the Leopold Museum shines the spotlight on two eminent art collections. The permanent presentation Vienna 1900. Birth of Modernism – over three floors and with changing exhibits – shows exquisite works from the Leopold Collection, supplemented with prominent loans, allowing visitors to delve into the unique atmosphere of the fin-de-siècle. Today, the ground-breaking artistic, intellectual and social developments of this time are as fascinating as ever.

The permanent presentation also addresses the themes of urban development and architecture – the thematic emphases of the free guided tours on PORR Nights at the Leopold Museum. The construction of the Vienna Ringstrasse, the most extensive urban development project in the former Austro-Hungarian Monarchy, led to the city becoming significantly larger and more densely populated. In 1873, the implementation of the first Emperor Franz Joseph Mountain Spring Pipeline ensured a supply of clean drinking water across the city, while Vienna’s sewer system was extended. The Vienna city railway was built, and some of the route of the originally steam-powered urban train is still being used today by the Vienna underground.

Another highlight is the presentation of a sensational art collection, AMAZING. The Würth Collection, the most comprehensive exhibition of the Würth Collection in Austria to date. One of the largest private collections in Europe, it is also among the most eminent art collections worldwide. The selection from the compilation, which comprises some 19,000 works, includes around 200 exhibits by approximately 75 exponents of Classical Modernism and contemporary art. Over two exhibition floors, the presentation provides phenomenal insights into more than 100 years of art history.

Innovation and Tradition – PORR from the Gründerzeit Era via Modernism to the Present

An innovative and future-oriented company, PORR has been setting new standards in construction for 150 years. It played an essential part in the eminent construction projects of the Gründerzeit era and Viennese Modernism, was involved in the building of the Ringstrasse and the 1873 World Fair at the Prater, and was responsible for the erection of the Austrian National Bank (formerly the printing works of the Austro-Hungarian Bank) and the Technical Museum of Vienna (which opened in 1908 as the Technical Museum of Industry and Commerce). With around 20,000 employees, it is currently one of the largest Austrian construction companies and among the top players in Europe. A full service provider, PORR offers all services in structural and civil engineering as well as infrastructure construction across the entire supply chain in the construction sector.

Free Enjoyment of Art “Powered by PORR”

In addition to the free entry to the museum, the PORR Nights further offer free guided tours at 6.30 pm and 7 pm of the permanent presentation Vienna 1900. Birth of Modernism on the following themes:

The Vienna Ringstrasse and Urban Development at the Turn of the Century

The construction of the 5.3-km boulevard under Emperor Franz Joseph not only changed the face of the city but is also exemplary for the large-scale urban development projects carried out in Vienna around 1900. Along the new traffic routes, public and private buildings were erected and decorated by the great artists of the time.

Following in the Footsteps of Loos, Hoffmann and Wagner – Architectural Geniuses of Modernism

These three eminent architects of the fin-de-siècle shaped the image of Vienna as a modern metropolis unlike any other. With their pioneering achievements in urban planning, architecture and design, which continue to have an effect today, they set entirely new standards and laid the foundations for a modern way of life.

The next PORR Night will be held on 1st June 2023 from 6 pm to 9 pm.

Further information

 

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