Vienna has plenty of gorgeous confections of the old days, from medieval to Gothic and especially the Baroque and 19th-century Romantic styles, not to mention the Jugendstil of the turn of the last century. But this one is different…very different.
Hundertwasser House, named for its creator Friedensreich Hundertwasser (who named himself that, Rich-in-peace Hundred Waters) is a colorful attempt to provide livable housing for the masses, combined with a feeling of being in charge of their own destiny. Here’s a description from the city tourism site:
The Hundertwasser House in Vienna bears the unmistakable hand of the artist Friedensreich Hundertwasser, whose pen-name was Friedrich Stowasser. The colorfully decorated exterior faÇade of Hundertwasser House in Vienna draws attention to itself almost magically. Anyone who lives in the Hundertwasser House also has the right to decorate the faÇade around the windows entirely to their own taste. More than 200 trees and shrubs on the balconies and roof terraces make the Hundertwasserhaus a green oasis in the heart of the city. The Hundertwasserhaus can only be viewed from outside.
Right opposite the Hundertwasserhaus, however, is the Hundertwasser Village, which is open to visitors. It was created out of a tire workshop in 1990-1991. The artist created his own shopping center here with a “village square”, a bar and numerous stores in the typical Hundertwasser style.
That last picture? It’s in the men’s room of the Hundertwasser Village…
