(no subject)

[solitary_summer]

Yesterday: finally got to visit the Leopold Museum, only, oh, about two years after if opened. Go me. [/sarcasm] Anyway, not overly impressed - or perhaps grumpy to begin with. Whoever thought it was a good idea to put large windows into a building meant to primarily exhibit paintings, a good part of which are behind glass... the view across Vienna was kind of nice, but it didn't compensate for all the times I had to actively search for a spot where you could see the painting rather than all kinds of reflections. This being an dark, overcast day. Architecture is perhaps the art that can least afford being self indulgent, but sadly so often is.

Some beautiful late 19th century impressionistic landscape paintings, Emil Jacob Schindler, Tina Blau, Eugen Jettel, Rudolf Ribarz.

Exhibition, SCHIELE / JANSSEN: Selbstinszenierung, Eros, Tod, vaguely interesting, though I was not really in the mood to put up any real intellectual effort... some of Janssen's etchings ('Tod'), however...endless variations of dissolving, running, fading, fragmented or distorted faces, some self-portraits, some not... strikingly (nauseatingly) conveying the concept of death, dissolution of self.

Schiele, but perhaps that's the result of a certain over-exposure you can't quite avoid here, I only like in small doses, and best at his most abstract and minimalist. Or, again, his landscape paintings. (Sich umarmende Mädchenakte, Liegendes Neugeborenes, Selbstseher, Tote Mutter, Kleiner Baum im Spätherbst, Herbstbaum in bewegter Luft, Versinkende Sonne)

Otherwise... the Wiener Werkstätte design for the most part is too severe for my taste, some of the Albin Egger Lienz landcapes I rather liked, but the greatest part of the more modern work goes right over my head/heart/obviously all too limited artistic appreciation ability.

.:.:.:.

Home, watched the taped men's free program and ice dancing free dance from the World Figure Skating Championships, though without much enthusiasm. I miss Yagudin, he really pushed things choreography-wise. Joubert et al... *shrug* Emanuel Sandhu seemed kind of interesting. I didn't even watch the whole of Lindemann's program, but he was so radiant when he won bronze (as opposed to the obviously quite pissed Joubert), you just had to be happy for him... (And someone give Plushenko a haircut. Being from Russia is really no excuse for that kind of thing today.)

Ice dance... Really liked Navka/Kostomarov, though Denkova/Staviski were more interesting, and especially their exhibition program was stunning. And whoever did the Carmina Burana program earlier, liked it a lot, but still forgot the names...