vienna belvedere and conservatory

Vienna Belvedere Garden Structure by SAL

1882 Conservatory in Vienna by SAL

I have paired these two structural photos together, both taken from my collection in Vienna. A glass and steel building constructed in 1882 such as the Conservatory above is one of the earliest examples of modern, industrial architecture constructed shortly after the invention of steel during the Industrial Revolution.



The first photo is a garden structure found within the garden spaces of the Belvedere in Vienna, which is a grand palace structure, similar to Versailles in France, with construction beginning in 1846. Indeed Dominique Girard, who designed the gardens, studied underneath Andre Le Notre who designed the gardens at Versailles.

Both are garden photos with one having the garden inside the structure while the other is an object d'art within the garden at large. What strikes me most about both structures is the play on absolute and negative space. Furthermore, we see what can be done with linear geometries in early forms of architecture.

In the garden objet, we see solid geometries formed on the outside of a skeleton, which is likely the opposite of what one would expect to see. Classic baroque strategy! To set up a scene and then to contradict the ordinary is a rather interesting summation of the baroque style itself. This type of satirical humor we find in geometrical form is exactly the thing I may love most about great examples of architecture. Brilliant!