Wiener Museum of Decorative Arts / WMODA

Temporarily Closed

The WMODA team has been hard at work curating our Fired Arts collection to bring you another amazing museum experience.  We are currently working on necessary modifications to our building and we appreciate your continued patience as we strive towards our reopening date. Keep in touch and receive updates through Through the Looking Glass our e-newsletter.

Ongoing:

Featured Collections

Art on Fire – The Chihuly Connection

Dale Chihuly is arguably the most famous glass artist in the world. His name draws vast crowds to site-specific glass installations across the globe as well as to art galleries and museums internationally. The stunning Art on Fire exhibit at the Wiener Museum of Decorative Arts presents the creative exuberance of Chihuly’s glass art.

A fabulous Macchia garden seems to burst into bloom along with monumental Ikebana flower arrangements. A Persian wall is accompanied by Chihuly’s paintings for the original installation. Chihuly’s luminous Baskets and sensual Seaforms vie for attention with his flamboyant Venetians. A Chihuly Venetian was once described as a vase that has had an affair with a chandelier.

Art Nouveau & Art Deco

The Art Nouveau

The Art Nouveau style blossomed around the world after the spectacular Paris exhibition of decorative arts in 1900. The sensuous flowing lines and elegant forms were derived from nature – notably birds, flowers, trees and insects. Sinuous linear patterns were created in relief with slip-trailing techniques perfected by the Royal Doulton, Minton, and Moorcroft Potteries. Butterflies and peacocks with iridescent colors were particularly popular. In Europe, shimmering luster glazes on art nouveau sculptures were the specialty of Zsolnay of Hungary while Goldscheider of Austria produced patinated bronzed glaze effects for their monumental terracotta statues of women in flowing drapery.

The Jazz Age

A new design style emerged in the 1920s, which became known as Art Deco after the Paris exhibition of 1925. In contrast to naturalistic curves, Art Deco featured abstract decoration and geometric shapes inspired by machines and man-made objects. British designer, Clarice Cliff introduced her Bizarre Ware at the Wilkinson factory in 1927 and it became hugely popular with the British public after the trauma of the Great War. War-weary Europeans cried out for vivid colors and amusing designs to enliven their drab surroundings. The fashions of the Jazz Age inspired porcelain figurines by Royal Doulton, Goldscheider, Lenci and other European factories. The 1930s was the “Golden Age of Hollywood” with motion pictures featuring iconic film stars whose sensual pin-up photos presented a new concept of glamour.

A Safari for the Soul

Ardmore from Africa

Ardmore is a thriving artist community creating unique ceramics in the Natal Midlands of South Africa. The studio was founded by Fée Halsted in 1985 when she moved to a remote farm and began teaching local people how to model and paint pottery. Originally Fée worked with Bonnie Ntshalintshali, the daughter of the farm’s housekeeper, and they quickly developed a creative synergy. Their collaboration drew national attention when they won the prestigious Standard Bank Young Artist award in 1990. Soon Bonnie’s family and friends were drawn to Ardmore to learn from Fée and earn a living creating ceramic art.

We are because of others

Some of the imagery is drawn from the deep affliction of the HIV-AIDS pandemic, which has taken many lives at Ardmore. The sale of their wonderful works uplifts the Ardmore community and their families as the artists are paid per piece and have a guaranteed market for their endeavors. The success of the Ardmore artists has given them a special status and they are known as the “Isigiwili” – the fortunate ones – working in the spirit of “Ubuntu” – “we are because of others.”