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Altstadt
Tour #79

Grete Wiesenthal Suite

Spherical, dynamic and with a close connection to nature: Suite #79 is a light-footed tribute to the Viennese dance revolutionary and grand cousin of Otto Wiesenthal. Sensitively designed by Austrian architect Antonella Amesberger. Inspired by the soloistic liberating dance posture with which Grete Wiesenthal and her sisters brought music and movement into harmony and ecstasy during the fin de siècle.

 

The beauty of the language
of the body in dance

During her lifetime, it was the goal of Otto Wiesenthal's great cousin to make this beauty visible. The Grete Wiesenthal Suite invites you to wander in the footsteps of the dancer in the present.

"With open hair and flowing dresses, Grete Wiesenthal broke out of the classical ballet school. The soloistic freedom and lightness gave reason to abstract her movements by means of lines and to print them on a textile medium: the dynamic rapport dances on curtains through the suite. The ceiling mirror invites you to experience the spherical dance of the Wiesenthal technique: Head up and turn with arms raised ..."

Antonella Amesberger

Residing in an ambience of timeless elegance and cultural significance

Upon entering the salon, the large oval ceiling mirror already catches the eye, inviting you to put yourself in the dancer's posture and thus view yourself from a different perspective. For dance or meeting appointments of all kinds, flexible table modules, handmade in Vienna, can be arranged spontaneously and agilely.  Visitors will find exciting literature on Viennese dance modernism in the library, which was designed as a tribute to the protagonist's salon. At the beginning of the 1930s, Grete Wiesenthal's salon was considered a social and intellectual center for well-known personalities such as Hugo von Hofmannsthal, Franz Theodor Csokor, Carl Zuckmayer and Stefan Zweig.

The rhythmic movement of body and fabric is reflected on flowing curtains and textiles of the suite, graphically abstracted and applied by screen-printing craft. Spherical, dynamic, and close to nature, the living spaces feature warm greens in felt and linoleum, designer Felice Rix's (Wiener Werkstätte) floral wallpaper design, and a bed head that deliberately allows the grain of the wood to be visible. Above is a work by R.C. Andersen depicting Grete Wiesenthal dancing, at the Salzburg Festival.  Timeless globe lights, deliberately placed color accents in lemon yellow and cobalt blue, and the artistic interpretation of Erwin Lang's woodcuts by Sebastian Schager, who is rooted in street art, turn the suite into a feel-good oasis with a modern Viennese context.

In the adjoining room, which can optionally be used as an additional bedroom, a pianino, as well as a series of dance lithographs, which Erwin Lang has combined with poems by Richard Billinger, create a musical ambience. Furniture classics by revolutionary designers, such as the swinging rocking chair by Patricia Urquiola or the cozy Bowl Chair by Lina Bo Bardi create a dynamic seating experience.

More ...

Once titled Library Suite, the Grete Wiesenthal Suite still features a fine selection of books related to Viennese dance modernism. Today, Library Suite #35 is located on the second floor in a separate wing.Do you also want to stay in a suite like #79? It is a Suite XXL.

Umweltzeichen
84 Rooms

Altstadt ViennaKirchengasse 41, 1070 Wien, Österreich, Tel. +43 1 522 66 66, hotel@altstadt.at