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Vienna, Austriaby Gabriela Bittner-KrainzContemporary art has an incredible social importance in Vienna, so much so that it has long since become a fundamental aspectof the lifestyle of the city. The Viennese City Counselor for Cultural Affairs quoted the famous Austrian art-magazine “art” lastyear, referencing the publication’s praise for Vienna as the “new Berlin.” Young, cheeky political artists are causing a sensationin the city and are playing a role in reviving the fine art scene, which is itself a vibrant one, being considered “less hysterical thanLondon and more personal than Berlin.”The high quality of the Viennese art universities, their outstanding lecturers, and various artist-in-residence programs attractyoung artists to the city from all over Europe. Almost every month artists and collectors open new spaces where they come togetherin a cooperative relationship and exchange their views and ideas. The diversity adds to the vibrancy of the contemporaryart scene, stimulating all the participants.Beside this young, active and self-organized scene the city boasts over 150 established Galleries and no less than 25 museumswhich show an enormous range of arts and styles. I am particularly lucky where I live, as I am close to the MUMOK – the formerimperial stables, now one of the 10 largest cultural institutions in the world. Its 60.000m2 space offers a location for modern andcontemporary art and culture, space for cultural initiatives, and huge exhibition halls for classical art, modern art and artists ofthe new century.I am proud to walk the same streets as so many famous Austrian artists of the past: Gustav Klimt, Egon Schiele, Alfred Kubin,Friedensreich Hundertwasser, Oskar Kokoschka, Alfons Walde, Alfred Hrdlicka, Max Weiler... Even better, many well-knownartists of the present day also make Vienna their home: Ernst Fuchs, Anton Lehmden, Arnulf Rainer, Herman Nitsch, ChristianLudwig Attersee, Herbert Brandl, Maria Lassnig, Valie Export. The past and the present unite to contribute to the wonderful artscene of an inspiring and remarkable city.126 ARTisSpectrum