Vienna Art Nouveau Walk. To explore Vienna’s Art Nouveau heritage on your own, embark on this enlightening self-guided walk through the city’s finest examples of Wiener Jugendstil. Besides iconic landmarks such as the Vienna Secession and Otto Wagner’s celebrated buildings, you will also discover elegant hidden gems that many visitors miss.
Net duration: 1 hour 10 minutes
Length: 4.5 km / 2.8 miles
Anker Clock
Vienna Art Nouveau Walk. Although you are free to start your walk whenever you like, midday is perfect timing.
At exactly 12 noon, the breathtaking Anker Clock at Hoher Markt comes alive: all 12 colourful historic figures parade across the clock face to music. Among them are Marcus Aurelius, Charlemagne, Prince Eugene of Savoy, Empress Maria Theresia and Joseph Haydn — personalities who shaped Vienna’s history.
Created in 1914 by Art Nouveau artist Franz Matsch, the clock bridges Hoher Markt 10–11 and Hoher Markt 12. One of its most unusual features is its horizontal clock face, rather than the traditional round design.
Pharmacy Zum Weissen Engel
Vienna Art Nouveau Walk. As you begin in the heart of Vienna, your second stop is an unexpected Jugendstil treasure: a pharmacy. At Am Hof / Bognergasse 9, two life-size mosaic angels guard the entrance to Apotheke Zum Weissen Engel.
Behind the marble façade lies a wonderfully elegant interior filled with labelled porcelain jars, dark wooden shelves, decorative chandeliers and stone angel sculptures. Austrian architect Oskar Laske designed the building, adding another striking example to Vienna’s Art Nouveau architecture.
If you pass during opening hours, step inside. Even a quick visit rewards you with one of the city’s most atmospheric Art Nouveau interiors.
Artaria House
Vienna Art Nouveau Walk. Around the corner at Kohlmarkt, an even lesser known Jugendstil discovery waits. At Kohlmarkt 9, look up from the store front to gaze at the distinctive facade of the Artaria House.
Squeezed in between two older historic town houses, the building’s dark window frames with unique square grids sharply contrast its crisp white mural. Even more characteristic is the projecting roof decorated with gold painted panels.
As a matter of fact, Jugendstil architect Max Fabiani was less well known. However, in 1912, he did re-appear at a side scene of Austrian history when in 1912 he employed a young drawing assistant, called Adolf Hitler. The employment lasted just a few weeks, as Hitler clearly underperformed. From the Artaria House, head through Johannesgasse for Stadtpark.
Wien River Promenade And Stadtpark Station
Vienna Art Nouveau Walk. While Vienna’s U4 underground line strings together Otto Wagner’s famous Jugendstil stations like pearls, relatively few visitors explore the Wien River promenade behind Stadtpark station.
Here, the river cuts through the park alongside a graceful Art Nouveau promenade with elegant portals and decorative blue vases. Architect Friedrich Ohmann designed both the promenade and several nearby bridges, creating one of Vienna’s most charming urban landscapes.
From Stadtpark station, follow Ringstrasse and Schwarzenbergplatz toward Karlsplatz and the Otto Wagner pavilions.
Otto Wagner Pavilions and U4 metro station
Vienna Art Nouveau Walk. Although the two Otto Wagner pavilions appear almost lost within the vast expanse of Karlsplatz, they deserve close attention. Decorated with green and gold Jugendstil ornaments, they once served as Vienna’s most spectacular city railway stations until 1981.
Public protests ultimately saved the pavilions from demolition. Today, one pavilion houses a compact exhibition dedicated to Otto Wagner’s visionary architecture and his influence on Viennese modernism.
The U4 underground station was also designed by Otto Wagner, who was responsible for the design of most of the beautiful green cast iron stations along the U4 overground line.
Secession Building
Vienna Art Nouveau Walk. Once you manage to leave the Otto Wagner pavilions behind, cross Resselpark toward the Secession Building.
Few landmarks symbolise Wiener Jugendstil more powerfully than the Secession. Founded in 1897 by Gustav Klimt and fellow revolutionary artists, the movement transformed Vienna’s artistic landscape and produced one of Europe’s most recognisable Art Nouveau buildings. Before heading inside to admire Klimt’s celebrated Beethoven Frieze, take time to walk around the exterior and study the rich reliefs, floral motifs and golden dome.
In 1897, Gustav Klimt and other secessionist artists founded the club of revolutionary artists, which produced this breathtaking building. Before you pay tribute to the sensational Frieze, take some time to walk around the building which is full of beautiful reliefs and ornaments. Read more in my review of the Vienna Secession. Because of the Beethoven Frieze I have also included the Secession in my art-focussed Vienna 1900 tour
Naschmarkt
Vienna Art Nouveau Walk. Why do I include a flea and food market such as Vienna’s Naschmarkt in the Art Nouveau walk? Because its around 120 lovely landmarked stalls and shops date from the early 20th century.
Most of them have the original swirly dark green cast iron structure that you will also find at many U4 underground stations in the area. On top, the Naschmarkt spans the bridge between daily Art Nouveau architecture and one of the most bustling contemporary areas of Vienna.
Not to mention that some of the finest Art Nouveau buildings by renown architect Otto Wagner gather just around the Naschmarkt. Read more on the Naschmarkt in Vienna.
Otto Wagner Buildings
Vienna Art Nouveau Walk. Continue strolling through the Naschmarkt area toward Linke Wienzeile 38, 40 and 42. These extraordinary apartment houses rank among Otto Wagner’s most famous Art Nouveau creations.
Their richly decorated façades, floral motifs and ornamental details represent classic Vienna Secession architecture at its finest.
Wagner designed these masterpieces at the end of the 19th century, helping shape Vienna’s reputation as one of Europe’s Art Nouveau capitals. In the photo above you can see Wagner’s own house at Köstlergasse. Read more about these buildings in Otto Wagner.
Vienna Art Nouveau Walk: Map And Walking Route
To access the interactive map, just click on it.
- to gain an in-depth understanding of Vienna’s Art Nouveau movement join an expert guided Art Nouveau walk
- for an otherworldly Art Nouveau experience visit the Otto Wagner Church
- go to Otto Wagner in Vienna: Modernism and Art Nouveau
- check out more self-guided Vienna walks
- back to What To Do In Vienna
