Graz: Dec. 15, 2025–Dec. 21, 2025

15 Dec 2025

We had a light frost overnight, and I got these pictures:

Magenta colored flowers topped with frost

Rose with a very small amount of frost on top of it

Near CityPark mall, this graffito. The text appears to read “Will you marry me?” but the artist ran out of space (or paint)

Heart with arrow through it. Name Julia is in heart. Underneath: Willst du mich Heirat

And an ordinary graffito.

Blue spray-painted face. The mouth is a diagonal line

16 Dec 2025

Bruseum

I decided to go to some of the museums here in Graz. My first stop was the Bruseum, a section of the Neue Galerie dedicated to works by Günter Brus, who, as you can see from the Wikipedia article, was sort of a strange fellow.

Der Schluss der Errinerung ist der Anfang der Beschäftigung mit der Errinerung. Drawing of a standing figure; in an arc around the head are several drawings of the head at different angles

The end of memory is the beginning of engagement with memory.

Four photos of artist with face painted white and a black streak resembling a scar verticallyl drawn on the middle of his face

Neue Galerie

Some more conventional things from the Neue Galerie:

Roughly columnar black stone sculplture.

Geometric patterns in mosaic tile on floor. In center, a black square with embedded whie diamond and a four-way symmetric flower in brown and black.

Mosaic floor tiles. An inner circle is surrounded by twelve smaller circles. Tiles are brown, black, gray, and white.

Drawing of seated, standing, and reclining yellow figures near a broken tree.

Oil painting of farm animals walking away from viewer with a man on horseback; gray clouds in sky and a white house in background.

This reminds me of a painting we had in our house when I was growing up.

Photo of a city with spikes driven through it in a grid pattern. The points of the spikes are facing outwards towards the viewer.

Open wooden box with square stone that would fit in the box next to it. In the lid of the box: “we don’t throw stones at each other any more - robert filliou”

The title of this one is Optimistic box no. 1 [thank god for modern weapons...], ca. 1968 by Robert Filliou

The paper in the box lid says “we don’t throw stones at each other any more - robert filliou”

Poster of woman in blue dress and white head scarf; a small boy in a soccer jersey and shorts is holding her hand. The text says: “...sell them their dreams !”

Stone carving above doorway with intricate intertwined “ropes”

An “african mask” with a broom brush for the hair and eys, and a piece of ordinary metal with a handle as the nose and mouth.

Romuald Hazoumè, Benin: Chef de village, 2013

Painting of man with black hair. He is wearing a white shirt, brown sweater, and gray jacket. He is seated on a stone, his hands on his knees.

Alfons Walde: Portrait Gustinus Ambrosi, ca. 1930

Modern painting of four seated women, one in a skirt, others with pants. They are looking at the viewer. Background is pink.

Alex Katz: Four women in pink, 2005

Painting of woman in gray log coat and black dress. The head is a circle. The background of the painting is yellow

Two “op-art” style paintings. One has red and blue squares; the other, green and blue squares of various shades.

Blank canvas with two “hanger hooks” at top, which are lit in neon pink.

Plaform with multiple small sculptures of varying shapes, mostly in blue and black.

Six large diamond-shaped panels on a wall. Panels are red, blue, gren, brown, pink, and black/gray.

A row of small brass pieces that look like Hershey kisses.

A bar with hooks. On each hook is a metal piece. Some are irregular blobs; one looks like a shovel, and one is a hoop.

Annelise Schrenk: Garderobe, 2025

Metal mesh bag hanging from ceiling on a chain; in bag are pieces of metal

Model of the small Hiroshima bomb; showing some of the internal parts separate from the main body of the bomb

A life-size model of the small Hiroshima bomb, by Lukas Markst: Little Boy 1:1, 2022

Metal baskets hanging from a horizontally placed metal bar that is itself hanging from the ceiling

A spool of film with a yellow hub, surrounded by a pile of matchsticks.

Six rectangular panels in a two-column array; the panels are carved from a green stone.

Wooden sculpture that looks like the lid of a grand piano.

Veronika Eberhart: Fold, 2023

Paper cards with questions such as: If you were in a karaoke bar, which song would you sing? If you could invent a holiday, what would it be called & what would you celebrate?

Pastel-colored panels with images of, among other items, jellyfish, fish, a hand holding a wrench, a machine gun.

Models of bananas scattered about on a square platform.

Simon Reitmann: Breaking out of the Bananabox, 2023

A book, open, on a small stand. The left page is blank; the right page is blank, with a large bright green square “sticky note”.

Helene Gödl, Notiz / Note, 2025

Entrance to display; large poster: Camuflajes Zechner & Serrano; in front of poster is an empty birdcage with the door open.

One of the current temporary exhibits.

Large orange panel with articles of clothing attached to it, as well as some text written on the panel.

Large drawing on paper; a man, head downwards, with blue trails emitted from the mouth. Text: VOMITÉ DE NUEVO

Text translates to “I threw up again.”

White-painted and dark wood doors hanging from a wooden frame.

Four white wooden doors hanging from a wooden frame. Two of the doors have blue outline on the door panels.

19 Dec 2025

Museum für Geschichte (Historical Museum)

Another museum trip today. This museum is housed in Das Palais Herberstein (The Herberstein Palace).

Stairway with lanterns on railing landings. Carved cherubs at the base of each lantern.

The museum has an archive of historical photos and recordings.

Array of historical photos, mostly sepia or black-and-white.

Headphones hanging from ceiling; on metal wall, an array of headphones with placards telling what sounds you will hear

Another permanent exhibition is „100× Steiermark“ which covers Steiermark from the middle ages to the present.

Glass panel with words written in white: „Was kommt, was bleibt?“

What comes, what remains?

Niche at corner of two red walls. The niche is adorned with gold branches and leaves; in the niche, a statue that looks vaguely like a pagoda atop a hill.

Closeup of gold leaves-and-branches on ceiling

At left, old delft blue pitcher in a bowl; at right, a record and some old machinery

Glassware with blue, red, and yellow decoration.

Large ballroom with many crystal chandeliers, gold patterns on ceiling, and display cases on floor.

Schaudepot

For me, the highlight was the Schaudepot, a storage display facility that holds many objects from the collection. Most of it is in wire cages, which doesn’t really add much to the atmosphere, but it’s still very worth seeing.

Painted ceramic tiles, some with religious themes others with geometric patterns

Display case with old desk clocks with ornate trim

On top shelf, ceramic deer; on bottom, young girls and a woman in a shawl and hand muff

Ceramics of a woman with a basket, children playing, and people standing around a table

Three shelves of glassware, primarily tinted red and pink.

Three shelves of glassware; top shelf primarily gold tinted; bottom shelves priarily blue tinted

Two pennyfarthing bicycles suspended from ceiling

Gold goblet with “lid” that has a red gem and gold crown on top

Old bakelite typewriter with German keyboard

Aufbruch (Departure)

A special exhibit in honor of the opening of the Koralmbahn (see this video about the railway line).

Shelves of file folders and document boxes, all green. On top, a green crown and a briefcase.

T-shirt with sheep: MÄÄÄÄÄHR KINDERRECHTE! Caption on display: Ein Sozialdemokrat mit Herz für Kinder

A social democrat with a heart for children. On T-shirt: More children’s rights!

All-orange display of pallets, atop which are a barrel, a tire, and a small crate

Small cabinet with a piano-like keyboard

Old-style black adding machine with handle to activate the mechanism.

All-purple bed with a model of a church on top of it; in background, a purple dirndl

At left, a gold and silver crown with bue and red gemstones; at right, a red abstract sculpture that looks like a pair of eyes.

All-yellow post with arrow signs pointing in all direcctions. At bottom, a life preserver and a suitcase

The first picture shows a table with a roll of colored stickers. You could put the sticker in the square/trapezoid corresponding to your reason for going on a trip.

What is the motive for your next departure?

Wooden table map of austria with text „Welches Motiv steckt hinter deinem nächsten Aufbruch?“

From left to right: Going to university/school, Seeing a museum (culture/nature/sport), I want an experience (vacation/relaxing/sport/events)

Wall with rectangular/trapezoidal areas for stickers: Ich fahr auf die Uni...Schule/FH/Studium/Fortbildung; Z.B. das kärtnen.museum anschauen...Kultur/Natur/Sport/Wahlfart; Ich will etwas erleben...Urlaub/Relaxen/Sport/Events