As I mentioned in the previous post, Dan and I had come to Wienzeile in order to see a couple of noteworthy Art Nouveau style houses on Linke Wienzeile. And they were lovely–if a bit difficult to photograph in their entirety due to the pesky market buildings at our back.  😉 (Anyone who read the previous post will know at once that we loved the market on Wienzeile.)

The two Art Nouveau houses by architect Otto Wagner at numbers 38 and 40 Linke Wienzeile are indeed beautiful. And just as lovely is the way they meet each other as well as the next building–with a great deal of mutual respect, a value in architecture that has been much neglected by many buildings in modern times.

Starting at number 38, we see…

From the corner, it’s almost “just another gilded building.” You’d hardly notice the Art Nouveau elements. But moving along, the style becomes more evident.

This building is joined to the one at number 40 by balconies and by a nearly continuous wrought-iron railing.

I love the pattern of tiles on the facade of the building at number 38! And just look at the railings and the decorations on the insides of the balconies!

Now, you might be thinking that it’s no great wonder that these two buildings, different as they are in many obvious particulars, are joined together so harmoniously. They are, after all, by the same architect.

But look at how respectfully the house at number 38 uses its ornamented balconies ans wrought-iron railings to join with the Baroque building next door.