This will be a shorter than usual post, as we spent very little time in Linz. We docked in Linz, mainly because it is the closest point on the Danube to Salzburg. We spent the day in Salzburg, but had a few hours in the evening to take a walk around Linz. The capital of Upper Austria and third-largest city in Austria, Linz used to be a mostly industrial town with (so we were told) little appeal, but reinvented itself as a centre for digital & media art. In 2009, it was a European Capital of Culture. Adolf Hitler grew up in Linz.

The illuminated ARS Centre for Electronic Arts dominates the river view by night.

The main square (built in 1230) is one of the largest converted squares in Europe, dominated by the “Pestsäule” (plague column) built to remember the people who died in the plague, and in gratitude by those who were spared.

A huge representation of a statue of Nike suspended from a church tower. It turns out to be part of an annual arts festival called Höhenrausch, and was very striking. A replica of the ancient goddess of victory Nike of Samothrace, it was first displayed in 1977, but apparently caused a huge art scandal. Nike von Linz was produced part of the “forum metall”, a project that was intended to combine culture and industry in Linz by means of metal sculptures in public space. The modern design and prominent placement above Linz’s main square outraged many citizens. They described the sculpture as a “desecration of the main square”, “shredded bird” or “bat”. It was was dismantled at the end of 1979 and placed in storage in Germany. It was brought back to Linz for the “Other Angels” exhibition of the art project Höhenrausch.

NOTES:

• To see all the posts about our 2016 Danube River cruise click HERE.
• Although this post was written in 2021, it happened in June 2016, 5 years ago. Since I didn’t document the trip at the time, now seemed as good a time as any to catch up.