Thursday, August 12, 2010

Salzburg

As you know, I went to Salzburg for my day off. It really is a beautiful city.



This is the view from the fortress. The fortress sits on top of a sheer mountain and it is reached by funicular



It is also the location of the Salzburg campus of the Summer Academy but, being Sunday, the art school area was closed off.

The Salzburg Summer Academy has a prestigious history which I have only just learned about. It was established by Oskar Kokoschka in1953. After the barbarity of World War II he wanted to create an open meeting-place where people could gather to cultivate humanist ideals.  He called it the "School of Seeing" and it's basic principle was to provide a non-institutionalised, non-academic environment in which students could experience art and develop inwardly through creative seeing. He sought to encourage open-mindedness and enthusiasm amongst the students.  (From the summer academy website)

From my point of view, his vision has been realised
.



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