Wien: Opera

Max Pollak

An example of his early use of color aquatint by Czech-born printmaker Max Pollak, who went on to use the technique almost exclusively. "Wien: Opera" adds touches of color aquatint, printed a la poupée, to his large intaglio, done around 1918.

A wintery view of the historic Wiener Staatsoper (Vienna Opera House). The sky is overcast and the city is cast in a blue gray light. The only other colors are touches of red and green in the cafe in the lower right.

The opera house in Vienna was planned by architect August Sicard von Sicardsburg and opened on May 25 of 1869 with Mozart's 'Don Giovanni'. It reached a high point under the direction of Gustave Mahler. Under Nazi rule between 1938 and 1945 many operas were not allowed to be performed and many musicians and staff were arrested and died in the camps.

In 1945 the building was bombed but soon reopened after a hasty restoration, the whole restoration took 10 years to rebuild. Today, the Vienna State Opera is considered one of the most important opera houses in the world; in particular, it is the house with the largest repertoire. It has been under the direction of Bogdan Ro??i? since July 1, 2020.