Review: ‘Habsburg Splendor’ at High Museum tells tales behind exhibit's treasures
If the Habsburg Dynasty were around today, it would no doubt be the subject of a reality TV show.
Fortunately, many of the Habsburgs' treasures, from artists such as Correggio, Titian, Arcimboldo, Caravaggio and Rubens, are still around today and part of "Habsburg Splendor: Masterpieces From Vienna's Imperial Collections" at the High Museum of Art.
All of the works in "Habsburg Splendor" hail from Vienna's Kunsthistorisches Museum, a repository created by Habsburg emperor Franz Joseph to house the dynasty's incredible collection of artwork, a consolidation that helped establish Vienna, into the present day, as one of the great art capitals of the world.
The exhibit at the High, which runs through Jan. 17, 2016, isn't just a showcase of fancy items from oil paintings to magnificent horse-drawn carriages to outrageous plumed headdresses. Rather, “Habsburg” goes the extra mile, striving to educate and enlighten with smart and careful dissections of the meaning and context in which these objects were acquired and displayed.
