The Danube Island: Exhibition at the Wien Museum

The Danube Island and the New Danube, which were built between 1972 and 1988 to finally protect Vienna from flooding after centuries of struggling with the river, today form a landscape area that has become an integral part of the Viennese cityscape and fulfills central urban planning, natural and social functions. The exhibition at the Wien Museum sheds light on the complex and exciting history of the creation of this project, which is unique in its task and dimensions and - alongside Gas Works Park in Seattle, Munich's Olympic Park and Irchelpark in Zurich - is one of the icons of landscape architecture of the 1970s and 1980s. Particular attention is paid to the social and urban developments that significantly influenced the design and use of the island: the ecological and anti-nuclear power movement and the changing leisure behavior of the population, but also the construction of UNO-City, the collapse of the Reichsbrücke and the urban expansion on the left bank of the Danube contributed significantly to changes in the originally planned appearance of the island and the activities possible there today. The aim of the exhibition is not only to convey the historical significance of this major project, but also to highlight the central role of the Danube Island for flood protection, urban planning, leisure and recreation as well as ecology and nature conservation in the 21st century against the backdrop of population growth and climate change.