Vienna Secession

The Vienna Secession (German: Wiener Secession; also known as the Union of Austrian Artists or Vereinigung Bildender Künstler Österreichs) is an art movement, adjacent to Art Nouveau, and that was formed in 1897 by a group of formidably talented Austrian painters, graphic artists, sculptors and architects, including Josef Hoffman, Koloman Moser, Otto Wagner and Gustav Klimt.

They resigned from the Association of Austrian Artists (Vienna Künstlerhaus) in protest against its support for more traditional artistic styles. Their most influential architectural work was the Secession exhibitions hall designed by Joseph Maria Olbrich as a venue for expositions of the group. Their official magazine was called Ver Sacrum ('Sacred Spring'), which published highly stylised and influential works of graphic art. In 1905 the group itself split, when some of the most prominent members, including Klimt, Wagner, and Hoffmann, resigned in a dispute over priorities, but it continued to function, and still functions today, from its headquarters in the Secession Building. In its current form, the Secession exhibition gallery is independently led and managed by artists.