"Vienna" Skinny Page

Original Digital Version

The Baroness - 4 x 8 inch digital after painting, printed onto cotton with some preliminary stitches, buttons and lace added

I enjoyed researching Vienna as the subject for this page. Through my web research, I became acquainted with Baroness Bertha Sophie Felicita Von Suttner who was the first woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize in 1905 for her work in anti-militarism. The following is a direct quote from the Nobel Institute: "Baroness Bertha von Suttner, the first woman to be awarded the Peace Prize, wrote one of the nineteenth century's most influential books, the anti-war novel Lay Down Your Arms (1889). The title was provocative to many, but the anti-militaristic message caught on. In the 1870s she became a close friend of Alfred Nobel's, and they corresponded for years on the subject of peace. The Peace Prize Laureate became one of the leaders of the international peace movement, and in 1891 established the Austrian Peace Society. At the male-dominated peace congresses she stood out as a liberal and forceful leader. At the beginning of the new century she was referred to as the "generalissimo of the peace movement". There is little doubt that von Suttner's friendship with Alfred Nobel had an impact on the contents of his will, and many give her the credit for his establishment of a peace prize. "Inform me, convince me, and then I will do something great for the movement", Alfred Nobel said to Bertha von Suttner." The various elements in the collage are from public domain resources, ( and include: a map of Vienna, a portion of the Hofburg Imperial Palace, a street scene, a bank note commemorating her achievement along with a postage stamp and the Nobel gold medal with the Latin inscription translated: "For peace and fraternity among peoples."

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