MuseumsQuartier was created years ago as the 'City of Horses' - planned by yours truly, Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach. Now I can finally view my era-defining work.

Actually, I really should have been a sculptor. I was born into a family of sculptors in 1656 and spent almost 16 years in Rome, where I met Gian Lorenzo Bernini, who dominated the city as a sculptor and architect. Exactly what brought me to Italy remains my secret; but when I first returned to Graz at the age of 30, moving soon after to Vienna, I brought the latest artistic trends from the Eternal City with me. The Habsburgs and nobility were enthusiastic about my ideas, especially Emperor Charles VI.

My blueprint for the imperial stables was no less than Nero's Domus Aurea. The Roman emperor's golden palace was so large the Roman people called it a city. I adopted the concept of a long façade with wings and courtyards behind it. The complex would have accommodated 600 horses, housing for the chief court stallmaster and servants, and a large horse pond. Above the arcades, which were to be used as 'carriage sheds' for about 200 regular and gala carriages, I envisaged an amphitheatre for spectators of the horse carousel. Unfortunately, only the approximately 355-metre-long façade of the original design was built in the 18th century; the design of the inner façade was abandoned.

Only the façade of the Imperial stables was completed during my lifetime. As I had been ill and unable to work 1722, my son Josef Emanuel Fischer von Erlach, who had been educated in France, took over the construction management. I'll have a look to see if he has meddled with my drafts.

I hope that you will have already discovered the ideal plan for the court stables in my Weltarchitekturgeschichte Entwurff Einer Historischen Architectur of 1721. In it I collect illustrations and reconstructions of ancient monuments, Turkish and Arabic buildings, adding my Viennese designs in the fourth book. In the description I list the elements of my design. But most of them have apparently been given the axe. It was not until the 19th century that the court stables were extended and completed in accordance with my ideas.

My design was not seen through in its entirety, but my architect colleagues had some great ideas: from a winter riding hall to an octagonal riding hall for Empress Sisi, to museums and exhibition halls.

With the mumok, Kunsthalle Wien and Leopold Museum, they erected three new buildings that together form the 'force field' of the 7th district. An arts and cultural site was created over an area of 90,000 m², bringing together large museums and small institutions, cultural production, and education in one location.

I suppose no one needs horses or carriages anymore. I'd be insterested to know who has moved into the old coach houses, workshops, and flats of the court servants.  

Oh, there are artists working there! They come from from all over the world and meet in Vienna to exchange ideas. That's like back in my time in Rome, where I met Gian Lorenzo Bernini and colleagues at the Accademia di San Luca. Exchange is so important - I really benefitted from it. I arrived as a sculptor and left as an architect.