Austrian Artist Mikl dies

Josef Mikl died of cancer at the age of 78. He was considered one of the most important Austrian artists of the "informal" style, whose abstract works went toward rehabilitating Nazi-ravaged Austria's visual art scene. Mikl's artwork spanned more than half a century. Mikl's abstract paintings and sculptures were different from the more strict artists during the Nazi eras.

His most famous work was the renovation of the "Redoutensaal," a huge hall of Vienna's Imperial Palace after a 1992 fire. This hall was where the first performance of Beethoven's 8th Symphony took place. When the hall reopened in 1997, it was docked in vibrant reds and yellows, depicting famous themes and figures of Austrian literature.