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Elisabeth Wolf, Managing Owner
"I have always loved the arts, classical music, travel and nature. Put simply, I am inspired by beautiful things. For many years, I found myself seeking a suitable focus for these personal passions - ideally, one also offering a tangible connection with my chosen field of expertise, the tourism industry.
In 2015 I realised I had found the solution, when I founded Artissimi, a very new kind of agency. Artissimi was designed to offer luxury city tours, high-end cultural experiences which transform Vienna and its surroundings into an aesthetic, living stage for its most sophisticated guests and cultured locals. It creates a space for children who love to be astonished, and adults seeking luxury impressions that will last a lifetime. Every single contact I have enjoyed through Artissimi has been enormously enriching.
I can look back with pride upon many years of experience in the international five-star hotel and tourism sector. I have planned a multitude of luxury events over the years, with great success. I have been an entrepreneur and guide for Austria since 2012, licenced to provide my exclusive cultural experience not just in German, but also in English and Italian. I am also fluent in French, and have held a travel agency licence since 2017."
Contact: elisabeth@artissimi.at
VIDEO "I AM..."
"Do things here and now, not after you're gone. If you have some money, share it. And if you have some time, do something worthwhile!"
Jerome H. Stone
Claudia Blake Photography courtesy Belvedere
In 2015 I realised I had found the solution, when I founded Artissimi, a very new kind of agency. Artissimi was designed to offer luxury city tours, high-end cultural experiences which transform Vienna and its surroundings into an aesthetic, living stage for its most sophisticated guests and cultured locals. It creates a space for children who love to be astonished, and adults seeking luxury impressions that will last a lifetime. Every single contact I have enjoyed through Artissimi has been enormously enriching.
I can look back with pride upon many years of experience in the international five-star hotel and tourism sector. I have planned a multitude of luxury events over the years, with great success. I have been an entrepreneur and guide for Austria since 2012, licenced to provide my exclusive cultural experience not just in German, but also in English and Italian. I am also fluent in French, and have held a travel agency licence since 2017."
Contact: elisabeth@artissimi.at
VIDEO "I AM..."
"Do things here and now, not after you're gone. If you have some money, share it. And if you have some time, do something worthwhile!"
Jerome H. Stone
Claudia Blake Photography courtesy Belvedere
Felicitas Petersen, Personal Assistent, Press
Felicitas adores Vienna, its coffee houses and literature.
Originally from Munich, Germany, she has called Vienna her home for over 20 years along with her family, two of her four children being born here. Despite traveling extensively during her law studies, Vienna captured her heart and became her new home. The nostalgia, the unique Viennese coffee known as "Melange", the touch of morbidity, the habit of reading newspapers, as well as the city's cultural richness and architectural splendour have all contributed to making Vienna incredibly special for Felicitas and her family.
Her love for literature has always been a cornerstone of Felicita's life. Therefore, it came as no surprise that she recently completed training as Online Marketing Manager and discovered her natural affinity for writing.
Since June 2023, Felicitas has been an integral part of the Artissimi team. She provides comprehensive support and contributes by crafting captivating blogs about Vienna's art scenes, its hidden gems, and, of course, all the other #artissimiapproved secrets!
Originally from Munich, Germany, she has called Vienna her home for over 20 years along with her family, two of her four children being born here. Despite traveling extensively during her law studies, Vienna captured her heart and became her new home. The nostalgia, the unique Viennese coffee known as "Melange", the touch of morbidity, the habit of reading newspapers, as well as the city's cultural richness and architectural splendour have all contributed to making Vienna incredibly special for Felicitas and her family.
Her love for literature has always been a cornerstone of Felicita's life. Therefore, it came as no surprise that she recently completed training as Online Marketing Manager and discovered her natural affinity for writing.
Since June 2023, Felicitas has been an integral part of the Artissimi team. She provides comprehensive support and contributes by crafting captivating blogs about Vienna's art scenes, its hidden gems, and, of course, all the other #artissimiapproved secrets!
"Not the happy ones are grateful,
but the grateful ones are happy."
Francis Bacon
Claudia Blake Photography
Claudia Blake Photography
Sophia Wolf, PR and Project Management
Sophia holds the distinction of being the youngest member of the Artissimi team. In 2023, she successfully completed her education at Tourism College MODUL and is currently contributing her skills during her Gap Year. Notably, this isn't her first experience with Artissimi, as she previously completed an internship with us in 2020.
Sophia's interests are as diverse as they are intriguing. She has a genuine passion for books, a penchant for indulging in True Crime Podcasts, a deep appreciation for Impressionism, and, above all, an insatiable wanderlust for traveling. Post her Gap Year, she has ambitious plans to attend university and is committed to discovering a profession that will continually captivate her.
Contact: office@artissimi.at
"The future belongs to those
who believe in the beauty of their dreams."
Eleanor Roosevelt
Claudia Blake Photography courtesy Hotel Sans Souci
Gerti Schmidt, Artissimi Guide
Gerti Schmidt loves strong coffee, reading, working and intelligent discussions. She is the most experienced tour guide of all of us, which is why our watchword is: "If in doubt, get Gerti out!” Gerti came to tour guiding indirectly, but once she had arrived, she rapidly realised tourism was more vocation than job. She has been welcoming guests from around the world to her home city of Vienna since the 1990s, ideally presenting the city from the most varied viewpoints possible. While doing so, she has even shown princesses and A-Listers the sights over the years. Gerti draws her energy – which sometimes appears to be boundless – from these numerous encounters. As recent years have seen a sharp uptick in interest in tours, particularly from guests from the United States exploring their roots through our Jewish Vienna tour, Gerti soon knew where to focus and specialise her not-inconsiderable skills. In the process, she would continually hear incredible stories, and she now loves to use these to paint beautiful historical pictures for all our guests.
Tour Guide English and German
Contact: office@artissimi.at
"Us Viennese, we're confidently looking forward into our past." Karl Farkas
Tour Guide English and German
Contact: office@artissimi.at
"Us Viennese, we're confidently looking forward into our past." Karl Farkas
Claudia Blake Photography
Wiebke Ciesla, Artissimi Guide
Wiebke loves the Habsburg burial sites, cold weather, and beautiful shoes! Originally from Germany, Wiebke discovered her passion for history and art shortly after her arrival in Austria - 25 years ago. Much later, she trained to become a tour guide, sharing a classroom with Elisabeth Wolf. From then on, her path was set. Today, she practices this profession with much enthusiasm and love. Due to her charming and humorous nature, she has become the "favorite German" (the term "Piefke" is an informal term Austrians sometimes use for Germans) for some locals.
Wiebke enjoys spending her time traveling to cooler places, reading a lot, and she has an organizational talent, so she is also happy to offer support in these areas. Since she now even guides with the Viennese wit ("Wiener Schmäh"), and knows Vienna better than many locals, the success of her entertaining tours is guaranteed!
Tour Guide: German, English.
"Success comes,
when you do what you love".
Unknown
Wiebke enjoys spending her time traveling to cooler places, reading a lot, and she has an organizational talent, so she is also happy to offer support in these areas. Since she now even guides with the Viennese wit ("Wiener Schmäh"), and knows Vienna better than many locals, the success of her entertaining tours is guaranteed!
Tour Guide: German, English.
"Success comes,
when you do what you love".
Unknown
Claudia Blake Photography
Kurt Szauerzopf, Artissimi Guide
Along with art and culture, Kurt loves cooking, cats and classical music. The country he most loves to visit is Italy, where he lived for many years. After pursuing a successful career in the international transport and tourism sector, a change gave him the chance to fulfil a longer-held wish: he gained a degree in Art History in record time, before training as a tour guide shortly afterwards. His preferred place of work is Vienna. Kurt is constantly searching for the capital's countless hidden treasures, and he takes huge pleasure in doing so. He particularly enjoys it when, after a tour, even his Viennese guests enthusiastically say to him: "You know, I've never seen that before".
Art Historian and Tour Guide English, Italian, GermanContact: office@artissimi.at
Claudia Blake Photography
Charles Sperl, Artissimi Guide
Charles loves Styrian cuisine, his family, and music! After his studies in English and French, Charles spent many years as a Tour Manager, traveling across Europe with various bands. His love for family and music drew him back to Vienna. Given his background and affection for Vienna, it was a logical and especially delightful decision to train as a tour guide. Charles loves the many facets of the city, be it the opera, the concert hall, but also the numerous jazz and underground clubs. He not only presents the city with enthusiasm to guests, but he also frequently collaborates on TV productions, revealing some of the city's secrets to the Viennese.
"From that which you want to recognize and measure, you must take leave, at least for a while.
Only when you have left the city do you see how high its towers rise above the houses."
Friedrich Nietzsche
Photograph: Raphael Sperl
"From that which you want to recognize and measure, you must take leave, at least for a while.
Only when you have left the city do you see how high its towers rise above the houses."
Friedrich Nietzsche
Photograph: Raphael Sperl
Markus Hübl, Artissimi Guide
Markus Hübl's credo is to make it possible to experience the history and stories of the former royal seat and capital city in an exciting, desirable way, to create the courage for independent viewing and discovery, and to inspire people with the arts. Art is a matter of life and death for this native of Vienna, and museums have been a combination of both longing and home for him since his childhood days. Markus has been working as an artistic and cultural mediator for almost 30 years now. He began tour guiding for the Kunsthistorisches Museum when still a student, before going on to work at the Sammlung Essl. In the meantime, he worked at the Belvedere for seven years, as well as at the Leopoldmuseum on an ongoing basis. Above all, he uses his skills as a professional speaker, his background as an actor and his training as a communications expert at the University of Vienna to bring art to life and make wandering through the capital's unrivalled museum collections an insightful, interesting and emotionally captivating experience. All in all, then, is it any wonder that Markus is one of our most sought-after art mediators?
Art Historian English and GermanContact: office@artissimi.at
Photograph: Claudia Blake Photography courtesy Belvedere
Maria Mustapic, Artissimi Guide
Maria loves exploring the world and cooking for her family and friends. She has a passion for fashion, large sunglasses, and red lipstick. Maria studied history at the University of Vienna before deciding to train as a tour guide.
Since 2014, she has been a devoted Austria Guide and enjoys taking guests from all over the world on a journey into the past with her stories, which she sees as her calling. The combination of her particularly charming and dynamic nature with her knowledge makes not only her tours but also her books bestsellers! It's no wonder that she also hosts historical documentaries and has even appeared on television several times.
Book recommendation: "Sex, Drugs, and Rock'n Roll in Habsburg Vienna" by Maria Mustapic.
Tour Guide: German, English
Since 2014, she has been a devoted Austria Guide and enjoys taking guests from all over the world on a journey into the past with her stories, which she sees as her calling. The combination of her particularly charming and dynamic nature with her knowledge makes not only her tours but also her books bestsellers! It's no wonder that she also hosts historical documentaries and has even appeared on television several times.
Book recommendation: "Sex, Drugs, and Rock'n Roll in Habsburg Vienna" by Maria Mustapic.
Tour Guide: German, English
"Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life."
Confucius
Photograph: Claudia Blake Photography
Claudia Blake Wiletel, Preferred Partner
Our photographer Claudia loves Vienna, coffee and Nutella!
A native of Austria, Claudia recently returned home from the United States, where she had first started a family, then gone on to become a professional photographer. Nowadays, Claudia finds her inspiration in travel, magazines and of course walks through her favourite city of Vienna. Her passion, not just for her craft but also for the people she photographs, will freeze moments in time for you, creating contemporary portraits and instant memories that will last a lifetime. We love it, when Claudia joins our Artissimi tours, capturing those special moments and ensuring they become more unforgettable than ever.
Claudia's website: Claudia Blake Photography
"Whatever you vividly imagine, ardently desire, sincerely believe and enthusiastically act upon must inevitably come to pass!"
Paul J. Meyers
A native of Austria, Claudia recently returned home from the United States, where she had first started a family, then gone on to become a professional photographer. Nowadays, Claudia finds her inspiration in travel, magazines and of course walks through her favourite city of Vienna. Her passion, not just for her craft but also for the people she photographs, will freeze moments in time for you, creating contemporary portraits and instant memories that will last a lifetime. We love it, when Claudia joins our Artissimi tours, capturing those special moments and ensuring they become more unforgettable than ever.
Claudia's website: Claudia Blake Photography
"Whatever you vividly imagine, ardently desire, sincerely believe and enthusiastically act upon must inevitably come to pass!"
Paul J. Meyers
Neomi Seller, Tour & Social Media Assistant (currently working from Berlin)
Thanks to her degree in Educational Science at the University of Vienna, Neomi is coming ever closer to her life goal of making the world a slightly better place. She loves working with children above all else, and with her open, empathetic manner, Neomi never fails in inspiring our little ones. She strikes the right work-life balance by skiing, mountain biking and hiking - anywhere in the mountains, basically! Her love of music, by playing the cello and singing, is also hugely deserving of a mention. Neomi has been supporting the Artissimi team, both behind the scenes and during the tours, since April 2021.
Languages: English, French, German
Contact: assistant@artissimi.at
"You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough. " Mae West
Photograph: Claudia Blake PhotographyLanguages: English, French, German
Contact: assistant@artissimi.at
"You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough. " Mae West
