The Murinsel ( German, literally ''Mur island'') in Graz,

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

, is an artificial floating "island" in the middle of the Mur river and links the two banks on both sides. At night the blue navigation lights that surround the structure light up. This landmark of Graz was designed by

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

artist

Vito Acconci Vito Acconci (, ; January 24, 1940 – April 27, 2017) was an influential American performance, video and installation artist, whose diverse practice eventually included sculpture, architectural design, and landscape design. His foundational p ...

on the occasion of Graz becoming the 2003 European Capital of Culture. Described by the artist as "''A bowl that morphs into a dome that morphs into a bowl…"'' Mur Island is in the form of a giant

sea shell A seashell or sea shell, also known simply as a shell, is a hard, protective outer layer usually created by an animal or organism that lives in the sea. The shell is part of the body of the animal. Empty seashells are often found washe ...

and measures in length. Two

footbridge A footbridge (also a pedestrian bridge, pedestrian overpass, or pedestrian overcrossing) is a bridge designed solely for pedestrians.''Oxford English Dictionary'' While the primary meaning for a bridge is a structure which links "two points at a ...

s connect it with both banks of the Mur. The center of the platform forms an

amphitheatre An amphitheatre (British English) or amphitheater (American English; both ) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ...

. Below a twisted round dome there is a café and a playground.

References

External links

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Murinsel web siteMurinsel page on Graz Tourism web site

Buildings and structures in Graz Tourist attractions in Graz Mur (river) Bridges over the Mura Bridges completed in 2003 {{Austria-struct-stub