Vienna is full of art museums, but also private galleries. And the Art Vienna fair brings the latter together with international guests to present a selection of art in a rather prestigious location.
- Fair for modern and contemporary art
- Remit extends from today back to the Wiener Moderne
- Held in the Schönbrunn Palace Orangerie
- 2023 dates: Sept 15-17
- See also:
What’s Art Vienna?
(A spring party on a winter’s day in the Schönbrunn Orangerie on Feb 6th, 1785; Wien Museum Inv.-Nr. 179092, published by Johann Hieronymus Löschenkohl; reproduced with permission under the terms of the CC0 licence)
The clue to the event’s purpose is in the title. Though we’re not talking court portraits from the 17th century. Think Dalí, rather than Dürer.
Various galleries from Austria and abroad come together to present works from across the contemporary art, Vienna modernism, and modern art spectrum. The featured artists typically include both established global names, local favourites, and upcoming talent.
The event occupies a prestigious historical location. Before 2022, this was the Hofburg, the former seat of the Habsburgs: a family and location with a rich artistic tradition of their own (the monarchs as collectors, the palace as a gallery for the contemporary art of its time).
The 2022 event continued the imperial theme by making its home in the 18th-century orangery of Schönbrunn Palace, notable for its musical connections. Mozart and Salieri performed there, for example, and the venue still hosts classical concerts.
The fair returns to the orangery in 2023.
Dates, tickets and tips
Scheduled 2023 dates for Art Vienna are September 15th to 17th. Times at the 2022 event were 11am to 7pm. Keep an eye on the official website (see below) for tickets and details for the next event.
The 2022 version was the third Art Vienna fair, the first having attracted over 15,000 visitors back in 2017.
The 2019 fair also included a special Hofburg under the Carpet art exhibition, where participating artists each took a specific carpet from the Hofburg as a starting point for developing unique artwork that examined issues around power structures.
That exhibition tradition continued in 2022: the F exhibition featured the work of a dozen contemporary women artists, for example.
Since Art Vienna returns to the orangery, note that the broader palace location and grounds are Vienna’s most popular tourist attraction. So you might want to reserve a bit of time for a palace tour, a wander through the park, or even a trip to the world-class zoo.
How to get to the Orangery
See here for more general directions and travel tips for reaching Schönbrunn.
This is one of the few attractions in Vienna that actually has significant adjacent parking facilities. If you’re not arriving by car or taxi, then the quickest way is the U4 subway line to Schönbrunn station, since you emerge more or less opposite the orangery on one side of the palace complex.
Address: Schönbrunner Schlossstraße 47, 1130 Vienna | Website (for the event)