Where better to have a small, but fine, design and art event than in front of Vienna’s main cluster of contemporary cultural institutions. Browse your way around the stalls and tables of the WAMP design market.
- Located outside the MuseumsQuartier
- Open-air market
- Features local & international artists & designers
- Several editions each year
- Next dates: Dec 9 (special indoor Christmas edition)
- See also:
Where art meets people
(View across the forecourt and market with the Natural History Museum in the distance)
Given the city’s long history, the words Vienna and design tend to crop up a lot in historical terms: particularly the era of Viennese modernism around 1900. But contemporary design is alive and well in this large, modern, multicultural conurbation.
WAMP stands for Where Art Meets People, and the design market adds its name to a list of events that brings you into close contact with the creative community. Other examples include the regular Edelstoff and Fesch’markt markets.
Edelstoff and Fesch’markt occupy converted industrial premises, but WAMP enjoys a touch more imperial flair in its choice of venue.
This small open-air market takes place in the open area in front of the MuseumsQuartier (MQ): once home to the court stables but now a haven for contemporary culture with its art museums and venues.
On my visit, the WAMP market featured two longish rows of small stands and tables occupied by a variety of designers and artists. These offered everything from the unconventional to the elegant and innovative.
The choice covered the range of products you might expect: contemporary art for your walls; candles and cards; clothes and fashion accessories; jewelry and cosmetics; and more.
(Picked up some bath salts in the shape of a chocolate bar from Naturo Theke on my last visit. Little gift for my sister)
You might well find the kind of items that store easily in your luggage and make unique quality gifts for folk back home.
If you feel thirsty or hungry, I spotted a couple of mobile coffee stands and a smidgeon of street food. But you can always drop into the MuseumsQuartier complex, which has several cafés and restaurants around its various courtyards.
Dates, tickets & tips
Watch the official website (see below) for regular dates through the year in those seasons likely to have reasonable weather. Access to the open-air market is free.
A bonus indoor WAMP makes an appearance on December 9th in 2023: still at the MuseumsQuartier but under cover in the Ovalhalle section.
Once you’re done with your market visit, the MuseumsQuartier has more options for those who appreciate good design.
The Leopold Museum, for example, displays numerous works from the era of the Wiener Moderne in their permanent exhibition; their special exhibitions might also have a design focus.
Also consider the Furniture Museum, which lives a few streets beyond the MQ as you travel away from the centre. It has plenty of gorgeous pieces from throughout the centuries inside.
And a few tram stops around the Ring takes you to the MAK: a museum with design and contemporary art as its focus.
How to get to WAMP
Follow the travel advice in the MuseumsQuartier article; the market occupies space in front of the main MQ façade, looking toward the old town: you can’t miss it.
Address: Museumsplatz 1/5, 1070 Vienna | Website