Citrus trees once filled Belvedere’s Orangerie with colour. Now international art exhibitions brighten the building.
- NB: Closed until sometime in 2021 (?) for renovations
- Originally built in the early 18th century
- Venue for some of Belvedere’s top-class temporary art exhibitions
- Part of the Lower Belvedere ticketed area
- See also: Belvedere tickets & visitor tips | Schönbrunn Orangery
Exhibitions in the Orangerie
Dates and details of the next exhibition depend on when current refurbishment efforts and technical upgrades at Lower Belvedere finish.
Recent past exhibitions
- Into the Night – Cabarets and Clubs in Modern Art (art and culture in the context of these venues)
- Johanna Kandl – material. What we paint with and why (explored the stories and issues behind the materials used in works of art)
- Talking Heads – contemporary dialogues with F. X. Messerschmidt (modern works of art examining the human face as motif, set in the context of Messerschmidt’s character head busts from the 1700s)
The Orangerie itself
The long Orangery (German: Orangerie) outbuilding at the bottom of Belvedere’s privy garden was an architectural marvel when first completed in 1714.
The removable roof and façade meant, for instance, it could house citrus trees all year round. That’s quite a feat in a country than can have 35° in summer and -15° in winter.
If Prince Eugene’s house guests weren’t impressed by the Baroque majesty of Belvedere’s palaces, they could at least be suitably blown away by the botanical majesty of the host’s plants. (And if that failed, he also had a private zoo).
Inside today’s Orangery is a modern museum gallery showing a temporary art exhibition.
This means you won’t actually find any orange trees – there’s little left to see of the original interior and the Orangery was rebuilt after the death of Prince Eugene, anyway.
But…there’s a windowed corridor running down one side of the building. Standing at the main entrance end of this corridor gives you views across the privy gardens and out to Upper Belvedere palace (unless the blinds are down).
If you don’t look too carefully left or right, that view pretty much takes you back to the 18th century: it’s just gardens and façades – no cars, satellite dishes or pylons to tear you back into the 21st century.
Which is also why you need to stand at the main entrance end to see the view. If you go a little further down the corridor, then the A1 telecommunication tower pops into view on the skyline (“intolerable” as Prince Eugene might have said, before dispatching a unit of cannon to bring down the eyesore).
For a nice view of the Orangery itself, simply go into the adjoining gardens, walk up to the first terrace and look back down.
Ticket & visitor tips
Any ticket giving access to Lower Belvedere includes entrance to the temporary exhibition. Unfortunately, the Lower Belvedere area is closed until some time in 2021 (?) for renovation work.
When open, a glass corridor takes you from the end of one wing of the palace along to the Orangerie. You can also enter via the privy garden (which is itself only accessible, however, from inside Lower Belvedere).
(Should you wish to see a historical Orangerie with citrus trees still inside, then try the one at Schönbrunn Palace.)
How to get to the orangery
Follow the directions for Lower Belvedere.
Address: Rennweg 6, 1030 Vienna