Enjoy “then, later, and now” views of Vienna wrapped up as watercolours and photographs from three accomplished masters of their art.
- Small Focus exhibition at the Heidi Horten Collection
- Early to late 19th century views and today’s city
- Miniatures by Balthasar Wigand
- Watercolours by Rudolf von Alt
- Photos by Stefan Oláh
- Runs Apr 30 – Oct 15, 2025
- Book entrance tickets* to the Collection
- See also:
Vienna, Vienna, Only You
(View of the exhibition with works by all three artists; press photo courtesy of the Heidi Horten Collection)
Normally, I don’t report on the smaller exhibitions at the main museums and venues. There’s only one of me and a lot of Vienna. Plus those cakes won’t eat themselves.
But I make an exception for the Vienna, Vienna, Only You exhibition at the Heidi Horten Collection, as it’s one after my own heart: a double dose of Viennese and artistic goodness.
The exhibition features three artists separated by time but united by a common theme: images of Vienna.
So we have:
- Balthasar Wigand (1770-1846), who really ought to be a character in a Dickens novel, but who painted gorgeous miniature watercolours of the Viennese cityscape
Popular with the growing middle class, Wigand’s works were often embedded in decorative boxes and caskets with mother-of-pearl inlays.
(Balthasar Wigand, Sewing box from around 1820; press photo courtesy of the Heidi Horten Collection)
- Rudolf von Alt (1812-1905), a renowned watercolour artist of his time, as emphasised by a recent exhibition at the Albertina
Von Alt is best known for his extraordinary renditions of landscapes and urban views. His works set an artistic standard, but also served a documentary purpose: capturing the sights of the capital and elsewhere for posterity.
- Stefan Oláh (b. 1971), a contemporary photographer and photographic artist with architecture and living spaces one of the key threads in his work
Oláh has recently directed his lens at those very places recorded by Wigand and von Alt, thus gifting us the third leg of a triple snapshot of Vienna: from classic Biedermeier times, through a city of change and urbanisation, to today’s metropolis.
By presenting the works of all three, we have both a historical comparison and an artistic one.
(Stefan Oláh, Spinnerin am Kreuz, 2024; the Spinnerin was once out in the country with Vienna in the distant background; press photo courtesy of the Heidi Horten Collection)
“Then and now” images of Vienna have their own fascination when they reveal what’s changed (and what hasn’t).
Wigand’s embedded miniatures, five von Alt watercolours and 11 large-format photos by Oláh also highlight how an artistic genre or style affects perception, and how skills and technological progress impact pictorial documentation.
But the real treat is those comparisons.
So, for example, we see von Alt’s paintings of Stephansdom, Karlskirche and Schönbrunn juxtaposed with Oláh’s photos of the same.
Or a Wigand miniature of the 1492 Spinnerin am Kreuz monument, which more or less marked the point where Vienna came into view from the south. Oláh’s 21st-century update reveals, well, let us just say a rather different landscape.
Dates, tickets & tips
Enjoy Vienna through time from April 30th to October 15th, 2025. An entrance ticket for or from the Heidi Horten Collection includes the permanent and special exhibitions within.
(Booking service provided by Tiqets.com*, who I am an affiliate of)
If Wigand’s cityscapes appeal, be sure to also pop into the Heidi Horten Collection’s “tea room”; c.40 caskets and similar featuring his work from Christian Kuhn’s private collection are on display there.
The large Biedermeier exhibition over at the Leopold Museum (until July 27th, 2025) also has numerous painted landscapes and scenes from that era.
As you walk around historical Vienna (for example, using my suggested walking route), you can even create your own “then and now” experience.
The digital collection of the Wien Museum includes a huge number of historical photos, prints, and paintings of streets and sights. So wherever you find yourself, search the collection for the location, and you might find a similar view from centuries past.
The Wien Museum permanent exhibition on Karlsplatz also has numerous paintings and models of historical Vienna.
How to get there
Follow the travel tips on my main overview page for the Heidi Horten Collection, but it sits right in the centre, close to Karlsplatz subway station and the Burgring tram stop.
Address: Hanuschgasse 3, 1010 Vienna