The neoclassical building on Freyung / corner of Renngasse, in the heart of Vienna, is an architectural jewel. It was designed and built according to plans by the architects Ernst Gotthilf and Alexander Neumann between 1914 and 1921. For many years, the building was occupied by a bank – today, it is home to the Bank Austria Kunstforum Wien and the Austrian constitutional court.

At the suggestion of the Viennese folk actor Heinz Conrad, who recognized the potential of the then vacant banking halls, the first exhibitions were held here at the beginning of the 1980s. Conversion of the building into a modern museum began in 1989. In March 1990, it was reopened with a highly acclaimed exhibition on Schiele. The entry portal of the building redesigned by the star architect Gustav Peichl is a work of art in itself. A golden ball which decorates the entrance area can be seen from afar. Special shows are regularly exhibited on an area of 1,120 square meters.

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Forum for art

In the capacious rooms, the Bank Austria Kunstforum Wien has dedicated itself to the Classical Modernism and postwar avant-garde periods. Visitors flock to see sensational special exhibitions of big names in the art world like Egon Schiele, Oskar Kokoschka, Paul Cézanne, and Vincent van Gogh, as well as painstakingly curated theme-based shows. Contemporary art has also assumed an ever more important role in the museum. Since 2005, the "Tresor", a former vault room, has been used to display young, international art.

Further highlights included: Austrian avant-gardists of the post-war period, such as Arnulf Rainer and Christian Ludwig Attersee, who were presented in the form of personal effects, as well as female art. Exhibitions on Frida Kahlo and Rebecca Horn were highly acclaimed.

The Bank Austria Kunstforum Wien is open for special exhibitions. You can find the latest information here and in our event database.