Kunsthistorisches Museum Exhibitions | A guide to the museum’s special art & history exhibits

Color and Illusion

Duration: 8 October 2024 to 12 January 2025

Access: Included in the museum admission tickets

What it’s about: Showcasing around 60 paintings, drawings, and prints from the 17th century, this exhibition provides a unique insight into the styles of Dutch master painter Rembrandt and his student Samuel van Hoogstraten, who went on to become a renowned artist himself. The artworks on display focus on the play of color and light, and how they were used to create impressions and illusions in the rich works of these artists.

The Emperors and their Court Artists

Duration: 13 February 2024 – 26 October 2025 in the Coin Collection

Access: Included in the museum admission tickets

What it’s about: This exhibition examines how medals were considered objects of art during the rule of the Habsburg dynasty, focusing on artists from the period between the 16th to the 19th centuries. Comprising about 80 medals, coins, paintings, and other precious objects, the exhibit looks at the high-quality craftsmanship of the masters who created these works of art for the imperial family. It also examines how court artists went from being masters in different styles to specialists in specific genres.

A Glimpse of the Rubens Workshop

Duration: 2 February 2024 to 12 January 2025

Access: Included in the museum admission tickets

What it’s about: Point of View exhibitions focus on a single piece of artwork, the latest being Jupiter and Mercury with Philemon and Baucis produced by Rubens’s workshop in Antwerp in the 17th century. The exhibition dives into the fascinating details included in the canvas painting, which depicts the gods Jupiter and Mercury, disguised as peasants, in the home of the impoverished couple Philemon and Baucis. You can also learn more about the production methods and the different artists who worked at Rubens’s workshop.

Shipwrecks in antiquity and protection of cultural artifacts today

Duration: 4 October 2024 to 16 February 2025

Access: Included in the museum admission tickets

What it’s about: The Vitrine EXTRA exhibition series features different ancient artifacts from the Kunsthistorisches Museum’s Collection of Greek and Roman Antiquities. The 5th edition, titled “Raise the anchor!” focuses on the findings from a Roman shipwreck at the bottom of the sea. These were found in the 1960s and 70s, and include objects like Roman amphoras, a helmet, and lead and copper ingots. It also explores the issue of protection of cultural property.

Mystical Marriage 

Duration: 14 November 2024 to 16 February 2025

Access: Included in the museum admission tickets

What it’s about: This special exhibition is presented at the Kunstkammer, the museum’s unique collection of precious artifacts and craftworks. It features the works of artist and jewellery maker Anna Hendl. Her contemporary pieces of jewellery are inspired by the 15th century diptych (two art panels combined to make a single art piece) The Marriage of St Catherine by the Austrian painter known as “Master of Heiligenkreuz”.