Vienna’s art scene gathers pace, from auctions to Wes Anderson’s curatorial debut

Where in Vienna can you see Andy Warhol, Lucio Fontana and Maria Lassnig under one roof? At the palatial headquarters of Dorotheum, where a series of sales will take place from 27-29 November with a focus on contemporary and modern art. More than 500 works are on offer, spanning 20th-century international and Austrian art as well as watches and jewellery. Dorotheum’s auction evenings cap off a buzzing period for the city with Vienna Art Week recently coming to a close – but the action isn’t over just yet.
The centuries-old European auction house first initiated Vienna Art Week in 2005 with the aim of boosting the Austrian capital’s flourishing art scene onto an international stage. It has since acquired a life of its own, with numerous independent art spaces, galleries, museums and academies taking part in the annual event. And while other cities are gripped with end-of-year lethargy, Vienna is seemingly energised by the frost (the glühwein and Sachertorte certainly help). Many of the exhibitions in the festival’s programme extend into the new year, continuing to attract crowd numbers akin to summer showcases.
Installation view of ‘Spitzmaus in a Coffin and Other Treasures’ at Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien.
At the Kunsthistorisches Museum, filmmaker Wes Anderson and his partner, the writer and illustrator Juman Malouf, have combed through the institution’s vast historical collection to assemble more than 400 objects into various themed rooms – think ‘miniatures’ or ‘green’. From emu eggs to Spanish powdered wig boxes, the pair’s cabinet of curiosities has all the aesthetic trappings of an Anderson film, with each object’s placement treated with studied care in bespoke display cases upholstered in Kvadrat textiles. (This is the third and latest instalment in an ongoing series of collaborations between the Viennese museum and renowned artists, which has previously seen curatorial efforts by Ed Ruscha and Edmund de Waal.)
Over at MAK (Museum of Applied Arts), graphic designers Stefan Sagmeister and Jessica Walsh have transformed the historical venue into a multimedia investigation into beauty. The interactive exhibition invites visitors to ponder on this very broad notion through graphic design, product design, architecture, and city planning. Elsewhere, Olafur Eliasson’s permanent installation Yellow Fog transforms the façade of the Verbund-Gebäudes each night after dusk, while Mumok in the MuseumsQuartier is staging an intriguing photography exhibition tracing major political events in Vienna over the past century.
Color Room, 2018, by Sagmeister & Walsh, installation view at MAK. Courtesy of MAK
In the wealth of time, 2012, by Andrea Withmann, on view at Kunsthaus Wien. © The artist. Courtesy of Vienna Art Week
OUR FLAG (reverse), 2018, by Ed Ruscha. Courtesy of Vienna Art Week
Antarctica, by Bernhard Staehli.
INFORMATION
Dorotheum Auction Week runs from 27-30 November at Palais Dorotheum; ‘Spitzmaus in a Coffin and Other Treasures’ is on view until 28 April 2019 at Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien; ‘Sagmeister & Walsh: Beauty’ is on view until 31 March 2019 at MAK; and ‘Photo / Politics / Austria’ is on view until 3 February 2019 at Mumok. For more information, visit the Vienna Art Week website and Dorotheum website
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
-
Inside Miu Miu’s ‘proudly modern and minimal’ new London store
Wallpaper* takes a tour of Miu Miu’s newly refurbished New Bond Street store, which is designed as a gathering place for the Italian house’s ‘spirited, intelligent, thoughtful community’
-
Herzog & de Meuron are renovating New York's iconic Breuer Building. Here's a first look at the renderings
This fall, the brutalist icon will be re-opening as the New York headquarters for Sotheby's.
-
Eleven great things to see at 3 Days of Design 2025
The scale and scope of 3 Days of Design has expanded dramatically since its inception 12 years ago. Here, we share our pick of standout exhibitions and events from the upcoming edition (18-20 June 2025)
-
Kaari Upson’s unsettling, grotesque and seductive world in Denmark
The Louisiana Museum of Modern Art in Denmark is staging the first comprehensive survey of late artist Kaari Upson’s work
-
Inside the brilliant and short career of Paul Thek: 'The goal was to live a creative existence as a maker – and he lived in a saint-like fashion'
Paul Thek's paintings are now viewable at Thomas Dane Gallery in London, in an exhibition curated by Kenny Schacter and Jonathan Anderson.
-
Lubaina Himid and Magda Stawarska’s new show at Kettle’s Yard will uncover the missing narratives in everyday life stories
The artists and partners in life are collaborating on an immersive takeover of Kettle’s Yard, Cambridge, in an exhibition that delves into a lost literary legacy
-
Cassi Namoda is rethinking stained-glass windows at Turner Contemporary in Margate
The artist drew from an eclectic range of references when considering the traditional medium for a Turner Contemporary window overlooking the beach – she tells us more
-
The alternative art fairs championing emerging artists
The lower barrier to entry to these smaller and specialist art fairs make them hubs of grassroots creativity, allowing emerging names to establish a foothold in the industry
-
Artist Zumba Luzamba on the vibrant aesthetic of Congolese fashion rebels, the sapeurs
The Congolese artist takes a deep dive into a fashion subculture in his show at London's Kristin Hjellegjerde Gallery. ‘I draw people in with style so that they can sit with deeper themes,’ he says
-
‘The work is an extension of myself’: Michaela Yearwood-Dan on her debut show at Hauser & Wirth
London-based artist Michaela Yearwood-Dan continues her rapid rise, unveiling monumental new paintings in ‘No Time for Despair’
-
The largest posthumous survey of Helen Frankenthaler puts her in the frame with Pollock and Rothko
Guggenheim Bilbao hosts 'Painting Without Rules', a major exhibition of soak-stain innovator Helen Frankenthaler’s paintings that also includes Pollock and Rothko