Women shaping museums, opera, art and music in Vienna 2026
Stella Rollig and the Belvedere Vienna
With Stella Rollig, Belvedere Vienna is led by a general director who connects historic collections, contemporary art and international visibility. As General Director and Scientific Managing Director, she shapes one of the most important museums in Vienna and shows how Viennese art history can be read again and again from new perspectives. The Belvedere is therefore more than a place of famous masterpieces. It is a museum where past and present enter into dialogue. In Vienna 2026, the institution remains an important reference point for art, history and social questions. The connection between collection, research and contemporary perspectives makes the Belvedere a central place for culture in Vienna 2026.
Lilli Hollein and MAK
At MAK, art in Vienna 2026 is explored through design, applied arts, architecture and contemporary culture. Lilli Hollein leads the institution as General Director and Scientific Managing Director and is one of the defining voices in the Vienna museum landscape. Her reappointment as MAK General Director from 1 September 2026 for another five years underlines her important role in Vienna culture. MAK shows that culture does not only take place in exhibition rooms, but also in everyday life, in design, materials, architecture and questions of how we live. Historic collections meet current social themes, making the museum an important destination for design in Vienna, applied arts in Vienna and contemporary cultural mediation.
Bettina Leidl and MuseumsQuartier Wien
MuseumsQuartier Wien is one of the most vibrant cultural places in Vienna. With Bettina Leidl as director, it is not only a cultural district that is being managed, but a public space where museums in Vienna, exhibitions, architecture, events and urban life interact. Since 2022, she has led MuseumsQuartier Wien and shaped one of the city’s most important meeting places for culture in Vienna. MuseumsQuartier makes visible how diverse culture in Vienna 2026 can be. It brings together contemporary art in Vienna, an urban atmosphere, cultural diversity and new event formats. The MQ is not only home to important institutions, but also a place where city life and culture naturally come together.
Luisa Ziaja and Belvedere 21
In the context of Belvedere 21, Luisa Ziaja shapes the view of contemporary art in Vienna. As Chief Curator, Collection Director and Head of the Curatorial Department at the Belvedere, she helps define how contemporary art is collected, presented and communicated. Belvedere 21 stands for art of the present, new artistic voices and questions that reach beyond the exhibition space. Curatorial work becomes a form of mediation between collection, city and society. This makes Belvedere 21 an important place for contemporary perspectives in Vienna and for everyone who wants to experience art in Vienna 2026 beyond classic museum images.
Angela Stief and Albertina Modern
Albertina Modern is a central place for modern art in Vienna 2026. Angela Stief shapes the institution as Director of Albertina Modern and Chief Curator for contemporary art at the Albertina. This makes her an important figure within one of the most significant exhibition spaces in Vienna. Her curatorial work shows how exhibitions can make social developments, political questions and aesthetic changes visible. Albertina Modern therefore becomes an important place for modern and contemporary art in Vienna and for everyone who wants to experience the Vienna art scene 2026 from a contemporary perspective.
Fatima Hellberg and mumok
mumok is one of the most important institutions for modern art in Vienna and contemporary art in Vienna. With Fatima Hellberg as General Director and Scientific Managing Director, the museum is led by a personality who connects international perspectives, contemporary art and institutional responsibility. At mumok, modern art is understood as a space for dialogue and reflection. Contemporary art, research and social debates come together here. This makes mumok a lively place for modern art in Vienna 2026, new curatorial perspectives and international positions within the Vienna cultural scene 2026.
Michelle Cotton and Kunsthalle Wien
Kunsthalle Wien focuses consistently on the present. With Michelle Cotton as Artistic Director, the institution is shaped by artistic leadership that brings international art, social themes and curatorial experimentation to Vienna. Kunsthalle Wien is therefore one of the key institutions for contemporary art in Vienna. Art is not viewed in isolation here, but as part of broader social developments. Discourse, research, exhibition practice and international perspectives interact closely. For visitors who want to discover culture in Vienna 2026 beyond classic museum routes, Kunsthalle Wien is an especially exciting place.
Barbara Staudinger and the Jewish Museum Vienna
With Barbara Staudinger, the Jewish Museum Vienna is led by a scientific director who connects historical research, Jewish urban history, remembrance culture and current questions of coexistence. Since July 2022, she has been director of the museum. This makes the Jewish Museum Vienna one of the most important places for remembrance culture in Vienna. The museum does not only preserve history, but repeatedly translates it into the present. Jewish history in Vienna, social responsibility and museum work are connected here. This expands the view of culture in Vienna 2026 by adding an important historical and social dimension.
Katrin Vohland and the Natural History Museum Vienna
With Dr. Katrin Vohland, the Natural History Museum Vienna is also under scientific leadership. Since 1 June 2020, she has been Director General and Scientific Managing Director of the NHM Vienna and is responsible for the overall coordination of one of the most important museums in Vienna. The Natural History Museum Vienna shows that culture in Vienna 2026 extends far beyond art and the stage. Science, research, natural history and public education are also part of the city’s cultural landscape. The NHM Vienna communicates knowledge, opens collections and understands natural history as a foundation for questions about the present and the future.
Saskia Leopold and the Leopold Museum
At the Leopold Museum, cultural responsibility becomes visible at foundation level. Mag. Saskia Leopold, BA is a board member of the Leopold Museum Private Foundation and is therefore directly connected to the institutional framework that supports one of the most important museums for Viennese Modernism. This brings a different form of institutional work into focus. It is about collection history, cultural heritage, long term responsibility and strategic guidance. For museums in Vienna, this level is especially important because it shows how cultural institutions are led into the future not only through exhibitions, but also through sustainable structures.
Monica Kurzel Runtscheiner and the Imperial Carriage Museum Vienna
Within the wider context of the Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna, cultural responsibility becomes especially visible in individual collections. Monica Kurzel Runtscheiner is Director of the Imperial Carriage Museum Vienna and is responsible for a collection that connects courtly history, mobility, fashion and representation in a unique way. The Imperial Carriage Museum expands the view of culture in Vienna 2026 through objects, staging and historic everyday worlds. Here, history is told not only through paintings or architecture, but through carriages, clothing and forms of representation. This creates a special approach to imperial history and to specialised collections within the Vienna museum landscape.
Lotte de Beer and Volksoper Wien
At Volksoper Wien, Lotte de Beer has shaped the house as director since September 2022. Her work brings a new perspective to opera, operetta, musicals and music theatre. Her second term begins with the 2027-28 season and runs until 2032, continuing her long term role in music theatre in Vienna. Volksoper Wien shows how opera in Vienna 2026 can connect tradition and the present. Major stage art, new forms of storytelling and a diverse audience come together here. This makes the house an important place for music theatre in Vienna 2026 and for everyone who wants to experience culture in Vienna through music and the stage.
Marie Jacquot, Elim Chan and Marin Alsop in Vienna’s Orchestral World
The orchestral world of Vienna 2026 is also shaped by strong artistic personalities. At the Wiener Symphoniker, Marie Jacquot stands as First Guest Conductor for a new generation at the conductor’s podium. Elim Chan will become Artistic Partner of the Wiener Symphoniker from the 2026-27 season, bringing further international presence to classical music in Vienna. Marin Alsop also belongs in this cultural perspective. From 2019 to 2025, she was Chief Conductor of the ORF Radio Symphony Orchestra Vienna and was named Honorary Conductor in 2025. Together, these positions show that music in Vienna 2026 lives not only from tradition, but also from new artistic impulses. In a city with such a strong musical history, it becomes clear how the Vienna orchestral landscape continues to develop.
Hotel THE LEO GRAND as a Starting Point for Culture in Vienna
For guests wishing to experience female Vienna culture 2026, Hotel THE LEO GRAND offers a stylish starting point in the heart of the city. Many museums in Vienna, exhibition spaces, opera houses, cultural districts and concert venues are easy to reach from here. Between historic architecture, contemporary comfort and the special atmosphere of Vienna’s city centre, Hotel THE LEO GRAND becomes an ideal place for a cultural stay in Vienna. From here, guests can discover the places where culture in the city is shaped, communicated and developed further. For travellers who want to experience culture in Vienna, art in Vienna, opera in Vienna and music in Vienna, Hotel THE LEO GRAND is a special starting point.