New perspectives, major names and contemporary positions
Franz West: The Revolution of Sculpture
Since 6 November 2026, ALBERTINA MODERN has been presenting a major retrospective devoted to Franz West. Franz West: The Revolution of Sculpture runs until 29 March 2027 and focuses on an artist who repeatedly challenged the boundaries between artwork and viewer. West became particularly well known for his Adaptives, objects designed not simply to be observed but to be held, worn and experienced. His work removed sculpture from the traditional pedestal and turned the encounter with art into an active situation. The retrospective is one of the major new exhibitions in Vienna in 2026 and is particularly relevant for visitors interested in Austrian contemporary art and sculpture.
Franz West: The Revolution of Sculpture
Her Story: Women Artists of the ALBERTINA
Her Story: Women Artists of the ALBERTINA has been on view since 30 October 2026 and runs until 14 February 2027. For the first time, the museum takes a comprehensive look at women artists represented in its own collection across several centuries. The exhibition brings together works spanning five centuries, from early engravers and publishers to modern artists and pioneering feminist positions from the 1970s. Artists represented include Angelica Kauffmann, Berthe Morisot, Käthe Kollwitz, Sonia Delaunay, Louise Bourgeois, Maria Lassnig and VALIE EXPORT. For travellers looking for art in Vienna in winter 2026, the exhibition offers a fresh perspective on familiar periods of art history while bringing greater visibility to artists who have often received less attention.
Her Story: Women Artists of the ALBERTINA
Feminist Futures Forever at Belvedere 21
Since 5 November 2026, Belvedere 21 has been showing Feminist Futures Forever, which remains on view until 8 March 2027. The exhibition brings international and intergenerational feminist positions into dialogue, taking the 1985 exhibition Kunst mit Eigen Sinn at the same location as one of its starting points. Historical and contemporary works explore questions of participation, gender, the body, work, memory and possible futures. The participating artists include Marina Abramović, VALIE EXPORT, Maria Lassnig, Cindy Sherman and Yoko Ono. For a cultural trip to Vienna in winter 2026, Belvedere 21 offers an opportunity to engage with contemporary art and current social questions in one exhibition.
New Objectivity: Photography of the 1920s and 30s
From 13 November 2026, the Leopold Museum turns its attention to an important chapter in European photography with New. Objective. Photography of the 1920s and 30s. The exhibition runs until 28 February 2027 and brings together more than one hundred photographic positions from Germany and Austria. At its centre is a new, direct visual language that developed after the First World War. Rather than romanticised imagery, photographers turned towards everyday life, architecture, people, industry and technological change. The exhibition includes works by August Sander, Albert Renger Patzsch, Ellen Auerbach, Trude Fleischmann, Grete Kolliner and Rudolf Koppitz. The exhibition connects photography with the social developments of the interwar period and adds another perspective to the Leopold Museum's well known focus on Vienna around 1900 and Modernism.
New. Objective. Photography of the 1920s and 30s
Tiffany Sia: Overt Listening
On 13 November 2026, Kunsthalle Wien at MuseumsQuartier opens Tiffany Sia: Overt Listening. Running until 24 January 2027, it is the first institutional solo exhibition in Austria by the Hong Kong born artist. The exhibition centres on a new film about the Kinmen Islands off the coast of Taiwan. Sia examines how political conflicts, history and memory continue to shape landscapes, infrastructure, media and systems of communication. The film is accompanied by new video works and spatial installations. This makes Overt Listening one of the Vienna exhibitions in winter 2026 that directly connects contemporary art with political and social questions.
Civa 2026: postacceleration
Another new exhibition at Belvedere 21 begins on 13 November 2026. Civa 2026: postacceleration explores the relationship between technology, digital spaces and contemporary experience. The exhibition remains open until 7 March 2027. The sixth edition of Civa focuses on speed and simultaneity at a time when constant acceleration has become part of everyday life. Works by Eyez Li, Nolan Oswald Dennis, Kyriaki Goni, Silke Grabinger and Letta Shtohryn are accompanied by talks, film screenings and live performances. For visitors searching for exhibitions in Vienna in 2026 with a focus on digital art, immersive formats and new media, Civa offers a different perspective from the city's more traditional museum experiences.
Magali Reus: Tenant
On 27 November 2026, Kunsthalle Wien at MuseumsQuartier opens Magali Reus: Tenant, which remains on view until 2 May 2027. It is the Dutch artist's first solo exhibition in Austria. Reus combines artisanal techniques including casting, forging, wicker weaving and embroidery with industrial processes such as laser cutting and 3D printing. For the Vienna exhibition, she also draws inspiration from details found throughout the city, including street furniture, signage and architectural elements from different periods. This direct connection with the city adds a distinctive dimension to the Vienna art programme in winter 2026, bringing sculpture, design and everyday architecture together.
Hotel THE LEO GRAND: A Starting Point for Art and Culture in Vienna
After a day spent exploring museums, exhibitions and contemporary art, Hotel THE LEO GRAND offers a central base in Vienna's first district. The ALBERTINA is within easy reach, while MuseumsQuartier, the Leopold Museum, Kunsthalle Wien and Belvedere 21 can all be reached conveniently by public transport. Guests travelling for the new exhibitions in Vienna in winter 2026 can combine the city's art programme with a stay in its historic centre. Hotel THE LEO GRAND brings together the history of its building and contemporary design, making it a fitting base for a cultural weekend in Vienna.