VIENNA.- After the most successful year in its history, the Belvedere is looking ahead to 2026: At its three venues, the museum will present a total of fourteen new exhibitions, showcasing a broad spectrum of historical and contemporary artistic perspectives.

General Director Stella Rollig: Highlights at the Lower Belvedere comprise exhibitions on Ferdinand Georg Waldmüller, Anni Albers, Erna Rosenstein, and Erika Giovanna Klien. Meanwhile at Belvedere 21, the year will be defined by two major thematic exhibitions: Stellprobe, opening in June, spotlights new acquisitions from the past decade and reveals how the collection has evolved. Feminist Futures Forever, opening in November, will bring together feminist perspectives from past and present and translate these into visionary images for the future.

At the LOWER BELVEDERE Ferdinand Georg Waldmüller. True to Nature (27 Feb.–14 June 2026) will examine landscape paintings by this Biedermeier master in a European context. Anni Albers. Constructing Textiles (30 Apr.–16 Aug. 2026) will be Austria’s first major exhibition to showcase the work of this important artist. Opening in summer, a show on Erna Rosenstein (3 July 2026–10 Jan. 2027) will explore the multifaceted work of this key figure of the postwar avant-garde in Poland. Finally, the exhibition Erika Giovanna Klien (18 Sept. 2026–31 Jan. 2027) is dedicated to the art of this outstanding exponent of Viennese Kineticism.

At the UPPER BELVEDERE the IN-SIGHT exhibition series will explore two works by Johann Baptist Lampi the Elder and his son Johann Baptist Lampi the Younger (13 May–11 Oct. 2026). Both pictures were altered by overpainting and their concealed meanings will now be revealed. CARLONE CONTEMPORARY, the exhibition series presenting contemporary interventions in the Upper Belvedere’s Carlone Hall, will feature works by herman de vries (26 Mar.–13 Sept. 2026) and Asta Gröting (starting 24 Sept. 2026).

The year at BELVEDERE 21 will start with Sandra Mujinga. Skin to Skin (29 Jan.–31 May 2026). This exhibition will transform Belvedere 21 into an installation dominated by the Norwegian artist’s characteristic giant figures. This will be followed by the shows Sue Williams (20 Feb.–7 June 2026), exploring the American artist’s feminist paintings on the politics of the body and of power, and Friedl Kubelka / vom Gröller. Home but Not at Home (13 Feb.–7 June 2026), presenting a little-known aspect of this influential Austrian artist’s work: her drawings and paintings. Miao Ying. Come, Sit, Stay (26 June–4 Oct. 2026) focuses on issues surrounding AI and artistic authorship while the major exhibition Stellprobe (26 June–4 Oct. 2026) will bring together acquisitions from the past decade in a design by Heimo Zobernig. The Civa media art festival will take place at Belvedere 21 for the sixth time in autumn (starting 13 Nov. 2026), comprising an exhibition, discussions, film screenings, and performances. The year will conclude with the show Feminist Futures Forever (5 Nov. 2026–7 March 2027). Looking back at the 1985 exhibition Kunst mit Eigen-Sinn (Art with a Mind of Its Own), this show will forge a dialogue between international and intergenerational feminist perspectives.

The exhibition program is accompanied by numerous publications, events, workshops, participatory projects, and a free public engagement program for local audiences.

At the same time, the Belvedere is continuously expanding its holdings: In 2025, this was achieved with two extensive collections of contemporary Austrian art. These include works from the estate of Alfons Schilling and a lifetime gift from Maria Hahnenkamp. The collection has also been supplemented by numerous purchases and donations from important artists.

Meanwhile, the museum is bringing its content into the digital realm with Belvedere Games, opening up new playful approaches to the collection—in the museum, in the palace gardens, and online. This widens its reach, appealing especially to a young, international audience.

2025: THE MOST SUCCESSFUL YEAR AND OUTLOOK FOR MAJOR PROJECTS

With around 1.6 million visitors, the Upper Belvedere set a new record in 2025 and remains by far the most visited art museum in Austria. This means the Upper Belvedere has doubled its visitor numbers since 2016. The Belvedere’s three venues—Upper and Lower Belvedere and Belvedere 21—also recorded remarkable visitor numbers as a whole, surpassing the two million threshold for the first time.

We are delighted to have welcomed around nine percent more visitors in 2025 than in the previous year—more than ever before, said the Belvedere’s Chief Financial Officer Wolfgang Bergmann. A timely realization of the Visitor Center is therefore a priority for us in order to keep enhancing the quality of the visitor experience.

Preparatory work for the Visitor Center is in full swing, with the aim of starting construction in 2027. Zoning procedures and preliminary technical investigations are currently underway. Meanwhile, the structural shell of the new Salzburg Museum and Belvedere Salzburg is scheduled to be completed by summer 2026, with the opening planned for autumn 2027.