125 YEARS KUNSTHISTORISCHES MUSEUM WIEN

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1 125 YEARS KUNSTHISTORISCHES MUSEUM WIEN On October 17, 1891 Emperor Franz Joseph formally openend the Kunsthistorisches Museum. In 2016 we will celebrate the building s 125 th anniversary with a year-long programme of events and activities under the motto A Museum for Everyone. Throughout 2016 everyone can visit the museum for free on his or her birthday! We will inform you about additional events and activities in due time. Please find enclosed a preview of our forthcoming exhibitions and talks.

2 MARCH 8 - SEPTEMBER 11, 2016 CELEBRATION! 125 YEARS ANNIVERSARY EXHIBITION KUNSTHISTORISCHES MUSEUM WIEN In 2016, the Kunsthistorisches Museum will be celebrating a special anniversary: 125 years ago, on October 17, 1891, the magnificent new building on Vienna s Ringstrasse was formally opened to the public. To commemorate this event the departments of the Kunsthistorisches Museum are collaborating on a major exhibition on celebrations with objects from their own collections. International loans like Francisco de Goya s La gallina ciega from the Prado in Madrid or the magnificent Yashmak designed by Shaun Leane for one of Alexander McQueen s fashion shows from the Victoria & Albert Museum in London will enrich this magnificent show. We will examine different aspects of European festival culture at courts, cities and the countryside, and will review their evolution from the late Middle Ages and Renaissance to the eighteenth century. Courtly banquets where guests enjoyed merrymaking, drinking, dance and music form the nucleus of the exhibition, with a special emphasis on Habsburg palaces and capitals. The adjoining galleries showcase public festivities such as processions, festive entries and tournaments staged to honour coronations, weddings and birthdays, but also to celebrate carnival, religious feast-days, or market days, where dressing-up or role games temporarily suspended the restraints of everyday life.

3 MARCH 16 - NOVEMBER 27, 2016 FRANZ JOSEPH ON THE OCCASION OF THE CENTENARY OF THE EMPEROR'S DEATH IMPERIAL CARRIAGE MUSEUM VIENNA, SCHÖNBRUNN PALACE, HOFMOBILIENDEPOT. IMPERIAL FURNITURE COLLECTION AND SCHLOSS NIEDERWEIDEN Presented concurrently at four different venues, this major exhibition commemorating the 100 th anniversary of the death of Emperor Franz Joseph takes a critical look at the man who personified the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Each venue focuses on a different aspect and/or theme. At the Imperial Carriage Museum in Vienna displays of carriages and clothing will focus on how the image of the emperor was carefully staged in all its aspects, ranging from opulent pomp to an almost un-imperial modesty. Franz Joseph s personal preference for frugality, which the monarch made no secret of, can be seen from several of the vehicles he used and contrasts starkly with the enormous sums expended on running the court stables or on his personal security when he was out driving.

4 Featuring original state coaches, magnificent trappings, exquisite gala dress and court liveries, this part of the Emperor Franz Joseph centenary exhibition will illustrate not only various ceremonial events such as state visits, celebrations of the imperial orders or the Corpus Christi procession but also how carriages were used in everyday activities. In addition, three major ceremonial events from the monarch s long life will be focused on: his wedding to Elisabeth (1854), his coronation in Hungary (1867) and his funeral (1916). Many bystanders at the time felt they were witnessing not only the funeral of a long-serving monarch but the demise of an entire epoch.

5 APRIL 20 - SEPTEMBER 6, 2016 RON MUECK THESEUS TEMPLE After shows that presented a work by Ugo Rondinone, Kris Martin, Richard Wright, Edmund de Waal and Susan Philipzs, the sixth exhibition in this series of contemporary and modern art showcases Ron Mueck. Beginning in 2012, the museum initiated a new series of exhibitions within the Temple, a neo-classical structure built by court architect Peter von Nobile in 1823 to be the home for a single work of then-contemporary art: Antonio Canova's white marble masterpiece Theseus Slaying the Centaur. For almost seventy years this artwork stood alone inside the building, until in 1891 it was moved to the newly-completed Kunsthistorisches Museum where it still stands today. More than a century later, these exhibitions have returned the Temple to its original purpose: to house remarkable artworks by contemporary artists, one at a time.

6 MAY 4 - NOVEMBER 7, 2016 GOOD HEAVENS! ECCLESIASTICAL VESTMENTS FROM THE REIGN OF EMPRESS MARIA THERESIA IMPERIAL TREASURY VIENNA The Ecclesiastical Treasury houses a major holding of 18 th century liturgical textiles that cannot be permanently displayed because of conservation concerns. Most date back to generous gifts made by Emperor Charles VI ( ), his wife Elisabeth Christine ( ) and their daughter Maria Theresia ( ). Many of these liturgical vestments were made of precious French or Italian fabrics embellished with additional embroidery. Imperial robes were sometimes also reworked into vestments. The exhibition showcases both the variety and the outstanding quality of the textiles in the Ecclesiastical Treasury.

7 MAY 24, MARCH 5, 2017 THE EMPEROR'S GOLD KUNSTHISTORISCHES MUSEUM WIEN As part of the celebrations marking the 125 th anniversary of the Kunsthistorisches Museum the Coin Collection showcases selected gold coins from the Numophyliacium Imperatoris, as the imperial coin collection was called centuries ago. Renowned for the size and quality of its holdings, as well as the rarity of its coins, this world-famous collection owes its fame to generations of Austrian rulers who were also passionate collectors and connoisseurs. The exhibition focuses on the remarkable spectrum of historical gold mintages from classical antiquity to the Modern Era, and looks all the glittering facets of the Emperor s Gold. The spectrum comprises everything from gold coins in monetary circulation to multiples and finally giants made of gold, unique special mintages commissioned by the Emperor as princely representation or as gifts for important personages. Gold coins presented to a member of the imperial family soon entered the collection, which functioned as a starting point for the first numismatic catalogues and research, becoming the birthplace of numismatics as a modern discipline in the 18 th century.

8 OCTOBER 11, JANUARY 29, 2017 EDMUND DE WAAL DURING THE NIGHT KUNSTHISTORISCHES MUSEUM WIEN In 2012 the Kunsthistorisches Museum initiated the exhibition series Artist s Choice in connection with a programme focusing on modern and contemporary art where we invite internationallyrenowned artists to curate an exhibition with artworks he or she has selected from the different collections of the Kunsthistorisches Museum. The first was the American artist Ed Ruscha. The next show in this series is scheduled for October 2016 and will be curated by Edmund de Waal, the ceramicist and author of the acclaimed book The Hare with the Amber Eyes. Published in 2010, these memoirs tell the story of his Jewish ancestors and relations, the Ephrussi family, in Odessa, Tokyo, Paris and Vienna.

9 2016 POINTS OF VIEW KUNSTHISTORISCHES MUSEUM WIEN In 2012, the Picture Gallery started Points of View, a new series of small exhibitions, each of which focuses on a single exceptional painting in the collection that is displayed only rarely for lack of wall space, or where recent research has revealed interesting new aspects. In 2016 we will showcase the following paintings: Point of View #15, April 1 July 17, 2016 Lucas Cranach the Elder, Judith with the Head of Holofernes, c Point of View #16, July 22 November 27, 2016 Ludger tom Ring (?), The Calling of Saint Matthew, c Point of View #17, December 2, 2016 March 19, 2017 Joos van Craesbeeck, Beggar Girl, before 1659

10 MODERN & CONTEMPORARY TALKS Since January 2012, the Kunsthistorisches Museum has been inviting leading figures from the world of Modern and Contemporary art to spend time at the museum and speak publicly about their responses to it. The list of past speakers includes Jeff Koons, Edmund de Waal, Nan Goldin, Tobias Meyer, Ed Ruscha, Lawrence Weiner, Sandy Nairne, Thomas Demand, John Currin, Elizabeth Peyton, David Dawson, Ugo Rondinone, Philippe de Montebello, Anthony d Offay, Roberta Smith, Jerry Saltz and many more. As part of our programme of events and activities to celebrate the museum s 125th anniversary we have invited a number of wellknown museum directors to give a talk. Taken together these talks offer a wide spectrum of fascinating insights into present conditions and future developments in art and the museum world. JANUARY 25, 2016 WIM PIJBES Director, Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam MARCH 14, 2016 MAX HOLLEIN Director, Städel Museum, Frankfurt MAY 30, 2016 THOMAS CAMPBELL Director, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

11 SEPTEMBER 12, 2016 GABRIELE FINALDI Director, The National Gallery, London NOVEMBER 7, 2016 EIKE SCHMIDT Director, Uffizi Gallery, Florence CONVERSATIONS WITH OLD MASTERS In our series Conversations with Old Masters international experts present talks followed by Q&A sessions on fascinating aspects of the collections and/or temporary exhibitions of the Kunsthistorisches Museum. Aimed at a lay audience, these entertaining talks offer insights into recent research, inviting new viewpoints on Old Masters.

12 FEBRUARY 22, 2016 APRIL 11, 2016 DAGMAR EICHBERGER Margaret of Austria, a Regent and Connoisseur from the House of Habsburg: MARGARITA CAESARUM AUSTRIE UNICA FILIA ET AMITA A multi-annual research grant from the Australian Research Council enabled Dagmar Eichberger to assemble a databank of the collection history for the inventories of the collections assembled by Margaret of Austria. She continued her research on early collections in Europe, concluding it with a habilitation project at the University of the Saarland. In October 2011 Dagmar Eichberger was made assistant professor and research coordinator for the EU project ARTIFEX. MAUREEN CASSIDY-GEIGER Princely Dining Culture The American art historian, curator and scholar is a specialist in European decorative arts and patterns, the history of travel, and culture and dining in the 17 th and 18 th century. JUNE 6, 2016 BARBARA VINKEN The Art of Celebration In 2004 Barbara Vinken was made Professor for the History of Literature and Romanesque Philology at Munich University. In her work she focuses on the Renaissance in Italy and France, the reception of classical antiquity, deconstructed feminism, comparative literary theory, and fashion theory. In addition, Barbara Vinken is a regular contributor to DIE ZEIT, NZZ and CICERO. OCTOBER 24, 2016 ANNE-MARIE BONNET The Nude in Durer s Oeuvre Born in 1954 in Freiburg in Germany and raised in Marseille, Anne-Marie Bonnet is Professor of Mediaeval and Modern Art History at Bonn University. In her newest publication she presents Albrecht Durer ( ) as the inventor of the nude, and demonstrates the many different ways in which Durer approached the subject. Durer was not a well-behaved craftsman but a representative of the avant-garde of his time.

13 EXHIBITIONS IN JAPAN 2015/16 THE GENESIS AND DEVELOPMENT OF LANDSCAPE PAINTING Since 2015 an exhibition of landscape painting curated by the Picture Gallery of the Kunsthistorisches Museum has been shown at three venues in Japan. Over 70 works by Italian, French, Netherlandish, Dutch, Flemish, German and Swiss artists offer a comprehensive survey from the early 16 th to the late 18 th century. The exhibition documents the evolution of landscape painting as a genre, from the ideal world landscapes of the early 16 th century to the celebrated autonomous landscapes produced by Dutch artists in the 17 th century to the 18 th century townscapes much sought-after by contemporary connoisseurs. Masterpieces by Joachim Patinier, Jan Brueghel the elder, Jan Brueghel the younger, Jan van Goyen, Canaletto, Dosso Dossi, Salvator Rosa and Leandro Bassano s series of the months, as well as landscapes never previously exhibited, form the heart of the show. An exhibition catalogue was published in conjunction with this important show. The venues: Tokyo, Bunkamura Museum of Art September 9 - December 7, 2015 Shizuoka, Prefectural Museum of Art December 19, March 21, 2016 Kurume, Ishibashi Museum of Art April 2 June 12, 2016

14 2016/17 LUCAS CRANACH THE ELDER A RENAISSANCE MASTER AND HIS LEGACY Today Lucas Cranach the elder ( ) is regarded as one of the most fascinating and versatile artists of the 16 th century. His sensual nudes are as much a part of our collective memory as his portraits of the reformer Martin Luther; in addition, his stylistically and content-wise idiosyncratic works inspired numerous painters, among them Picasso. Conceived and curated by the Kunsthistorisches Museum, the exhibition showcases a German artist who has lately come to international attention, introducing him to the general Japanese public for the first time. Over sixty paintings and prints by Cranach, as well as a selection of works by contemporaries such as Dürer, document both the amazing spectrum of his creativity and its uniqueness. The show draws on the rich holdings of the Kunsthistorisches Museum, which include some of Cranach s seminal works, but also includes numerous loans from European and American collections. In addition, an excursus brings together selected representatives of Modern Art and of

15 contemporary art who have dealt with the art of the German Renaissance master in their work. The venues: Tokyo, National Museum of Western Art October 15, January 15, 2017 Osaka, National Museum January 28 April 16, 2017 SUBJECT TO ALTERATION! PRESS CONTACT Nina Auinger-Sutterlüty, MAS Head of Communication and Public Relations KHM-Museumsverband Wissenschaftliche Anstalt öffentlichen Rechts Burgring 5, 1010 Vienna T info.pr@khm.at