STELLPROBE: Collection Acquisitions from the Last Decade in a Display by Heimo Zobernig

More than 150 artworks are being brought together at Belvedere 21 in the spirit of a Stellprobe—an experimental, intuitive arrangement that reveals new relationships between the works. The exhibition title stems from a suggestion by Heimo Zobernig and borrows a term from theater, where it refers to an intermediate stage in the development of a production. Occupying the ground floor, upper floor, Blickle Cinema, and sculpture garden, this large-scale exhibition is dedicated to acquisitions and donations of the past ten years. It functions as a review, an insight into the collection strategy, and a temporary vision of a possible future museum. Here, the museum presents itself not only as a place of preservation but also as a place of contemporaneity, where art is produced and art history is constantly being written.

Stella Rollig, Belvedere General Director: Collecting is one of a museum’s core responsibilities. What enters a collection today helps determine which artworks, which individuals, and which stories will be preserved for future generations. This exhibition offers insight into that work, which is also our public mandate, while looking ahead to the future of a collection that continues to grow.

The exhibition does not present the collection as a fixed or complete body of works, but rather as an open-ended structure. The encounter between works of different eras, contexts, and media staged within Heimo Zobernig’s striking architectural setting opens up new connections and surprising interpretations, says Luisa Ziaja, Chief Curator and Head of Collections at the Belvedere.

Collecting, one of a museum’s core responsibilities, is central to shaping its identity. Guided by the Belvedere’s mission to present Austrian art within an international context and a program committed to offering new perspectives on art history, the collection is continually being expanded and updated across all periods. The exhibition ranges from sixteenth-century medieval altarpieces to historical works from later periods and extends into contemporary art—the fastest-growing area of the museum’s collection. Particular emphasis has been placed on the representation of women artists from the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, as well as other previously underrepresented positions. These also include protagonists of the feminist avant-garde and artists whose work engages with experiences of migration. The media on display are as diverse as the historical contexts: from painting, sculpture, and drawing to photography, video, and sound installations. The exhibition spans a wide range, offering a fragmentary snapshot of the collection, while also affirming the value of these objects and the museum’s commitment to preserving them for future generations.

Over the past ten years, around 2,500 works have entered the Belvedere collection through acquisitions and donations. Stellprobe highlights this development, offering new perspectives on both historical and contemporary art. The exhibition also includes permanent loans from the Artothek des Bundes and the Austrian Ludwig Foundation.

The display conceived by Heimo Zobernig creates a bold link between the two exhibition levels while actively engaging with the specific characteristics of the atrium building designed by Karl Schwanzer. For his expansive installation, Zobernig employs used stage elements from the Volkstheater in Vienna.