Once used as the Habsburg’s imperial apartments for guests, the Albertina is now a repository for the greatest collection of graphic art in the world. The permanent Batliner Collection – with paintings covering the period from Monet to Picasso – and the high quality of changing exhibitions are what really make the Albertina so worthwhile visiting.
French impressionism and post-impressionism, as well as the works of the Swiss Alberto Giacometti, were the original focus of the Batliner Collection, but over time husband and wife benefactors Herbert and Rita Batliner added a substantial number of Russian avant-garde works to create a who’s who of 20th-century and contemporary art: Monet, Picasso, Degas, Cézanne, Matisse, Chagal, Nolde, Jawlensky and many more.
All this is augmented by the top-notch changing exhibitions. Multilingual audio guides (€4) cover all exhibition sections and tell the story behind the apartments and works you see. Tickets (but not the audio guides) are valid for the whole day, so you can retire to lunch somewhere and return later to finish off a visit.
The Österreichisches Filmmuseum is located in the Albertina.
