Leopold Museum

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  • Mon, Wed & Fri-Sun 10:00 - 18:00 , Thu until 21:00

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Lonely Planet review

The museum is named after Rudolf Leopold, a Viennese ophthalmologist who, on buying his first Egon Schiele (1890-1918) for a song as a young student in 1950, began to amass a huge private collection of mainly 19th-century and modernist Austrian artworks. In 1994 he sold the lot - 5266 paintings - to the Austrian government for around €160 million (sold individually, the paintings would have made him around €570 million), and the museum was born.

The building is in complete contrast to the MUMOK, with a white, limestone exterior, open space (the 21m-high glass-covered atrium is lovely) and natural light flooding most rooms. Considering Rudolf Leopold's love of Schiele, it's no surprise the museum contains the largest collection of the painter's work in the world. Most are to be found on the top floor. Gustav Klimt (1862-1918) is also represented. Simple, yet highly emotional sketches from both artists are displayed in the basement.

Other artists well-represented include Albin Egger-Lienz (1868-1926), Richard Gerstl (1883-1908) and Austria's third greatest expressionist, Oskar Kokoschka (1886-1980).

Audio guides in English and German are available for around €3 , as are guided tours in German at on Saturday and Sunday. A joint ticket covering the Leopold and the Kunsthistorisches Museum costs around €17 . On the top floor of the museum is Café Leopold .