Lentos Art Museum

Lentos opened in 2003 on the Danube bank, a long rectangular block by the Zurich practice Weber and Hofer wrapped in translucent glass over its concrete core, cut through in the middle by an opening that frames the river; at night the glass skin is lit from within in changing colours, which has made it the standard night image of Linz along with the Ars Electronica Center opposite. The collection covers art from the nineteenth century onward with strengths in Austrian modernism - Klimt, Schiele, Kokoschka - German expressionism, and postwar and contemporary work.

History

After the Second World War 120 works from the collection of the Berlin art dealer Wolfgang Gurlitt, by Klimt, Schiele, Kokoschka, Nolde, Corinth and Pechstein among others, became the core of the New Gallery of the City of Linz, which the city made a municipal museum in 1953. The decision to build its successor, the Lentos, came in 1998, and the museum, by the Zurich firm Weber and Hofer, opened in May 2003 (Wikipedia, Lentos Art Museum).

What's there

• A translucent glass block - lit in changing colours over the Danube at night.
• Austrian modernism - Klimt, Schiele and Kokoschka in the permanent holdings.
• German expressionism - beside postwar and contemporary work.
• A framed river view - the opening cut through the middle of the building.

When to go

All year; after dark for the lighting. Half a day.

Practical notes

Permanent collection space is limited and rotates - a specific painting may not be up. Closed Mondays. The building is often more photographed than the art inside it.

Nearby

The Ars Electronica Center is across the river; the Hauptplatz is a short walk.

Key facts