Foto Arsenal Wien
Exhibition venue of the City of Vienna in the Arsenal for contemporary photography and lens-based media, with up to twelve exhibitions a year.
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About the museum
Foto Arsenal Wien goes back to an initiative of the City of Vienna from autumn 2022. The aim was to give photography in Austria a house of its own, after it had until then been represented mainly in institutions with a broader programme. On 21 March 2025 the venue opened in the Vienna Arsenal in the third district, after around a year and a half of conversion work.
The operator is Stadt Wien Kunst GmbH, which is wholly owned by the City of Vienna. The artistic director is Felix Hoffmann, previously chief curator at C/O Berlin. The venue sees itself as an exhibition house without a collection of its own, which allows it to remain flexible in its programming.
On about 1,000 square metres it shows up to twelve exhibitions a year, ranging from emerging voices to internationally renowned photographers. For the opening, a major show on the photo agency Magnum and a solo exhibition by the Austrian artist Simon Lehner were on view; in summer 2025 a retrospective on Henri Cartier-Bresson followed.
Since 2023 the venue has been responsible for the festival Foto Wien and co-curates the festival Vienna Digital Cultures together with Kunsthalle Wien. A dedicated education department offers workshops for children, young people and adults; seminar rooms and an analogue darkroom are available for this purpose.
Highlights
- Around 1,000 m² of exhibition space in the Arsenal
- Up to twelve exhibitions per year on photography and lens-based media
- Analogue darkroom and seminar rooms for workshops
- Tours in sign language and Easy Language
- Organiser of the Foto Wien festival
- Founded
- 2025
- Operated by
- Stadt Wien Kunst GmbH
- Director
- Felix Hoffmann
Admission & discounts
| Adults | €10 |
|---|---|
| Reduced | €7Senior citizens, students, civilian and military service participants, apprentices over 19, people with disabilities, groups of 10 or more, and holders of Club Ö1, Ö1 Intro, Der-Standard subscription card, Vienna City Card, Stadt Wien Vorteilsclub and the professional association of visual artists |
| Children & teens | freefree up to age 18 · Free admission under 19 years. |
| Seniors | €7 |
| Visitors with disabilities | €7companion free · Registered companions have free admission. |
| Students & apprentices | €7 |
| Groups (10+ people) | €7 per personFrom 10 people; registration is requested. |
| Annual pass | €25 |
| Easy City Pass | €7.50 |
| Tour for groups | €100Flat fee per group (60 minutes) plus admission per person |
Free admission also for Friends of Photography, Kulturpass ("Hunger auf Kunst und Kultur"), members of IAA, ICOM, IKT, AICA and BÖKWE, the Austrian association of cultural educators, tour guides, as well as asylum seekers and persons granted subsidiary protection with a residence entitlement card. Club Ö1 and Stadt Wien Vorteilsclub apply to two people.
Accessibility
- Wheelchair accessible
- Elevator: no information
- Accessible restroom
- Accessible parking
- Service dogs welcome
- Tactile models & exhibits: no information
- Sign language tours
- Easy-to-read materials
- Audio description: no information
Step-free main entrance with automatic doors, level exhibition rooms on the ground floor, wheelchairs available to borrow on site. The activity room on the first floor is reachable via stairlifts. The accessible toilet is located in the cloakroom area; staff help with opening the doors. Benches and mobile stools in the exhibition rooms; page in Easy Language available.
Kids & families
Great for kids & families
| Kids’ admission | free up to age 18 |
|---|
- Family tours & workshops
"Kunst und Kinderwagen" (Art and Prams) tours for parents with babies, as well as workshops on analogue and digital photography for children and young people.
Getting there & parking
By public transit
Quartier Belvedere · 12-min walk
U1 to Wien Hauptbahnhof; tram 18 (Heinrich-Drimmel-Platz), O (Quartier Belvedere, Fasangasse), D (Quartier Belvedere, Alfred-Adler-Straße); bus 69A (Alfred-Adler-Straße, Arsenalsteg); S1–S4 to Quartier Belvedere or Wien Hauptbahnhof.
By car
No on-site parking at the museum.
No parking on site except one disabled parking space in the courtyard; do not use residents' parking. Bicycle racks in front of the building.
- Accessible parking
About a 15-minute walk from the main station.
Get directionsAmenities & dining
- Coat check
Large bags, backpacks and umbrellas must be left in the entrance area.
Events & venue rental
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Plan your visit
| Guided tours | yes · approx. 60 min |
|---|---|
| School programs | yes |
| Photography | Private photos without flash permitted; tripods and additional lighting only with permission. |
| Good to know | Exhibition tours (60 minutes) for groups, also as curator-led tours and in sign language and Easy Language. Enquiries to activities@fotoarsenalwien.at or +43 1 521 89 311. School programmes: exhibition tour, darkroom workshop, self-presentation with photography, cyanotype, photo rally through the neighbourhood. |
