The Habsburgs and European Art: Jonathan Fine on the Rome Exhibition

From Vienna to Rome: an exhibition on the Habsburg cultural legacy

From Vienna to Rome. The Wonders of the Habsburgs from the Kunsthistorisches Museum brings together more than fifty works at Museo del Corso – Palazzo Cipolla, offering a perspective on Habsburg collecting as an expression of pan-European cultural networks. Jonathan Fine, Director General of the KHM Museums Association, explains the central themes and the connection between the two capitals.

A cultural dialogue between Rome and Vienna

The exhibition highlights exchanges, influences and patronage strategies that shaped a shared European identity. Rome appears as a focal point in many artists’ biographies, while Vienna is shown as a city that adopted and transformed Italian artistic innovations.

Highlights of the itinerary

• Entrance gallery: an introductory room linking the architectural and institutional stories of Vienna and Palazzo Cipolla, referencing architects Semper and Hasenauer.
• Imperial collecting: paintings and Kunstkammer objects that demonstrate how collections served political self-representation.
• Thematic sections: Flemish masters, Italian artists, central European craftsmen and Northern innovators that reveal the collections’ European scope.
• Multimedia elements: a digital map of the pan-European artistic network and an AI-generated video imagining conversations between historical figures connected to the museum.

Why the show matters

Jonathan Fine emphasizes that the exhibition demonstrates how artistic creation long transcended national borders. Preserved and opened to the public even after major political changes, the Habsburg collections form a core that documents centuries of cultural exchange across Europe.

Historical background and curatorial approach

The itinerary traces the political dimension of collecting: from Charles VI’s grand Baroque projects to Maria Theresa’s reforms promoting public access to collections, and on to Franz Joseph I’s era and the foundation of Vienna’s major imperial museums. These developments are presented as acts of cultural legitimacy and identity-making.

Visitor tips

• Begin in the first room on Via del Corso to follow the exhibition’s narrative thread.
• Use the audio guide and concise labels to understand the main artistic and historical connections among the works.
• Allow time for the Kunstkammer displays: small objects often reveal personal and political stories that illuminate the larger paintings.

The exhibition at Museo del Corso reframes the Habsburg heritage as an integrated cultural story—less a national collection than a testament to a Europe shaped by continual artistic exchange.