Francisco Carolinum Linz

Linz, the capital of Upper Austria, is home to one of the oldest and most prestigious art museums in the country: the Francisco Carolinum. Named after Emperor Franz Joseph I, who inaugurated it on May 29, 1895, the museum has a rich history of showcasing national and international positions in photography and media art. It also has a virtual presence in the Metaverse Cryptovoxels, where it displays digital artworks and hosts events.

The Origins of the State Gallery

The Francisco Carolinum owes its existence to the Upper Austrian Art Association, which was founded in 1851 by a group of artists, scholars, and patrons. The association aimed to promote the arts and culture in the region, and to establish a permanent collection of artworks for the public. In 1854, the association’s vice president, Adalbert Stifter, a renowned writer and painter, proposed to create a “state gallery” that would serve as a source of “edification and education” for the people.

The first artwork acquired by the association was a large painting by Hermann Mevius, a prominent member of the Düsseldorf School of landscape and marine painting. The painting, titled “Shipwreck on the Island of Capraja in the Ligurian Sea”, depicted a dramatic scene of a shipwrecked crew on a rocky shore. The painting was purchased in May 1855, and marked the beginning of the state gallery’s collection, which would grow over the years to include works by Austrian and foreign artists, such as Gustav Klimt, Egon Schiele, Oskar Kokoschka, Max Ernst, and Andy Warhol.

The Building of the Francisco Carolinum

The state gallery’s collection soon outgrew its original location, and the need for a new and larger building became evident. In 1883, the association launched a competition for the design of a new museum, which was won by two Düsseldorf architects, Otto van Els and Bruno Schmitz. The construction of the museum began in 1884, under the supervision of Hermann Krackowizer, a local architect. The building was designed in a neo-Renaissance style, with a central dome and a symmetrical layout. The exterior was decorated with a 110-meter-long frieze, made of Stotzing sandstone, that depicted the history of Upper Austria from the Celtic era to the Habsburg dynasty. The interior featured a grand staircase that led to the dome, which was adorned with paintings of the four quarters of Upper Austria by Franz Attorner.

The museum was completed in 1892, and opened to the public in 1895, with a ceremony attended by Emperor Franz Joseph I, who gave it the name of Francisco Carolinum, in honor of his father, Francis I, and his grandfather, Charles VI. The museum housed the state gallery, as well as other collections, such as natural history, archaeology, and ethnography. The state gallery occupied the second floor of the building, where it displayed its artworks in skylight halls.

The Transformation of the Francisco Carolinum

The Francisco Carolinum underwent several changes in the course of the 20th and 21st centuries, reflecting the social and cultural developments of the times. In 1918, after the end of the First World War and the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the museum became the property of the state of Upper Austria, which took over the responsibility of maintaining and expanding the collections. In 1938, after the annexation of Austria by Nazi Germany, the museum was closed and its artworks were confiscated or relocated. In 1945, after the end of the Second World War and the liberation of Austria, the museum was reopened and its artworks were restored or recovered.

In the 1980s, the museum was reorganized and renamed as the State Gallery at Museumstrasse, to emphasize its focus on art and its location in the city’s cultural district. The museum also adopted a new concept of presenting temporary exhibitions, rather than permanent displays, to showcase the diversity and dynamism of contemporary art. The museum also renovated its interior, removing the front walls and opening the skylight windows, to create a more spacious and luminous atmosphere.

In 2020, the museum embarked on a new phase of its history, by dedicating itself to photography and media art, as well as acquiring a virtual location in the Metaverse Cryptovoxels. The museum became one of the first in the world to have a digital counterpart, where it exhibits online artworks and hosts virtual events. The DFC Francisco Carolinum, as it is called, is located at 17 Clarion Alley on the island of San Francisco, and is accessible to anyone with an internet connection and a web browser.

The Francisco Carolinum Today

The Francisco Carolinum is a museum that celebrates the past, present, and future of art and culture. It offers a unique experience to its visitors, both in the physical and the digital realms. It showcases the works of artists from Austria and around the world, who explore the possibilities and challenges of photography and media art. It also preserves and displays the works of artists from previous generations, who have shaped the history and identity of Upper Austria. The Francisco Carolinum is a museum that invites curiosity, creativity, and dialogue, and that contributes to the enrichment and education of the public.

Linz, Austria