True to Life. Realist Painting from 1850 to 1950, Upper Belvedere, Vienna: 18 March 2022-1 November 2022

Is Realism actually true to life? What enduring traits have works of Realism demonstrated throughout time? The new special exhibition at the Upper Belvedere covers a period spanning the mid-19th century to the 1950s and reveals the multifaceted nature of an artistic approach that began as a mirror of social circumstance. Even today, works in a realistic manner continue to inspire through impressive painting techniques and their diversity of subject matter.

The exhibition True to Life was conceived following a survey of the Belvedere's collection. In this process of discovery, works dedicated to the realistic representation of various subject matters were unearthed – dating from the mid-19th century to the 1950s – and this selection is now being presented in illuminating juxtaposition. What characteristic features and themes emerge from the various Realist orientations over this period? To answer this, works of art from different eras have been brought into dialogue with one another. The show presents rarely exhibited paintings that are characterized by their verisimilitude. This likeness to the real world is in many cases achieved through meticulous detail in the painting technique. Looking at what appears to be "real" also brings into focus the socio-analytical content of some of the works: realistic subjects that likewise reflect social and societal realities.

The spectrum ranges from familiar genres, such as portraiture and still life, to highly complex issues such as the instrumentalization of realistic painting for political and social purposes. Among the works now out of storage, where some have languished for years, are Édouard Frédéric Wilhelm Richter's Portrait of an Oriental Woman (c. 1875); Emanuel Baschny's Man Reading (1905); Erich Miller-Hauenfels' Courtyard between City Housing Blocks (1934); and Gustav Klimt's Portrait of Mathilde Trau (c. 1893), on permanent loan at the Belvedere since 2019.