Christine König Galerie

Christine König Galerie was founded in 1989 in Vienna. The gallery represents a variety of internationally recognized artists and works simultaneously with a decidedly younger generation of upcoming artists. The gallery's program and its selection of the artists reflects the central concerns of Christine König: Politics and activism, feminism, literature, as well as post-conceptual approaches. In the last decades art has become a dominant field of action and discourse. Visual arts can help develop an understanding for socio-political and cultural processes of change. In a highly stimulating and productive climate, galleries have assumed the role of intermediaries, making a preliminary selection and using their intellectual resources in a responsible way to back and promote certain positions and artists vis-à-vis collectors.

An important focus of the gallery is entering into a dialogue with the public and engaging in art discourse: Until 2006 artists, curators, architects and philosophers talked about their work in weekly Lunch Lectures, since 2008 this tradition has been continued in the CONVERSATION series, taking place in irregular intervals. Together with three other galleries, Christine König changed its location to Schleifmühlgasse in 1999. Along with Eschenbachgasse and Seilerstätte, Schleifmühlgasse has become one of the central sites for contemporary art in Vienna. The gallery is located in the immediate vicinity of the Secession, Kunsthalle Karlsplatz, Wien Museum, Museumsquartier and Naschmarkt.

KOENIG2 by_robbygreif opened in 2017 as the Christine König Galerie's project space just around the corner of the main space. It focuses on young and experimental positions. KOENIG2 follows the criterion of only inviting artists who have never before exhibited in Vienna or to whom it would like to provide a special platform to create a site-specific installation for its nearly cubical room.

Ever since its founding, the gallery has participated in the leading international art fairs (e.g. ARCOmadrid, artgenève, Artissima, artmonte-carlo, Art Basel, art berlin, Art Brussels, ART COLOGNE, Art Dubai, Art Rotterdam, Code Art Fair, cosmoscow, Independent Brussels, PARALLEL VIENNA, SPARK Art Fair Vienna, The Armory Show, viennacontemporary). Artists of the gallery are regularly featured in exhibitions such as documenta, Manifesta or the Biennials in Venice, Berlin or Moscow. The gallery has placed works in the collections of the most important Austrian museums (mumok, Albertina, Belvedere, Wien Museum or Museum der Moderne Salzburg), the collections of prestigious international institutions (such as MoMA, Tate Modern, Reina Sofia, Centre Pompidou, Moderna Museet), as well as in numerous private collections all over the world.