3000 square meters new

Technical Museum repositions itself

The Technical Museum aims to get visitors interested in the topic of materials science with lots of interactive stations.

(Bild: Propeller Z)

The Technical Museum in Vienna is planning a major reorganization in the truest sense of the word: 3000 square metres are being redesigned. The somewhat brittle subject of materials science is to be presented in an exciting way. The museum is also banking on a sure-fire hit with the public for its major fall exhibition.

With 3,000 square meters of newly designed exhibition space in the West Hall, the Technical Museum is undertaking its largest renovation since the turn of the millennium. Where the topic of heavy industry was previously presented, "Material Worlds" will attract visitors in April - and a new platform will also allow new views of exhibits and the museum itself from a lofty height.

Modern presentation to lighten up a brittle topic
Museum director Peter Aufreiter wants to convey the somewhat brittle subject of materials science in an interactive, multimedia and playful way on 13 themed islands and thus generate enthusiasm for it. From wood to silicon, from steel to carbon, all properties, extraction, use and environmentally relevant facts such as disposal will be covered. Science communication is a personal concern for Aufreiter, which will be continued next year with the new permanent exhibition "Science in Transition".

Science communication is a personal concern for museum director Peter Aufreiter.

(Bild: Ricardo Herrgott)

The floor plan of the new "Material Worlds"

(Bild: Propeller Z)

The museum's many railroad models will make their grand entrance in the fall.

(Bild: Technisches Museum Wien)

Aufreiter is also focusing on a pre-programmed hit with the public this autumn: the 200th anniversary of rail transport in Austria is the occasion for the autumn exhibition "Highest Railway", in which models, media installations and interactive stations will present the past and future of the "democratization of travel". From spring, there will also be a special exhibition on the relevant topic of recycling.

If the visitor numbers are anything to go by, Aufreiter obviously has the right feeling with his thematic focus: almost 470,000 people visited his museum last year. This made 2024 the second-busiest year in the museum's history. The special exhibition on 100 years of radio in Austria, which can be seen until the end of August, also turned out to be a big hit.