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Portrait Gustav Klimt Photo sourced from

15 Famous Austrian Painters 

Art as we know it has developed over the years with each country across the globe producing artists who have been able to compete with others to perfect different forms of art. Austria is not an exception to this and with its strong artistic tradition, many notable painters have emerged from its art scene over the years.

 These notable painters have made an enduring impression on the world of art and left a mark while exhibiting their brilliance and originality. Austrian artists have significantly influenced the growth of numerous art forms from the Baroque period to the present day. Let’s take a look at some of the most famous Austrian painters;

1. Gustav Klimt (1862-1918)

Portrait Gustav Klimt Photo sourced from

On top of our list is Gustav Klimt, born on 14th July 1862 and died on 6th February 1918, he was an Austrian symbolist painter and one of the most prominent members of the Vienna Secession movement who is famous for his paintings, murals, sketches, and other objets d’art.

The female body was Klimt’s main focus, and his paintings are characterized by open erotica. He is also known for his sensual and decorative paintings and he remains one of the most famous Austrian painters for his achievements as a painter.

Read more about him in 10 Best Facts about Gustav Klimt

2. Egon Schiele (1890-1918)

Egon Schiele Photo sourced from

Egon Leo Adolf Ludwig Schiele born on 12th June 1890 and died on 31st October 1918 was an Austrian Expressionist painter who was renowned for the intensity and unadulterated eroticism that his paintings depicted. Also, he created a lot of naked self-portraits.

Schiele is recognized as a pioneer of Expressionism due to the contorted body shapes and emotive lines that define his paintings and sketches. He has subsequently become one of the most polarizing and well-known Austrian artists of the 20th century due to the nature of his work.

3. Oskar Kokoschka (1886-1980)

Oskar Kokoschka CBE born on 1st March 1886 and died on 22nd February 1980 was an Austrian artist, poet, playwright, and teacher best known for his intense expressionistic portraits and landscapes, as well as his theories on the vision that influenced the Viennese Expressionist movement.

Kokoschka was among the key figures in the Expressionist movement and was known for his painting which was often bold, and colorful, and also for his portraits. His contributions to the development of Austrian art make him one of the most famous painters of all time.

4. Carl Moll (1861-1945)

Carl Moll was an Austrian painter who was closely associated with the Art Nouveau movement and took inspiration from the French Neo-Impressionists to become a founding member of the Vienna Secession along with other prominent Austrian artists, including the famed painter Gustav Klimt.

Moll’s work favored bright green open spaces and landscapes painted with light, airy brushstrokes in a style reminiscent of Pointillism, motivated by disassociation from the historicist conservative style of painting that was popular at the time. Other subjects included interior spaces, portraits, and still lifes.

5. Anton Romako (1832-1889)

Anton Romako was an Austrian artist who enjoyed particular prominence for his portraits, genre depictions, and landscape paintings. He was famed for being a leading figure of the Austrian Romantic movement and was known for his richly colored, dramatic historical paintings.

One of his most famous paintings is “The Goodbye” (1867), which shows a young woman bidding her lover farewell as he gets ready to go to war. The artwork stands out for its powerful emotional content as well as its skillful use of light and shadow to convey depth and drama.

6. Franz von Defregger (1835-1921)

A portrait Franz Defregger Photo sourced from Wikimedia

Franz von Defregger was a well-recognized Austrian painter known most for his accurate portrayals of rural life and the people of the Tyrolean region in the 19th century. He is known most for depicting peasants, farmers, and hunters who were frequently seen working in the fields or hunting in the forest in Defregger’s paintings.

He was very interested in capturing his subjects’ personalities and feelings, and he frequently did it by painting them with a great deal of care and empathy. He remains an important part of the history of Austrian art and his contributions to art cannot be easily forgotten.

7. Albin Egger-Lienz (1868-1926)

Another famous painter on our list today is Albin Egger-Lienz who was an Austrian painter and is regarded as one of the most prominent expressionism exponents and one of the most influential painters in Austria throughout the 20th century.

Egger-Lienz began his creative career as an academic painter, but over time, he strayed from the established academic trends and created his distinctive style, which is distinguished by vivid colors, sharp contrasts, and expressive brushstrokes. He is best renowned for his large-scale paintings of rural and Alpine landscapes, which he infused with a strong feeling of spirituality and the supernatural.

8. Christian Schad (1894-1982)

Christian Schad, 1912 Photo sourced from

Christian Schad was a German painter who is most recognized for his exact and realistic portraits and still life paintings, which are notable for their subject matter. He frequently included common things and people in his paintings because he was particularly interested in examining the connection between classical art traditions and contemporary life.

Hey remains one of the most well-known artists for his contribution to the earth world and the influence he had on Austrian art, he was a key figure in the New Objectivity movement and was known for his sharply observed, highly detailed portraits and still lifes.

9. Richard Gerstl (1883-1908)

Richard Gerstl was an Austrian painter who is known for his expressionist works, which are distinguished by their vivid hues, heavy strokes, and intense emotional content. He was also renowned for using exaggerated and twisted forms, and his paintings frequently showed unrefined emotions and extreme psychological states.

His most well-known pieces are a collection of self-portraits that he created while going through a very trying time in his life. He however died tragically young, but his bold, expressionistic works had a major influence on the Viennese art scene of his time.

10. Alfred Kubin (1877-1959)

Alfred Kubin was a Bohemian-Austria painter, printmaker, and illustrator who became an important figure of both the Symbolist and Expressionist movements. His inventive black-and-white drawings often featured fantastical or morbid elements and depicted supernatural creatures and sexual violence.

Kubin was perhaps best known for illustrating the German editions of books by Edgar Allan Poe and Fyodor Dostoevsky. He also became a master of the macabre and was known for his haunting, nightmarish drawings, and prints.

11. Maria Lassnig (1919-2014)

Maria Lassnig born on September 8, 1919 – May 6, 2014, was an Austrian artist known for her painted self-portraits and her theory of “body awareness”. She was the first female artist to win the Grand Austrian State Prize in 1988 and was awarded the Austrian Decoration for Science and Art in 2005.

Rather than working from photographs or observation, the artist embraced a Surrealist-tinged technique. She also intuitively represented her bodily experience instead of the way she was externally perceived. She was also one of the pioneering feminist artists.

12. Hans Makart (1840-1884)

Hans Makart was an Austrian painter known as one of the leading figures of the Vienna Secession and was known for his sumptuous historical paintings and lavish, decorative interiors. He was also well known for his highly stylized portraits that highlighted the sitter’s riches and rank.

Makart’s paintings are distinguished by their vibrant hues, minute details, and dramatic arrangements. He was particularly talented at crafting opulent, colorful sceneries that frequently drew inspiration from mythological or historical themes.

13. Oskar Laske (1874-1951)

Laske was an Austrian painter, graphical artist, and illustrator known for his humorous, satirical works and his colorful depictions oLakee in Vienna. Laske was also well-known for his cartoons and illustrations. He was a very active artist who created a lot of pieces during his career.

Lake was particularly interested in portraying the problems of the working people, and his works frequently included social and political criticism. Some of his masterpieces include; “The Worker’s Struggle” (1924), “The Tube” (1932), and “The Strike” are some of his most well-known works (1936).

14. Rudolf von Alt (1812-1905)

Rudolf von Alt born in 1812 and died in 1905 was an Austrian landscape painter regarded as one of the most notable examples of the Vienna School of painting. He is renowned for his meticulous and accurate portrayals of Austrian and other European landscapes, buildings, and daily life.

He was also a master of the watercolor medium and is most known for his luminous, detailed landscapes of Vienna and the surrounding countryside. He managed to paint nature authentically by focusing on the different hues of the sky, the color tone of the air, and the vegetation.

15. Josef Mikl (1929-2008)

Josef Mikl born in 1929 and died in 2008 was an Austrian painter and graphic artist who was associated with the Austrian avant-garde movement known as “Informal”. He is known for his abstract paintings that explore color, form, and texture. He remains one of the best painters who influenced the Austrian art world.

Mikl frequently employed strong brushstrokes and vibrant colors in his early work, which was influenced by the abstract expressionist movement but his later works stand out for their organic shapes and intricate paint layering.