History of the Department

The establishment of an Institute of Art History was planned from the very beginning at the newly founded University of Salzburg in 1962. This was in line with the intention to “pay special attention to the humaniora.” In 1964, the plan was put into practice, and the Institute of Art History (renamed the Department of Art History in 1977) was initially housed in the Kast Villa near the Mirabell Gardens. However, as the number of staff members gradually increased, the premises soon became insufficient, leading to several relocations from 1973 onward. Since the winter semester of 2011/12, the Department of Art History has been located on the second floor of the Unipark Nonntal building.

The first professor of art history, appointed in 1964, was Hans Sedlmayr, who had already retired from his position in Munich. He was among several professors appointed to the re-established university despite being considered “Catholic-national” or “former National Socialists.” The university policy decisions of the 1960s in this regard have, for the most part, yet to be critically examined by research. Sedlmayr was succeeded by Hermann Bauer in 1969 and Wilhelm Messerer in 1975. In 1990, the chair was taken up by Friedrich Piel, followed in 2000 by Renate Prochno-Schinkel, the department’s first female professor.

As early as 1969, the Institute of Art History was expanded to include a Chair of Austrian Art History. The first to hold this position was Franz Fuhrmann, followed in 1986 by Günter Brucher. In 2008, with the appointment of Andrea Gottdang, the chair was reoriented toward “Medieval and Modern Art History.” Since 2020, it has been held by Matthias Weiß, whose focus on modernism has introduced a further reorientation, incorporating pop-cultural phenomena and transcultural perspectives into research and teaching.

As part of structural reforms at the University of Salzburg, the Institutes of Art History and Musicology were expanded and merged in 2004 to form the Department of Art, Music and Dance Studies. Since 2012, the Institute for Medieval and Early Modern Material Culture (IMAREAL) has also been affiliated with Art History. The researchers based there have significantly broadened both the department’s academic profile and its teaching portfolio.

In the 1960s, a photographic laboratory was established at the Department of Art History, which today holds around 180,000 slides. In 1990, Franz Fuhrmann—by then already retired—founded the Friends of Art History association, which continues to play an active role in shaping the department through various activities to this day.

References / Sources Consulted

Fuhrmann, Franz: Fünfundzwanzig Jahre Institut für Kunstgeschichte der Universität Salzburg. Von der „Kast- Villa“ zum Neugebäude. In: Floimair, Roland (Hg.): Das Neugebäude. 25 Jahre Institut für Kunstgeschichte. Salzburg 1989, S. 23–50.

Männig, Maria: Hans Sedlmayrs Kunstgeschichte. Eine kritische Studie. Köln, Weimar, Wien 2020.

Pinwinkler, Alexander: Die „Gründergeneration“ der Universität Salzburg. Biographien, Netzwerke, Berufungspolitik, 1960–1975. Wien, Köln, Weimar 2020.