Hilti Art Foundation

What it is

The Hilti Art Foundation presents a private collection built by members of the Hilti family from the 1970s onward. The foundation was established in 1998, bringing together the Martin Hilti Family Trust and the collection of Caroline and Michael Hilti.

The collection now contains more than 500 paintings, sculptures, works on paper and photographs. Its range runs from European Classical Modernism, roughly 1880–1950, to art made after the Second World War and today. Expect changing, collection-led exhibitions rather than a fixed greatest-hits display.

What to look for

The collection is particularly strong in Expressionism, Cubism, Constructivism, Surrealism, Concrete Art, Zero and Minimal Art, as well as abstract painting after 1980. Artists represented by multiple works include Max Beckmann, Alexander Calder, Alberto Giacometti, Paul Klee, Pablo Picasso, Sophie Taeuber-Arp and Sean Scully.

The presentation changes, so treat the foundation as a focused exhibition visit rather than a checklist of permanently installed works. The three large galleries are deliberately spare, giving paintings and sculpture room to register.

The building

The museum occupies the white cube immediately beside the dark, horizontal Kunstmuseum Liechtenstein. Designed by Morger + Dettli and completed in 2015, it forms a deliberate black-and-white architectural pair with its neighbour. Both façades use polished concrete, but the foundation’s cubic white volume asserts its own identity.

Enter through the shared foyer. Inside, a tall stairwell links the galleries and creates shifting light conditions: indirect light below, artificial light on one level and a mix of daylight and artificial light above. Allow time for the architecture as well as the exhibition.

Visiting details

Address: Städtle 32, 9490 Vaduz. The foundation is in Vaduz’s compact centre, close to the main cultural sights.

Hours: Tuesday–Sunday 10:00–17:00; Thursday until 20:00. Closed Monday. Last entry is 15 minutes before closing.

Tickets: One ticket covers both the Hilti Art Foundation and Kunstmuseum Liechtenstein. Standard admission is CHF 15; reduced admission is CHF 10. Entry is free for visitors aged 16 and under, and for everyone on Wednesdays.

Getting there

Buses stop at Vaduz, Post; rail travellers can connect by bus from Sargans, Buchs SG or Feldkirch. For drivers, the Zentrum car park and parking garage are directly beside the museum, accessed from Äulestrasse. Bicycle and coach parking are also nearby.