The Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, founded in 1692 by court painter Peter Strudt, is one of the oldest higher educations institutions in the city. Today, the university offers a wide-selection of art majors and has a student population of just under 1,000—a quarter of which are international.

During World War II many of the institution’s famous rectors and artists, such as Fritz Wotruba or Clemens Holzmeister, were forced to leave. Afterwards, Austria spent much of its resources on reinstating the center’s staff and collections. Presently, the University Library comprises of circa 110,000 volumes, while the Prints and Drawings Collection boasts approximately 60,000 drawings and prints (with graphic works by Dürer, Rembrandt and many others)—the biggest and most important graphic collection in Austria after the Albertina.