Vienna's New Sisi Portrait Challenges Beauty Myth for Women's Month

The Vienna Tourist Board has launched a month-long initiative for International Women's Day on March 8, celebrating overlooked Viennese women in art, music, and science. A new portrait titled 'Sisi's New Portrait' reinterprets Franz Xaver Winterhalter's 1865 painting of Empress Elisabeth (Sisi) to highlight her true personality—supporting refugees and Hungarian autonomy—beyond the superficial beauty myth. The portrait is on display until end of March at the Sisi Museum, Hotel Imperial, and Vienna Furniture Museum. Norbert Kettner, Director of the Vienna Tourist Board, stated that Sisi is one of many women remembered mainly for their image. Curator Michael Wohlfart noted that Sisi understood at court that only her appearance was expected. Elfriede Iby of the Schönbrunn Group emphasized Sisi's strategic intelligence and her poems as outlets for political and social commentary. The initiative also features digital campaigns showcasing other notable women like Alma Mahler-Werfel, Hedy Lamarr, Emilie Flöge, and Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky.