July 20, 2009 celebrated the 40th anniversary of Neil Armstrong's first step on the Moon, and April 12, 2011 will be the 50th anniversary of Juri Gagarin's travel into space. Space and outer space have always carried a fascination for people, which has been reflected in a great variety of forms throughout art history. However, it was not until the second half of the twentieth century that man possessed the technology to actually embark on a journey into space. The first documentary pictures had an influence on art, where they triggered new incentives and changed perspectives and dimensions. In spring/summer 2011 Kunsthalle Wien takes the opportunity offered by the celebrations to present a kaleidoscopic group exhibition of important works of art of the past three decades that explore the theme of Outer Space: subjects ranging from meteorites, big bang theories, the moon landing, Science-Fiction and the fear of aliens to the political impact of space exploration during the Cold War and after 1989.English and German text.