Donation of Artworks to the DPU

The DPU Renaissance building, known as the “Alte Post” in the heart of Krems, will soon be adorned with “The Twelve Labours of Hercules,” wood reliefs by the artist Franz Anton Coufal. During a special ceremony, thanks were expressed to Elisabeth Leitner-Bandion, who donated the artworks from the estate of Dr Josef Bandion, long-standing Director General of the City Council and Director General of the Provincial Government of Vienna, to the President and CEO of Danube Private University GmbH, Prof. h.c. Marga B. Wagner-Pischel. The donation consists of twelve limewood reliefs of remarkable spatial depth, masterfully executed by the pupil of Fritz Wotruba.

“Building on these Labours of Hercules, a Hercules Foundation will now be established, focusing on the promotion of young people’s health and to be based in the Renaissance House of DPU,” explained Prof. h.c. Wagner-Pischel, who has made it her goal to actively counteract negative developments such as lack of exercise, poor nutrition, and depression, particularly among young people. “It is truly wonderful that Danube Private University has received this first signal of support for the highly ambitious project of the ‘Alte Post’ from Elisabeth Leitner-Bandion. In this building, lecture halls for dentistry and medicine, a beautiful medicinal herb courtyard, a ‘practice of the future’ and much more will be created. Through the foundation for the promotion of young people’s health, activities will be developed and supported by renowned athletes, artists, physicians and scientists as ambassadors.”

Mag. Peter Molnar, Mayor of the City of Krems, and Dr Christian Konrad, former Attorney General of the Austrian Raiffeisen Association, also paid tribute to Dr Bandion and the collection donated by Ms Leitner-Bandion to Danube Private University in their addresses to the 80 guests from politics, business, science and culture.