Baroness Francesca von Thyssen-Bornemisza (born 7 June 1958), formerly Francesca von Habsburg-Lothringen, is an art collector. By birth, she is a member of the House of Thyssen-Bornemisza. She is also the former wife of

Karl von Habsburg Karl von Habsburg (given names: ''Karl Thomas Robert Maria Franziskus Georg Bahnam''; born 11 January 1961) is an Austrian politician and the head of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine, therefore being a claimant to the defunct Austro-Hungarian t ...

, current head of the

House of Habsburg-Lorraine The House of Habsburg-Lorraine (german: Haus Habsburg-Lothringen) originated from the marriage in 1736 of Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor, Francis III, Duke of Lorraine and Bar, and Maria Theresa, Maria Theresa of Austria, later successively List ...

Early life

Thyssen-Bornemisza was born Francesca Anna Dolores Freiin von Thyssen-Bornemisza de Kászon et Impérfalva in

Lausanne , neighboring_municipalities= Bottens, Bretigny-sur-Morrens, Chavannes-près-Renens, Cheseaux-sur-Lausanne, Crissier, Cugy, Écublens, Épalinges, Évian-les-Bains (FR-74), Froideville, Jouxtens-Mézery, Le Mont-sur-Lausanne, Lugrin (FR-74), ...

, the daughter of Baron Hans Heinrich von Thyssen-Bornemisza and his third wife, fashion model Fiona Frances Elaine Campbell-Walter, descendant of the

Campbell baronets There have been 18 baronetcies created for persons with the surname Campbell, six in the Baronetage of Nova Scotia and twelve in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom. Campbell baronets, of Glenorchy (1625) The Campbell baronetcy, of Glenorchy i ...

. She was educated at

Le Rosey Institut Le Rosey (), commonly referred to as Le Rosey or simply Rosey, is a private boarding school in Rolle, Switzerland. Founded in 1880 by Paul-Émile Carnal on the site of the 14th-century Château du Rosey in the town of Rolle in the cant ...

in Switzerland and at the age of eighteen attended

Saint Martin's School of Art Saint Martin's School of Art was an art college in London, England. It offered foundation and degree level courses. It was established in 1854, initially under the aegis of the church of St Martin-in-the-Fields. Saint Martin's became part of t ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

,Paco Barragán ( .d.
Interview with Francesca von Habsburg
''ArtPulse Magazine''. Retrieved August 2013. but left after two years.

Career

After leaving Saint Martin's School of Art, she worked as an actress, singer and model. Her partying lifestyle in London in the 1980s earned her reputation as an

It girl An "it girl" is an attractive young woman, who is perceived to have both sex appeal and a personality that is especially engaging. The expression ''it girl'' originated in British upper-class society around the turn of the 20th century. ...

. For the ten years after she left Saint Martin's, she lived in England, New York and Los Angeles before moving to

Lugano Lugano (, , ; lmo, label=Ticinese dialect, Ticinese, Lugan ) is a city and municipality in Switzerland, part of the Lugano District in the canton of Ticino. It is the largest city of both Ticino and the Italian-speaking southern Switzerland. Luga ...

to become curator for her father's art collection. During the 1991–1995

Croatian War of Independence The Croatian War of Independence was fought from 1991 to 1995 between Croat forces loyal to the Government of Croatia—which had declared independence from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY)—and the Serb-controlled Yugosl ...

she visited the country to help protect Croatia's heritage and artworks and to help restore churches and paintings damaged during the fighting. Thyssen-Bornemisza also appeared as Queen Marie-Henriette in the production ''Kronprinz Rudolf'' (2006), directed by

Robert Dornhelm Robert Dornhelm (born 17 December 1947 in Temesvár, Romania) is an Austrian film and television director. Biography Dornhelm is of Jewish descent. He has worked on numerous television programmes and has also released such movies as ''Echo Pa ...

TBA21

Thyssen-Bornemisza regularly participates in

biennales Biennale (), Italian for "biennial" or "every other year", is any event that happens every two years. It is most commonly used within the art world to describe large-scale international contemporary art exhibitions. As such the term was popularis ...

by commissioning new works of contemporary art through a foundation called Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary (TBA21) which she founded in 2002 in Vienna. She has built up her own art collection with around 700 works of contemporary video and digital art, by artists such as John Akomfrah,

Kutluğ Ataman Kutluğ Ataman (born 1961 in Istanbul Turkey) is an acclaimed Turkish-American contemporary artist and feature filmmaker. Ataman's films are known for their strong characterization and humanity. His early art works examine the ways in which peo ...

Candice Breitz Candice Breitz (born 1972) is a South African white artist who works primarily in video and photography.John Akomfrah that was co-commissioned by TBA21. By 2019, TBA21 signed a four-year agreement with the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza to present a series of contemporary art exhibitions from the TBA21 collection, along with contemporary commissions. In 2021, TBA21 and the Regional Government of Andalusia announced a three-year-long partnership on showing parts of the TBA21 collection at the Centro de Creación Contemporánea de Andalucía (C3A) in Córdoba, Spain, Córdoba.

TBA21 Academy

Established in Vienna in 2011, the TBA21 Academy is an offshoot of TBA21 that focuses on ecological and social issues. In 2017, it relocated to London.

Personal life

Francesca married the heir to the Habsburg dynasty,

, son of Otto von Habsburg, in Mariazell Basilica, Mariazell on 31 January 1993. They have three children. *Eleonore von Habsburg (born 28 February 1994 in Salzburg). Married civilly to Jérôme d'Ambrosio on 20 July 2020. *Ferdinand Zvonimir von Habsburg (born 21 June 1997 in Salzburg). *Gloria (born 15 October 1999 in Salzburg), whose godparents are Gloria, Princess of Thurn and Taxis, and Alexander, Prince zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn#Marriage and children, Hereditary Prince Heinrich of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn. Francesca and Karl separated in 2003. Considering this separation, Karl's sister, Archduchess Gabriela von Habsburg, Gabriella, has assumed, since their mother Princess Regina of Saxe-Meiningen, Regina's death in 2010, the rank of Grand Mistress of the Order of the Starry Cross that Francesca would otherwise normally have assumed as the wife of the heir. As the wife of the head of the House of Hapsburg Francesca and her children are often accorded the unofficial honorifics of Imperial and Royal Archdukes (or duchesses) of Austria. However these titles have no legal recognition as Austria is a republic and all former royal and noble titles were abolished in 1918. She owns a residence in Port Antonio, Jamaica, where she is a keen supporter of the reggae music industry. The couple divorced in 2017.

Honours

Dynastic Orders

Ordre de la Croix étoilée autro-hongrois

Dame of the Order of the Starry Cross (House of Habsburg)

Austrian Order

AUT Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria - 9th Class BAR

Commander of the Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria, Gold

References

External links

*
We Are Not a Muse
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thyssen-Bornemisza, Francesca 1958 births Austrian people of American descent Austrian princesses, Francesca Princesses by marriage Austrian art collectors Austrian Roman Catholics House of Habsburg-Lorraine, Francesca Living people Thyssen family, Francesca Alumni of Saint Martin's School of Art Alumni of Institut Le Rosey