VISTA Science Experience Center

VISTA Science Experience Center at ISTA: Interactive science and relaxing coffee breaks on Thonet furniture at the VISTA Coffee Lab
 

The VISTA Science Experience Center, located on the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) campus in Klosterneuburg, is a new location dedicated to bringing the latest science to wider audiences. Designed by the Dutch architectural firm Studio MAKS and opened in October 2025, the building invites visitors to immerse themselves in the world of research.

The VISTA Science Experience Center is a versatile 1,500 m² space for exhibitions, interactive formats and workshops. Its location at the heart of the campus provides visitors with direct access to cutting-edge research. A welcoming café also provides a space to relax, chat about the exhibits and reflect on the science while savouring freshly ground coffee and delicious homemade cakes. 

Nestled in greenery, the VISTA Coffee Lab features a large glass façade that offers views across the campus and bathes the interior in natural light.  The café has been furnished with 23 chairs arranged around eight tables, whose comfort and minimalist design are perfectly in keeping with the café’s calm ambiance.

A Frank Rettenbacher design from 2025, the S 243 chair selected for this project adheres to the design and quality principles of historic Thonet models. It combines a tubular steel frame with moulded plywood in the seat and backrest, using minimal materials to maximise the chair’s versatility and aesthetic beauty. The S 243 can be stacked and is available in a range of versions and colours. Olive-green frames have been chosen for the VISTA Coffee Lab, complementing the clear-varnished oak of the wooden elements and harmonising with the naturally green surroundings. Chairs with plain wooden seat shells have been combined with upholstered versions.

The S 1123 tables are a Studio Irvine design from 2009. Their combination of olive-green frames and clear-varnished oak is an ideal fit for the café’s interior design concept. While the olive-green table frame is not part of the standard Thonet range, the company’s willingness to provide its customers with their desired customisation – from colours to materials and even special production runs – made it possible to create these bespoke tables that coordinate perfectly with the colour of the chairs. The tables are modest, durable and easy to maintain, making them ideal for use in the café. The variety of heights, shapes and tabletop finishes available in the S 1123 allow them to be combined flexibly. For this project, tables with a diameter of 70 cm and 80 cm were used.