Creating Common Good - VIENNA ART WEEK 2015 | EN by Vienna Art Week

16â&#x20AC;&#x201C;22 November / www.viennaartweek.at

Seven days of art. For one full week in November, VIENNA ART WEEK and its approximately 90 partners bundle the diverse activities of Vienna’s art world into a marathon of art-related events. As members of Art Cluster Vienna, VIENNA ART WEEK’s sponsoring association, the festival is organized by museums, exhibition halls, art galleries and art universities. Smaller program partners including artist-run spaces, independent initiatives, curators and artists hone and elaborate the week with tailored smaller events. All of Vienna is an art space!

VIENNA ART WEEK is today an indispensable part of Vienna’s cultural calendar. For the eleventh time, we will be celebrating our city’s vibrant art scene over the course of a week in November. A look at the last decade shows how much the city has opened up and what a fertile breeding ground for creativity and artistic development it has become. Gone are the days when Vienna was a place only for great museums and exhibition halls; it now offers space for a free-flowing art scene that has enriched the city’s culture and attitude towards life. Congratulations to the art institutions, art universities, galleries and artists who have made Vienna what it is today: an important city on the international art map. Many thanks to DOROTHEUM as an initiator, the members of Art Cluster Vienna and the 90 program partners for their commitment to putting Vienna’s art scene center stage. The curtain rises on the eleventh VIENNA ART WEEK!

Fall is VIENNA ART WEEK time! From the Albertina to the 21er Haus, more than 200 events throughout the city transform Vienna into a massive art exhibition for one full week in November. A colorful potpourri of exhibitions, panel discussions, lectures, artist talks, special tours, installations, interventions and performances draw around 35,000 art lovers per year to Vienna. Visitors to museums, galleries, studios and artist-run spaces find multiple opportunities to admire, discuss and produce art during VIENNA ART WEEK. In short: for this week, Vienna becomes a hub of the European art scene. VIENNA ART WEEK is meanwhile in its eleventh edition, and the program is bigger than ever. Last but not least, it is events like this that bolster Vienna’s reputation as the most livable city in the world. A place where art and culture can develop freely ensures a climate of openness to the world, tolerance and vitality that benefits both visitors and residents alike. VIENNA ART WEEK has long become what the Vienna Festival has always been for lovers of the performing arts: a must-see. With this in mind, I wish all art lovers an exciting VIENNA ART WEEK!

Dr. Michael Häupl Mayor of the City of Vienna

Dr. Andreas Mailath-Pokorny Executive City Councillor for Cultural Affairs and Science in Vienna

Dr. Josef Ostermayer Federal Minister for Arts and Culture

Photo: Yasmina Haddad

Preface

Creating Common Good Martin Böhm President of Art Cluster Vienna Robert Punkenhofer Artistic Director of VIENNA ART WEEK Anja Hasenlechner Project Manager of VIENNA ART WEEK

VIENNA ART WEEK is entering its second decade: Vienna’s week-long art festival, an annual burst of new inspiration and networking far beyond the city limits, is being held for the eleventh time. What started as an exclusive event for art experts and collectors is now a major event that draws 35,000 visitors every year. Over the course of one week, art is discovered, lived and celebrated. The festival has been growing steadily since its inception, with a swelling percentage of international guests to be surprised by and delight in the creativity of Vienna artists. The group also includes a number of international curators who, at the invitation of the Austrian Federal Chancellery, have come to expand their perception of what Vienna has to offer. Initiated by DOROTHEUM, VIENNA ART WEEK is a reflection of Vienna’s creative life and openness. It stands for top-class artistic production and a diverse art market, which is why artist-run spaces – as acknowledged sites for artistic experimentation and presentation – have long become an indispensable hallmark of VIENNA ART WEEK. With this year’s motto “Creating Common Good,” VIENNA ART WEEK is encouraging its approximately 90 program partners to examine the potential art can have

for the community. As early as 2013, “Time” magazine asked: “Whatever happened to the ‘common good’?” – concluding that what creates common good more than anything is common ground. In this sense, VIENNA ART WEEK – a joint effort made possible by interlinking institutions, companies and private individuals – is definitely committed to the “common ground,” public interest and the strengthening of Vienna as an international city for contemporary art. In its eleventh edition, VIENNA ART WEEK 2015 will once again position itself at the intersection of thought, art and cultural processes in order to sound out the boundaries between common good and common ground. An exciting program and international dialogue awaits; treat yourself to an art-filled week in Vienna!

Art Cluster Vienna

Academy of Fine Arts Vienna Eva Blimlinger Albertina Klaus Albrecht Schröder Architekturzentrum Wien Dietmar Steiner Association of Austrian Galleries of Modern Art Gabriele Senn Austrian Film Museum Alexander Horwath Austrian Frederick and Lillian Kiesler Private Foundation Peter Bogner Belvedere, 21er Haus and The Winter Palace of Prince Eugene of Savoy Agnes Husslein-Arco departure, the creative center of the Vienna Business Agency Gerhard Hirczi DOROTHEUM Martin Böhm Essl Museum Karlheinz Essl Jewish Museum Vienna Danielle Spera KÖR Kunst im öffentlichen Raum Wien Martina Taig Kunsthalle Wien Museumsquartier & Kunsthalle Wien Karlsplatz Nicolaus Schafhausen KUNST HAUS WIEN Bettina Leidl Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien Sabine Haag Künstlerhaus Peter Zawrel Leopold Museum Hans-Peter Wipplinger and Gaby Langer MAK Wien Christoph Thun-Hohenstein mumok Museum Moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig Wien Karola Kraus MUSA Berthold Ecker quartier21/MuseumsQuartier Wien Christian Strasser Secession Herwig Kempinger Sigmund Freud Museum Monika Pessler Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary Francesca von Habsburg University of Applied Arts Vienna Gerald Bast Wien Museum Matti Bunzl 1

XXXXX © Claudia Rohrauer

Sabine Haag, Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien Dealing with art has been vital for people in every culture and epoch: art inspires us to challenge our views and perspectives of the world over and over again. In an ever-more diversified world, dealing with art can help us to better understand the diversity of cultural processes and trends in past and present societies. This makes art an important mediator between cultures, contributing to more tolerance for each other.

Peter Bogner Austrian Frederick and Lillian Kiesler Private Foundation As a universal language in a globalized world, art is able to facilitate communication between cultures. Today’s artistic media can use their broad spectrum to – ideally – cross ideologies and paradigms and bring the social and political hot spots into focus. An art committed to the principles of humanism can contribute to a better understanding of the world and greater tolerance of different ways of thinking and acting.

Dietmar Steiner, Architekturzentrum Wien “Creating Common Good.” Whether or not art is able to do precisely this is a subject for debate. As for architecture, the answer is “yes”: it develops and offers strategies, concepts and spaces for the common good. In its 2014 exhibition “Think Global, Build Social! Architectures for a Better World,” Architekturzentrum Wien (Az W) showcased some positive concepts in this regard. Its studio visits in the context of VIENNA ART WEEK offer a glimpse of architectural efforts to create common good.

Eva Blimlinger, Academy of Fine Arts Vienna Art can do anything, and art can do nothing. Art doesn’t have to be able to do anything, but it can delight people, annoy and unsettle them. It can spark conversations, incite reflection on the past and anticipation of the future, convey aesthetics, be used as a propaganda tool, be explained and analyzed, bought and sold, exhibited and inhibited; it can open up new worlds and make old ones comprehensible. It can do anything.

Gerhard Hirczi, departure, the creative center of the Vienna Business Agency Creativity fuels economic growth and transformation. It entices and seduces us – and sometimes forces us to assume new perspectives. Our task as Vienna’s creative unit is to take creative potential and use it sustainably for the city and its population. By connecting creative industries – including the art market – with traditional commerce, we create highly productive synergies that in turn open new perspectives for Vienna as a place of art and creativity.

Alexander Horwath, Austrian Film Museum Art can contribute to the common good if everyone involved – producers, mediators and the audience – bear in mind that art is not the solution: it is not the solution for social or other injustices, for failed urban planning, feelings of inferiority, megalomania or any other individual problem. Art is not a solution; it is a state of intensity. The more intensely we feel, the more receptive we are to a concept of common good that is not based on polls and mainstream opinions.

What can art contribute

Bettina Leidl, KUNST HAUS WIEN Regarding the common good discourse, political art reacts to the negative effects of global turbo-capitalism. Art is capable of articulating important socio-political issues using the instruments at its disposal. Ecological sustainability, social justice and democratic participation are core values of an economy for the common good.

Agnes Husslein-Arco, Belvedere and 21er Haus Art has always grappled with social issues. Joseph Beuys was a pioneer in this regard: his concept of Social Sculpture aimed to inspire people to shape society and make a creative contribution to the common good. I am absolutely convinced that art, by reflecting on social and economic issues and calling upon society to enter into a productive dialogue, will always establish ties with other disciplines.

Herwig Kempinger, Secession I’m afraid that, in our society, bridges are only built by engineers, that professional rejection of new ways of thinking has become a virtue, and that access to new environments is confined to the weekend country house. In this culture of diversion and animation, art is still a challenge, a precious good that should not be taken for granted.

Berthold Ecker, MUSA As a sensory document of creativity, art has a causal connection to every area of human existence. It is an expression of comprehension and transmission, even in areas that remain closed to conventional communication. Creativity sits at the very heart of existence, and so its understanding transcends all cultural boundaries. Art, by its very nature, is also a bridge to universal, emphatic togetherness.

Karola Kraus, mumok Our society depends on art as a critical outside perspective that challenges entrenched thought patterns and identifies new opportunities. Opening yourself to an artwork also means questioning your own views, and thus opening your eyes to other realities and life-worlds. This makes art an irreplaceable indicator, helping us to sound out social issues and the current status quo, and to redefine them.

Klaus Albrecht Schröder, Albertina Art seduces us into seeing things in a different, unfamiliar way. It offers a change of perspective, revealing aspects we don’t normally see, or don’t want to see, for that matter. Art inevitably broadens our mind. It bridges epochs and geographical distances, but most of all, it builds a bridge to us, its viewers.

xxxx © Essl Museum 2009 Frank Garzarolli

Karlheinz Essl, Essl Museum Wherever I go, I realize that art is an absolute necessity for people and social change. It is special because it reaches people without the need for language. We live in an era in which artists around the globe are closely connected, and Vienna has become a center for their intensive dialogue: it brings out – and exhibits – lots of art. Our task as a museum is to foster artistic exchange and make art accessible to people.

Martina Taig, KÖR Kunst im öffentlichen Raum In the 17th century, “public” was metonymic with the “common good” of a society. From that perspective, art in public spaces can be seen as an offer, a vehicle for sociopolitical discourses and the contents and attitudes involved. As a communication tool that enables us to express our emotions, views and opinions, art can have a mediating, conciliatory effect on the most diverse of people – and can thus create new (living) spaces.

Nicolaus Schafhausen, Kunsthalle Wien The potential stimulus of art lies in the irritation and debates it triggers. This is why I believe its function is less to build bridges than to address hot-button issues in society. In order to tap its full “subversive potential,” art institutions should have the guts to support new constellations and unconventional practices more openly.

Francesca Habsburg, TBA21 In their ambition to contribute to social change, artists, like curators, increasingly see themselves as agents of change. I’ll do all I can with my TBA21 foundation to support this important movement for a positive change. Human rights as well as climate change and its effects matter a lot to me. The next decade could be decisive for the next 10,000 years. Every decision we make today will have an impact on the future, so we’d better take the right steps!

Christoph ThunHohenstein, MAK Vienna is a great city for making the world a better place through art. This was the case during Viennese Modernism around 1900, and it applies again today, in Digital Modernism. Art creates new mental spaces, which are all the more inspiring for not having to be directly profitable. I initiated the Vienna Biennale in an attempt to combine art, design and architecture, and bring about positive change through a new unity of the arts.

Christian Strasser, MuseumsQuartier Wien Art enables us to look at things from a new perspective. This is why I want to offer young people in particular an easy access to art and culture, and make them familiar with new views and ideas. There are free events at the MuseumsQuartier throughout the year, taking the varied program of its cultural institutions right to the audience.

to the common good? © angewandte/corn

Gerald Bast, University of Applied Arts Vienna Now that the war on democracy and freedom of opinion is raging in the heart of Europe and people are desperate to understand how we ended up like this, it should dawn on us at last that art is an instrument of enlightenment, tolerance and openness of mind. Art may not change the world, but it generates and carries values that have an effect on people – and it is people who change the world.

Monika Pessler, Sigmund Freud Museum Just as artistic processes of representation offer a chance to fathom social sensitivities, in psychoanalysis the spoken word becomes the construction material of inner mindscapes. Artistic and analytical practices often resemble each other in their attempt to illustrate the invisible or repressed. Our program for this year’s VIENNA ART WEEK exemplifies this by analyzing the psychoanalytical dimensions of animated film.

Matti Bunzl, Wien Museum It may not be in vogue these days to mourn after the avant-garde as a project, let alone to acknowledge its relevance for our times. Yet an avantgarde in the proper sense of the word – namely that of a formation that imagines and paves the way for emancipation – is precisely what is needed to comprehend the complexity of the present and shape the future in an affirmative way. Art can build bridges that are more important for the common good than ever before.

Hans-Peter Wipplinger, Leopold Museum Art enables the exchange of ideas, which stimulates flexibility of thought and the reflection on socio-political issues and aesthetic aspects. It points the way for a more differentiated debate on our society and history, to which our identity is related. This involves juxtaposing the familiar with the supposedly strange, which implies a critical examination of one’s own standards and perceptual patterns. Art generates respect for otherness.

Peter Zawrel, Künstlerhaus Art can. It is most able when it thinks of nothing besides itself. It can contribute to the common good, for example, by teaching us something, delighting us or making us angry, thereby building bridges – bridges to other cultures, worlds, and people. (When did you last strike up a conversation in an exhibition?) And the less it thinks about us, the more we think about ourselves (and how we can improve the common good). Yes, art can.

Gabriele Senn, Association of Austrian Galleries of Modern Art Those looking for the visionary, unifying aspect of art deal not only with a process open to the future, but with past art history as well. As Hegel already noted, the “power of art” – with its images, characters and ideas – can influence the human mind, stir and unsettle it. The task of raising awareness and arousing curiosity is one that we galleries set for ourselves every day.

Interview

“The city that has eaten itself up” US sociologist Saskia Sassen explains how finance deprives cities of their livability. Interview by Salomea Krobath

Sociologist Saskia Sassen was the first researcher to point out the negative consequences of gentrification. 25 years later she is regarded as one of the most influential scholars in the fields of globalization, immigration, and the impact of economic development on cities and their inhabitants. In her latest book “Expulsions,” Sassen deals with the problems resulting from the growing inequality and unemployment in our society. In her talk with the VIENNA ART WEEK magazine she explains why the current situation is more drastic than it has ever been before, how we can make a difference and what role artists play in making a city livable.

Expulsions can increasingly be noticed in Europe: in Spain, half of the teenagers are excluded from the educational or work-path, thousands of Austrian kids don’t have proper access to healthcare. These are just a few examples. Why are more and more people expelled from the common good? Saskia Sassen: Capitalism had its best moment in the West in the post-World War II era, when it was centered on mass consumption. Since it was connected to mass production, every person’s consumption capacity mattered. Today that has been broken. The new core dynamic that drives the economy has to do with a completely different logic: finance can reach ultimate levels of profit without dealing with consumers. It just doesn’t care about them. The result is a shrinking importance of con4

sumption, leading to a greater number of low-wage workers, fewer unionized workers – in short: the working class is getting poorer and the middle class is on the decline. At some point, when you have been unemployed for a long time, you become invisible to the statistics and to the whole concept of joblessness. The term doesn’t capture the radicalness of being so out of the market. These are expulsions. In your book you argue that not only people, but also pieces of land are affected by expulsion. Saskia Sassen: I call it dead land. When a piece of land is so toxic it cannot be used, it’s out. We have huge terrains that are no longer active; they might as well not exist. So you have a shrunken operational territory. War can be a shrinker, as well as land derogation, but also massive numbers of people who simply have nothing. To call the thousands and thousands of people who managed to cross, coming from war-zones in Syria or sub-Saharan Africa, migrants, is incorrect. For them, it is not about the search for a “better” life, which is the historic definition of an immigrant – these are people in search for the bare possibility of life. Current categories and vocabularies like “inequality,” “social exclusion” and “migration” are not enough to capture these extreme conditions. Ever fewer people can afford living in their own city. Why are so many governments “buying out” to corporates?

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Saskia Sassen Photo: Alexander Chitsazan

Saskia Sassen: As our national governments are getting poorer and national debts are increasing, politicians view investment positively. In my opinion it’s a very short-term view. They don’t see what it does to a city. After the crisis of 2008, private investors and companies started buying urban land. The numbers grow extraordinarily: Amsterdam Randstad had a 420 % increase of private investors from 2013 to 2014. For the top 100 cities, the profit of private property is around 600 billion dollars – in just one year! I think Vienna is high up in the list. In the center of Vienna we have a big poster saying: “You don’t have to live in these apartments to love Vienna. Owning them will do.” Saskia Sassen: Incredible. This is happening in so many cities. In London the saying goes: the city that has eaten itself up. Calling it “to buy an apartment” is just hiding the buying out of rural and urban land. Because with huge mega-projects and empty luxury apartments you eliminate life in the little streets and messy squares. The center of London to a very large extent is losing its nice neighborhoods. No one can afford living there anymore. In Brooklyn, a Chinese company bought the Atlantic Yard, once filled with little art spaces and manufacturing studios, making it the biggest foreign private investment in the US. You know, it was a huge, very alive urban tissue. And now it's going to be completely erased.

Some would argue that modern building projects and big office spaces increase a city's urbanity … Saskia Sassen: Let’s think about what a city is – it is not about density. What brings a city to life is that it's a really big, vibrant frontier space, where actors from different worlds are going to encounter each other. You need a flexible urban tissue, so that new activities can keep installing themselves. Once the space is filled up with mega-projects that privatize urban tissue, you’ve lost that excitement, and exchange the people-centered urbanity for a building-centered urbanity. Even if they look impressive and increase the density, these projects may in fact be de-urbanizing. What's the role of an active art scene in keeping urban tissue alive? Saskia Sassen: Artists have always been the ones to draw average people to live in the cities. Due to them the edges of the city keep expanding and being exciting rather than turning into dead zones. They urbanize space, whereas a big corporate mega-project de-urbanizes space. Can you give an example? Saskia Sassen: When my son, a film artist, moved to London, he and other artists squatted a building in one of those industrial zones. There was a law that gave them three months to leave, once they were expelled – well, three months was all they needed to organize a big show 5

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Photo: Yasmina Haddad 6

Photo: Yasmina Haddad

in the area. That is what art manages to do: a space that was dead becomes alive again. What artists want is space! They don’t need to own it; they want to do a show. So the edges of the cities become interesting again. Manhattan, a once buzzing district, today is said to only sell art. Art galleries and music producers move directly to Brooklyn. The posh new Whitney Museum left its fancy neighborhood and moved to the former Meatpacking District. At the opening, they pulled out art that hadn’t been shown for 30 years, instead of installation art. Suddenly they presented these complex paintings by Georgia O’Keeffe – it was like a little revolution. I think that is the start of a whole new era in the art scene.

Saskia Sassen, 67, teaches sociology at Columbia University where she also co-chairs The Committee on Global Thought, and is a visiting professor at the London School of Economics. In 1991 she coined the term “global city.” Her research on globalization, structural inequality and means of empowering the disadvantaged is highly respected within the scientific community and widely read by the public. Her recent books are “Expulsions” (2014) and “Territory, Authority, Rights” (2008). Sassen is married to sociologist Richard Sennett. Salomea Krobath studied social and Chinese sciences in the Netherlands, China and the UK. She has been a freelance reporter with the news magazine “profil” since 2014.

Why's that? Saskia Sassen: I feel that installation art is really the phase of the curator. In the last 30 years you had a whole set of curators who are incredibly educated and amazingly good at narrating. When you see a little installation by itself, not much happens, but when you read the text, you go “Wow”. I think that this phase is coming to an end. The big galleries want stuff, so they return to big sculptures. Once you have a very big sculpture, the curator has less of a role. It's going to generate a whole different generation of curators. Also, the next generation of artists will struggle: their average income in Austria is around 4,500 euros. Next to them, a few stars exist. Saskia Sassen: Yes, but these stars are made. They are made by the intermediate structure that is dominating our economy. Museums or curators are judges. They discern, because they know about art. Galleries, on the other hand, they’ll make sure that someone with star material becomes famous, because then they get millions. The system of intermediaries produces stars – in Hollywood and in the art world. With less left for the others … Saskia Sassen: That’s the idea of intermediation in economy. Every year the UK sells tons of milk to France. And guess what: France sells the same amount to the UK.

We’re talking about milk! So you stand back and think: “Who benefits from this?” Milk farmers may get less, consumers have to pay more – but the intermediaries can’t lose. That is a very dangerous economic system. And finance is the ultimate intermediary. How can people actively make a difference? Saskia Sassen: We have to activate every part of the city. Relocalize instead of franchise. Open up small shops yourself! Franchise always takes part of the consumption capacity out of the community, whereas the local recirculates it. It's also about political economy: people have to feel like they are actors in their community. The notion “I matter” – from the grandmother to the child, including the homeless person – makes a huge difference. By now the economic inequality has become so extreme that the old system doesn't function anymore. Urban gardening and small cultural spaces are popping up everywhere. In New York, discovering young, small artist scenes is much cooler than being a “consumer” of a huge exhibition. You see all these shifts that re-localize the question of talent, of food, of access. It is not yet the solution, but more and more partial elements begin to build up. And in the meantime, in my view, don't worry about the corporate center. It will bring itself down.

LECTURE

Saskia Sassen, “At the Systemic Edge: Where even the material becomes invisible” Fri., 20 Nov. 2015 6:00 pm KUNST HAUS WIEN, Untere Weissgerberstrasse, 1030 Vienna In English

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Art Cluster

21er Haus – Museum for Contemporary Art BOOK SHOW

Bernhard Cella, “Museum, the Public, and the Public Museum in a Book”

© Sabine Klimpt, Belvedere, Vienna 21er Haus – Museum for Contemporary Art Schweizergarten Arsenalstrasse 1 1030 Vienna T +43 1 795 57 770 E public@21erhaus.at www.21erhaus.at Opening hours: Wed., Thu. 11:00 am–9:00 pm Fri.–Sun. 11:00 am–6:00 pm Open on public holidays

PANEL DISCUSSION

“The Public Museum vs. the Museum and its Publics” Wed., 18 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm Blickle Kino at 21er Haus In English

Given the neo-liberal transformation of society, museums are facing various challenges: how should their role and function be re-considered beyond catch phrases like ‘audience development’ and the constant competition for visitor numbers? The panel discussion addresses institutional, curatorial and educational strategies that try to envision the museum as a public sphere. Participants: Jennifer Allen, art critic, editor, Berlin; Martin Fritz, curator, consultant, writer, Vienna; Joanna Warsza, head of CuratorLab, Konstfack, Stockholm; Luisa Ziaja, curator 21er Haus, Vienna Moderation: Robert Punkenhofer, Artistic Director of VIENNA ART WEEK

EXHIBITION

Wed., 18 Nov. 2015 Salon für Kunstbuch at 21er Haus

“Simon Wachsmuth – Monuments. Documents”

The relationship between the museum and its publics has been a subject of debate ever since the 18th century. It still is highly topical today, though in a different context. The panel discussion “The Public Museum vs. the Museum and its Publics” is accompanied by a selection of publications on this relationship, curated by Bernhard Cella.

26 Sep.–29 Nov. 2015

EXHIBITION

“Plamen Dejanoff – Foun dation Requirements” 26 Sep.–25 Oct. 2015

“Plamen Dejanoff – plamen. literatur kunst leben” 30 Oct. 2015–29 Nov. 2015 Taking place in two stages, the exhibition features the two most recent work series from the artist: by means of reconstruction and appropriation, Dejanoff illustrates and puts into practice the fusion of cultural and literary history, as well as of art and everyday life. EXHIBITION

BC21 Art Award 2015: Andreas Duscha / Nilbar Güres¸ / Sarah Pichlkostner / Hannes Zebedin 26 Sep.–29 Nov. 2015 Now in its fifth year of existence and worth 20,000 euros, the BC21 BostonConsulting & BelvedereContemporary Art Award is one of the most highly remunerated private prizes for

young contemporary artists in Austria. The nominees will be presented in an exhibition at the 21er Haus.

Simon Wachsmuth’s work addresses cultural (re)constructions of history and questions the relationship between material traces, museological representations, and forms of their present employment. EXHIBITION

“Flirting with Strangers. Encounters with Works from the Collection.” 9 Sep. 2015–31 Jan. 2016 The fall exhibition on the museum’s ground floor stages an exciting, playful, and sometimes also unexpected encounter with works from the collection. FAMILY ART DAY

Art Book Printing – Children’s Workshop* Sun., 22 Nov. 2015 3:00 pm Books are works of art – particularly those in our salon’s colored assortment. But how are individual sheets made into books? Young art enthusiasts aged three to twelve are welcome to join our workshop and learn how to bind books and print funny, colorful motifs on them. * Limited number of participants. Registration is required: T +43 1 795 57 770, E public@21erhaus.at

Art Cluster

Academy of Fine Arts Vienna

Academy of Fine Arts Vienna Schillerplatz 3 1010 Vienna T +43 1 588 16 0 F +43 1 588 16 1399 E info@akbild.ac.at www.akbild.ac.at Opening hours: Tue.–Sun. 10:00 am–6:00 pm

OPENING | PERFORMANCE TRAIL

EXHIBITION

Exhibition “Eyes Aghast: Transmannerist Reactions”

“Eyes Aghast: Transmannerist Reactions”

Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm xhibit, Academy of Fine Arts Vienna

20 Nov. 2015–10 Jan. 2016 xhibit, Academy of Fine Arts Vienna

The exhibition and performance project “Eyes Aghast: Transmannerist Reactions” explores contemporary-queer mannerisms with a critical playfulness. Curators Moritz Gottschalk, Christian Hetlinger, Roberta Lima, Matteo Patti and Ruby Sircar invite visitors to a fanciful and grotesque distortion of the xhibit exhibition space and other parts of the Schillerplatz: surprising artistic and architectural-decorative forms meet burlesque and drag formats. Historical Mannerism, a break in all manifestations of expression, finds its contemporary reflection in this transdisciplinary project. What happens here is what Gustav René Hocke termed the “alchemy of language” in “The World as a Labyrinth” (1957): like epigrams, the artists use queer and decolonizing strategies in their works to oppose forms of socioeconomic coercion found in emerging autocratic powers.

PANEL DISCUSSION

“Study and Commoning”

Participants: Stefano Harney, professor of Strategic Management Education in Singapore, and the members of the research group Spaces of Commoning Spaces of Commoning is a two-year research project at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, funded by the WWTF. Participants include Anette Baldauf, Stefan Gruber, Moira Hille, Annette Krauss, Vladimir Miller, Mara Verlic, Hong-Kai Wang and Julia Wieger. (www.spacesofcommoning.net)

EXHIBITION

Tue., 17 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm Packhaus, Marxergasse 24, 1030 Vienna

“Kiev, Moscow and Beyond – 20 Years of springerin”

In English

5–27 Nov. 2015

The antagonism between study and the university is resonant of many struggles that commoning practices face in institutional frameworks. In their book “The Undercommons: Fugitive Planning and Black Studies” Stefano Harney and Fred Moten (their new publication “The A to Z of Management” is also soon to be released) explore the possibilities of self-organized study at neoliberal universities, with a special focus on the interstitial spaces of autonomous practices. To explore the conflicts, potentials and dangers, the research group Spaces of Commoning invites Stefano Harney to discuss the relationship between study and commoning at universities.

An exhibition by “springerin – Hefte für Gegenwartskunst” on the occasion of its 20th anniversary, in cooperation with the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna.

Project “Eyes Aghast: Transmannerist Reactions,” Florian Aschka & Larissa Kopp: tweaked breeding, 2015 9

Art Cluster

Albertina

Albertina Albertinaplatz 1 1010 Vienna T +43 1 534 83 0 F +43 1 534 83 430 E info@albertina.at www.albertina.at Opening hours: Thu.–Tue. 10:00 am–6:00 pm Wed. 10:00 am–9:00 pm

CONVERSATION

“The Artist and the Last Things”: Klaus Albrecht Schröder in a conversation with Robert Menasse Wed., 18 Nov. 2015 6:30 pm Hall of the Muses In German

Love, death and loneliness are central themes in Edvard Munch’s œuvre. The Albertina’s major exhibition this fall is dedicated to the pioneer of printmaking, featuring around 120 of the Norwegian artist’s most important works, including icons such as “The Scream,” “Madonna,” and “The Kiss.” Munch’s life and work, scarred by existential crises and ruptures and yet marked by the utmost consistency, illustrate the artist’s intensive preoccupation with love and jealousy, loss and loneliness, illness and death. Taking their cue from the themes that moved Munch so deeply, writer Robert Menasse and the Albertina’s Director Klaus Albrecht Schröder will raise existential questions and discuss their topicality in today’s art and literature.

FAMILY ART DAY

GUIDED TOUR

Children’s guided tour of the exhibition “Edvard Munch. Love, Death, and Loneliness”*

Curator-guided tour of the exhibition “Lyonel Feininger and Alfred Kubin. A Friendship of Artists”

Sun., 22 Nov. 2015 2:00 pm

Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 4:00 pm

In German

Throughout his eventful life, the Norwegian artist Edvard Munch devoted himself to the representation of human emotions. During the onehour guided tour of highlights for children aged six to ten, we shall discuss the artist’s life and the way he illustrated everyday feelings in his paintings. It goes without saying that the tour includes Munch’s most famous work, “The Scream.”

Curator Eva Michel gives an insight into Lyonel Feininger’s and Alfred Kubin’s close friendship. The exhibition portrays the careers of the two artists who, in their correspondence, found each other to be kindred spirits, only to develop in divergent artistic directions.

* Restricted number of participants. Regis- tration is required: T +43 1 534 83 540

EXHIBITION

“Edvard Munch. Love, Death, and Loneliness”

EXHIBITION

“Lyonel Feininger and Alfred Kubin. A Friendship of Artists” 4 Sep. 2015–10 Jan. 2016

25 Sep. 2015–24 Jan. 2016 Edvard Munch, The Scream, 1895

Private Collection, Courtesy Galleri K, Oslo © Reto Rodolfo Pedrini, Zurich 10

Art Cluster

Architekturzentrum Wien

STUDIO VISITS

Visits to selected architecture studios* Fri., 20 Nov. 2015 1:45–6:00 pm In German

Urania

EXHIBITION

LECTURE

“Max Fabiani. Architect of the Monarchy”

“One Billion Units of Housing. The Collective House and the Future of Living”

22 Oct.–30 Nov. 2015 To mark the 150th anniversary of Vienna’s Ringstrasse boulevard, the Az W is presenting the exhibition “Max Fabiani. Architect of the Monarchy.” The Slovene-born architect is considered as one of the fathers of Vienna’s modern architecture. Working for Otto Wagner, Fabiani designed the headquarters of the Portois & Fix furniture factory in Ungargasse (1898–1900) and the building for the Artaria publishing house on Kohlmarkt (1900–1901). In 1910 the Urania observatory on Ringstrasse was erected according to Max Fabiani’s plans. An exhibition by the city of Ljubljana, supported by SKICA – Slowenisches Kulturinformationszentrum, the Embassy of the Republic of Slovenia in Vienna, and the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Slovenia

Wed., 18 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm Podium, Architekturzentrum Wien In German

Niklas Maak, architecture theoretician and editor of “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung,” studied art history, philosophy and architecture in Hamburg and Paris. After taking his PhD in 1998 he lectured at the Städelschule in Frankfurt am Main, as well as in Basel, Berlin, Buenos Aires, and at the Harvard Graduate School of Design. In his 2015 book “The Living Complex. From Zombie City to the New Communal,” Maak examines the effects of fundamental technological, demographic and societal changes on housing, and presents concepts for a post-familial collective architecture.

This year’s studio visits take the participants to the architecture offices nonconform, pos architekten and Kohlmayr Lutter Knapp / Urbanouts, all of whom address topical issues such as participation, ecology and sustainability, as well as abandoned property and temporary use. Meeting point: 1:45 pm, Az W shop, Museumsplatz 1, 1070 Vienna Moderation: Anneke Essl, Az W, and the architects on site * Maximum number of participants: 30 Registration is required: T +43 1 522 31 15, E office@azw.at

FAMILY ART DAY

Workshop “No Limits – Breaking Boundaries”* Sun., 22 Nov. 2015 3:00–5:00 pm Barriers, fences, spaces, laws of nature and state laws represent boundaries and restrictions in our everyday lives. What are they good for? Which boundaries are necessary, which superfluous, and which need to be overcome? We shall pursue these questions, building. * For children aged six and older. Registration is required: T +43 1 522 31 15, E office@azw.at 11

Art Cluster

Belvedere GUIDED TOUR | LECTURE

“Hans Bischoffshausen – a Zero-Artist?” Curator Harald Krejci gives a tour of the exhibition “Hans Bischoffshausen”* Wed., 18 Nov. 2015 6:00 pm Marble Hall / Lower Belvedere In German

Upper Belvedere Prinz-Eugen-Strasse 27 1030 Vienna Opening hours: 10:00 am–6:00 pm, daily Lower Belvedere, Orangery Rennweg 6 1030 Vienna Opening hours: 10:00 am–6:00 pm, daily Wed. 10:00 am–9:00 pm T +43 1 795 57 134 F +43 1 795 57 136 E public@belvedere.at www.belvedere.at

GUIDED TOUr

Curator’s tour of the exhibition “The Women of Klimt, Schiele and Kokoschka” with Alfred Weidinger, Deputy Director of the Belvedere* Mon., 16 Nov. 2015 4:30 pm Lower Belvedere In German

Born in 1927, Hans Bischoffshausen ranks among the leading exponents of the Austrian post-war avant-garde. The show spans from the artist’s early fossil pictures of the 1950s to the Paris period of the Zero movement and the lyrical script pictures of his late period. Along with works from other European exponents of the Zero movement, the Belvedere showcases thematic series of works by Bischoffshausen including his late period in the 1980s.

peaked in his late, abstract Mountain Fantasies. The exhibition highlights Frankl’s deep engagement with landscape and his fascinating Belvedere series (1947–1949). GUIDED TOUr

Curator Kerstin Jesse gives a tour of the exhibition “Masterpieces in Focus: Gerhart Frankl – Restless”* Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 10:00 am Upper Belvedere In German * Limited number of participants. Registration is required: E public@belvedere.at

EXHIBITION

“Masterpieces in Focus: Gerhart Frankl – Restless” 18 Nov. 2015–3 Apr. 2016 Upper Belvedere

* Limited number of participants. Registration is required: E public@belvedere.at

FAMILY ART DAY

In the early 20th century, a number of social, economic and philosophical changes challenged the traditional relationship between men and women. The idea of gender equality, then in its early stages, triggered emphatic refutation. Gustav Klimt, Egon Schiele and Oskar Kokoschka, the three most eminent figures of Viennese Modernism, approached “the woman question” from different, though sometimes overlapping perspectives. * Limited number of participants. Registration is required: E public@belvedere.at

EXHIBITION

“The Women of Klimt, Schiele and Kokoschka” 22 Oct. 2015–28 Feb. 2016 Lower Belvedere

EXHIBITION

“Hans Bischoffshausen” 7 Oct. 2015–14 Feb. 2016 Lower Belvedere / Orangery

“Look here! Let’s see what the forms and colors say”* Sun., 22 Nov. 2015 10:30 am–12:30 pm Lower Belvedere (meeting point: cash desk)

OPENING

Exhibition “Masterpieces in Focus: Gerhart Frankl – Restless” Tue., 17 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm Upper Belvedere The œuvre of Gerhart Frankl (1901–1965) is highly heterogeneous, both formally and in terms of color. Self-taught and restlessly seeking, he aspired to create works for eternity, like his idol Cézanne. Frankl was a passionate motorcyclist, nature lover and alpinist, whose artistic œuvre

Golden women, women made of paint blotches or only of lines … what were Klimt, Schiele and Kokoschka thinking? After an exploratory tour, the children aged five to ten can show their true colors in the studio, when their faces are turned into artworks using gouache, chalks and stamps. * Limited number of participants. Registration is required: E public@belvedere.at

Egon Schiele, Seated Woman in Violet Stockings, 1917

Private Collection, Courtesy Richard Nagy Ltd., London

Art Cluster

Photo: eSeL.at/Lorenz Seidler

DOROTHEUM

DOROTHEUM Dorotheergasse 17 1010 Vienna T +43 1 515 60 550 F +43 1 515 60 467 www.dorotheum.com Opening hours: Mon.–Fri. 10:00 am–6:00 pm Sat. 9:00 am–5:00 pm

PANEL DISCUSSION

GUIDED TOURS

“Speaking of Art: Art Market and Art Criticism”

“The Art of Temporary Use. Slogan or Strategy?”

Fri., 20 Nov. 2015 4:00–5:30 pm

Fri., 20 Nov. 2015, 6:00–7:30 pm

Previews of the auctions “Modern Art” and “Contemporary Art”

In German

Most weekend editions of daily newspapers are about scandals, art shows and auction previews. More and more online magazines follow suit, offering sales statistics and rankings. Is the art market really devoid of critical reflection on art? How much room is there in art criticism for the art market? Doesn’t art criticism, more than any other field, have an obligation to counteract slanted economic reports? Representatives of leading Germanlanguage daily newspapers will be discussing the significance of art criticism and journalism for the art market. Participants: Marcus Woeller, “Die Welt;” Rose-Maria Gropp, “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung;” Susanne Schreiber, “Handelsblatt;” Olga Kronsteiner, “Der Standard” Moderation and concept: Sabine B. Vogel, President of AICA AUSTRIA In cooperation with AICA AUSTRIA

In German

Formerly claimed by autonomists, the temporary use of vacant spaces has increasingly become a heartfelt concern of cultural producers and the creative industries in recent years. Temporary use of desperately needed space makes it possible to revive vacant urban areas and increase the value of buildings. It gets people in touch with art, making creative initiatives and the alterative art scene an – albeit temporary – feature of urban space. But is this really a sustainable win-win situation for artists and property owners alike? Are there any strategies regarding visual arts? What is the responsibility of the city administration? The debate will revolve around these questions, with panelists analyzing the sociocultural potential and mutual benefits of temporary cultural use.

16–20 Nov. 2015 10:00 am–6:00 pm on all days Sat., 21 Nov. 2015 9:00 am–5:00 pm Sun., 22 Nov. 2015 2:00–5:00 pm All items of modern and contemporary art to be sold at DOROTHEUM in its fourth week of auction (23–27 Nov. 2015) will be put on display during VIENNA ART WEEK. Experts on all genres will be standing by for information and guided tours; for prior appointment, call T +43 1 515 60 550.

Participants: Alexandra Grausam, das weisse haus; Jutta Kleedorfer, MA 18 (Department for Urban Development and Planning); Angie Schmied, NEST – Agentur für Leerstandsmanagement GmbH; Jonathan Lutter, Urbanouts; Mara Verlic, sociologist at the Vienna University of Technology Department of Spatial Planning Moderation: Michael Huber, “Kurier” 13

Art Cluster

Essl Museum – Contemporary Art

Essl Museum – Contemporary Art An der Donau-Au 1 3400 Klosterneuburg / Vienna T +43 2243 370 50 150 F +43 2243 370 50 22 E info@essl.museum www.essl.museum Opening hours: Tue.–Sun. 10:00 am–6:00 pm Wed. 10:00 am–9:00 pm

CONVERSATION

“Raw materials. Stories about raw materials and the genesis of works by Johann Kandl” Fri., 20 Nov. 2015 4:30 pm In German

As part of the exhibition “Johanna Kandl. Tangible Art” curator Günther Oberhollenzer talks to the artist. Johanna Kandl is interested in the hands-on, concrete aspect, in the detail. Her painting is always preceded by intensive research, carried out together with her husband Helmut Kandl. Recently Johanna Kandl has worked more intensively with painting materials found in nature such as turpentine resin, mastic and gum arabic. This interest has an autobiographical background: Kandl’s mother owned a paint shop. Work on this theme took her to the Austrian black 14

pines in the Vienna Basin, a source of turpentine, also to the Greek island of Chios, where mastic is extracted, and to the African regions growing the Senegal acacia, the gum arabic tree. The simple, often poetic stories about materials convey a great deal about economy, history and politics, says Kandl. This is graphically demonstrated for instance when investigating the material of gum arabic. Johanna Kandl’s new paintings are closely connected to this research. They are on display in the solo exhibition “Tangible Art” in the Essl Museum, besides works from various other creative phases of hers and video footage by Helmut & Johanna Kandl.

EXHIBITION

“Johanna Kandl. Tangible Art” 9 Oct. 2015–31 Jan. 2016

FAMILY ART DAYS

Open House at Essl Museum Sat., 21 Nov. 2015 10:00 am–6:00 pm Sun., 22 Nov. 2015 10:00 am–6:00 pm Free admission to the exhibitions “Johanna Kandl. Tangible Art” and “Fascination Photography,” as well as to painting workshops and guided tours for families.

Johanna Kandl, Untitled (Stoffgeschäft), 2013 Courtesy: the artist; photo: Farid Sabha, Vienna

Art Cluster

Austrian Film Museum

Clemens von Wedemeyer, From the Opposite Side, 2007 Austrian Film Museum Augustinerstrasse 1 1010 Vienna (in the Albertina building) T +43 1 533 70 54 F +43 1 533 70 54 25 E office@filmmuseum.at Opening hours: Office: Mon.–Thu. 10:00 am–6:00 pm Fri. 10:00 am–1:00 pm Library: Mon., Thu. 12:00 noon–6:00 pm Evening box office: one hour prior to the first screening

Retrospective

Clemens von Wedemeyer RETROSPECTIVE

Clemens von Wedemeyer 19–20 Nov. 2015 Films and installations by Clemens von Wedemeyer – born in Göttingen in 1974 – are contemporary in the best sense: insistent and curious, the artist hunts out places where the immediate present becomes visible and tangible. At the same time he finds images that always reflect their own genesis and a history of the visual media. “Silberhöhe” (“Silver Heights”) surveys the juxtaposition of a prefab estate and a new building complex in Halle/Saale parallel to shots from “L’Eclisse” (“Eclipse”), Michelangelo Antonioni’s classic film of 1962. “Metropolis. A Report from China” explores the expansion of the market economy reflected in the Shanghai and Beijing building boom and links it to images from Fritz Lang’s silent movie, while Wedemeyer’s “Muster” (“Rushes”) takes Breitenau Abbey as a launching pad into three time levels which unearth the historical sediments of the location as well as their imaging in the years 1943, 1970 and 2012.

Wedemeyer won the German International Short Film Festival competition in Oberhausen in 2006. His works have been shown at the documenta and various biennales, but have made most impact in the visual arts. In actual fact they manifest an intensive relationship with cinema that goes beyond mere references. They frequently plunge deep into the history of film and even work through aesthetic figures of the cinema: the filmic construction of “point of view” is used to map out the railway station square in Münster (in “Von Gegenüber” – “From the Opposite Side”); “Found Footage” is defined by a precise examination of film fragments about foreign cultures, people, places; in “Weggang” (“Leaving”) and “Procession” political scenarios are fanned out in long planned sequences. The three parts of the project “The Cast” are a logical compaction of this approach: images of the Cinecittà sculpture workshop are interwoven with found footage of statues in film and the rebellion of the actors’ union during the shooting of “Ben Hur”: real places, things, structures produced in and simultaneously by film.

SCREENING | CONVERSATION

“Clemens von Wedemeyer: in person” – Program 1 Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 8:30 pm After the screening: open discussion with the filmmaker In German

SCREENING

“Clemens von Wedemeyer: in person” – Program 2 Fri., 20 Nov. 2015 6:30 pm

SCREENING | CONVERSATION

“Clemens von Wedemeyer: in person” – Program 3 Fri., 20 Nov. 2015 8:30 pm After the screening: open discussion with the filmmaker In German

The three-part program is the first time the Austrian Film Museum is showing a cross-section of the artist’s works, who will be present for talks with the audience. 15

Art Cluster

Austrian Frederick and Lillian Kiesler Private Foundation

Austrian Frederick and Lillian Kiesler Private Foundation Mariahilfer Strasse 1b 1060 Vienna T +43 1 513 07 75 F +43 1 513 07 755 E office@kiesler.org www.kiesler.org Opening hours:   Mon.–Fri. 9:00 am–5:00 pm   Sat. 11:00 am–3:00 pm

GUIDED TOUR

LECTURE

Curator Peter Bogner gives a tour of the exhibition “Hans Hollein. Early Visions”

Kiesler Lecture: Matthew Ritchie and Hani Rashid, “Art in Space – Space in Art”

Tue., 17 Nov. 2015 3:00 pm

Tue., 17 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm Kunsthalle Wien Museumsquartier, Auditorium

In German

Like no other Austrian architect’s oeuvre, the interdisciplinary creative work of Hans Hollein (1934–2014) in the fields of design and architecture combined the traditional practices of Austrian art and contemporary international discourse. The Kiesler Foundation is paying tribute to Hans Hollein’s early work as a visionary: the focus of the studio exhibition is on the architect’s formal and artistic approach, which reveals many parallels to Frederick Kiesler’s œuvre. Incidentally, Hans Hollein was instrumental in Frederick Kiesler’s rediscovery.

In English

FAMILY ART DAY

Children’s workshop “Build Your Own Endless House” Sun., 22 Nov. 2015 3:00 pm In the one-hour workshop, young architects from the age of eight realize their vision of an “endless house,” building models with mesh wire and plaster. Meanwhile, their adult caregivers are welcome to participate in a guided tour of the exhibition.

Friedrich Kiesler with his cat Sing-Sing on the “Metabolism Chart,” NY, around 1947 Photo: Ben Schnall

Art Cluster

KÖR Kunst im öffentlichen Raum Wien

GUIDED TOUR

Curator Gerald Straub gives a tour of the intervention “Kunstgastgeber Gemeinde bau – Am Schöpfwerk”* Sun., 22 Nov. 2015 2:00 pm (duration: 2–2.5 hrs) In German

Meeting point: exit U6 subway station Am Schöpfwerk (in front of the drugstore), 1120 Vienna KÖR Kunst im Öffentlichen Raum (Art in the Public Space) is assigned to all 23 Viennese urban districts, and the temporary intervention “Kunstgastgeber Gemeindebau” (Municipal Building as Art Host) is a strikingly visible example: over the last four years, art hosts have wel comed visitors in the 10th, 22nd and 2nd districts. In fall 2015 the project will take place in the 12th district, realized by KÖR together with wohnpartner and Wiener Wohnen. Time and again KÖR has shown that art in the public space can be a super-

lative means of communication in bringing extremely disparate people closer together. Acting as art hosts alongside the residents we find local initiatives, facilities and platforms; in conjunction with invited artists and actors they develop a “scenario of circumstances.” New ideas are generated out of local realities, woven into a coherent story and subsequently presented as a communal experience with the public.

The public tries to generate references: the traditional questions of why, what for, whence, and whither not only reflect that the project is unclassifiable but also the frequent loss of the ability to experience things as they are. Therefore, more than anything else, “Kunstgastgeber Gemeindebau” fosters inspiration without needing interpretation.

What is so special is the close bond between the actors and the locations, creating things that exist exclusively because all participants work together for a specific period in a specific place for an unspecific goal. This triggers a process that in retrospect and despite all unpredictability, insecurities, impossibilities and other obstacles seems logical and obvious in its realization. Associations, passions and interests, expertise and experience evolve step by step into a concrete idea that in the end is a thing of wonder.

* Limited number of participants. Registration is required (by Fri., 20 Nov. 2015, 1:00 pm): E office@koer.or.at or T +43 1 521 89 1257 Program changes will be announced at www.koer.or.at

Curator: Gerald Straub

Art Cluster

KUNST HAUS WIEN

KUNST HAUS WIEN Untere Weissgerberstrasse 13 1030 Vienna T +43 1 712 04 91 F +43 1 712 04 96 E info@kunsthauswien.com www.kunsthauswien.com Opening hours: 10:00 am–6:00 pm, daily

OPENING

EXHIBITION

LECTURE

“Garages”

“Creating Common Good” Exhibition accompanying VIENNA ART WEEK 2015

Saskia Sassen, “At the Systemic Edge: Where even the material becomes invisible”

Mon., 16 Nov. 2015 6:00 pm KUNST HAUS WIEN Garage Some burning ecological issues will be addressed at the opening event of the eponymous project “Garages,” which takes place from 16 November 2015 in various garages in Vienna. The series is dedicated to the garage as a potential birthplace, domain and laboratory of inventions and campaigns that can change our everyday lives or even the entire world. Examples include garage rock or a particular garage in Palo Alto which is regarded as the birthplace of Silicon Valley. Curators and cultural producers Marcello Farabegoli and Dominik Nostitz deal with this subject in a range of exhibitions, installations, interventions, performances and concerts by selected artists. For sites, opening hours and details, go to www.marcello-farabegoli.net or www.verein08.at OPENING

“Creating Common Good” Exhibition accompanying VIENNA ART WEEK 2015 Mon., 16 Nov. 2015 6:00 pm

17 Nov.–10 Jan. 2016 Art has never been more visible, tangible and influential than today, and it is more a part of social processes than ever before. This ubiquity of art shows just how much we expect from it. The group exhibition “Creating Common Good” examines the means with which artists respond to current global events. Political art is no longer a mere reaction to existing conditions; instead, it has the ethical aspiration to shape society and counteract corrupt systems. Artists raise critical questions and propose new criteria to benefit the common good. With works by: Akram Al Halabi, Bernhard Cella, Ramesch Daha, Ines Doujak, Teresa Estapé, Peter Friedl, Leon Golub, Tamara Grcic, gruppe uno wien, Markus Hiesleitner, Heidrun Holzfeind, Anna Jermolaewa, Folke Köbberling, Ernst Logar, Teresa Margolles, Adrian Melis, Lucy + Jorge Orta, Lisl Ponger, Isa Rosenberger, Martha Rosler, Tim Sharp, Nasan Tur, Wael Shawky, Santiago Sierra, Axel Stockburger, tat ort, Johanna Tinzl, transparadiso, Patricia Triki, Anna Witt, Ina Wudtke, Sislej Xhafa, and others

Fri., 20 Nov. 2015 6:00 pm In English

Saskia Sassen, Columbia University, is the author of several books, including “The Global City.” Her new book is “Expulsions: Brutality and Complexity in the Global Economy” (Harvard University Press 2014). Her books are translated in over 20 languages. She has received diverse awards, multiple doctor honoris causa titles, and been chosen as one of the “Top 100 Global Thinkers” in multiple lists. Most recently, she was awarded the 2013 Principe de Asturias Prize for the Social Sciences, elected to the Netherlands Royal Academy of the Sciences, and made a Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et Lettres by the French government. www.saskiasassen.com

Curator: Robert Punkenhofer and Ursula Maria Probst

Art Cluster

Kunsthalle Wien Kunsthalle Wien Museumsquartier Museumsplatz 1 1070 Vienna Kunsthalle Wien Karlsplatz Treitlstrasse 2 1040 Vienna T +43 1 521 89 33 E office@kunsthallewien.at www.kunsthallewien.at facebook.com/ KunsthalleWien twitter.com/KunsthalleWien instagram/KunsthalleWien blog.kunsthallewien.at Opening hours: Fri.–Wed. 10:00 am–7:00 pm Thu. 10:00 am–9:00 pm

LECTURE

EXHIBITION

CONVERSATION

Dieter Lesage, “On Art & Populism. Lecture for a Small Audience”

“Political Populism”

“Profession: Artist. On the Art Academy’s Future”: Nicolaus Schafhausen in a conversation with Philippe Pirotte

Wed., 18 Nov. 2015 6:00 pm In English

Populism has many faces, and more than one meaning. The usefulness of a term with different meanings resides in the fact that it may hint at family resemblances between different phenomena called “populism.” Therefore, in any debate on populism, it might soon appear that the contributors – artists, academics, writers and other intellectuals – will use the word in many different ways. The affects and desires that characterize populist politics do not necessarily differ from those that find expression in the sphere of art. The question is how forms of populism – whether left-wing or right-wing, progressive or reactionary – promote themselves in their quest for mass appeal through stylistic consciousness and aesthetic strategies. Ultimately, this is about an economy of signs and desire that can also be found in the political imagination of visual arts, which create spaces and images that shape our idea of democracy. The philosopher, critic and curator Dieter Lasage is director of the RITS School of Arts (Erasmus University College Brussels), where he also works as a researcher.

6 Nov. 2015–31 Jan. 2016 Kunsthalle Wien Museumsquartier Not only is political populism on the rise, but it is making much stronger use of pop culture and artistic methods and aesthetics than in earlier years. Social media, advertising aesthetics and media staging have lent a progressive appearance to simple or simplistic slogans. Rapping politicians, YouTube clips aimed specifically at young people, TV formats and pop concerts that present political themes and aim to make prejudices socially acceptable – these are all part of the current media landscape. Artistic works, in turn, reflect or comment on this tendency or lend it a further, subversive level that uses the mechanisms of political populism against this trend. The exhibition features works by international artists who address various facets of populism and analyze it, diffract it in ironic manner and, above all, point out how omnipresent it has become. Participants include Basel Abbas and Ruanne Abou-Rahme, Darren Bader, Keren Cytter, Simon Denny, Flaka Haliti, Johanna Kandl, Erik van Lieshout, Minouk Lim, Goshka Macuga, Mián Mián, Marcel Odenbach, Ahmet Ögüt, Trevor Paglen, Hito Steyerl, and Jun Yang, among others.

Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 8:00 pm In German

Every year since 2002, Kunsthalle Wien and the University of Applied Arts Vienna have awarded a prize to a graduate of the Institute of Fine Arts and Media Art. This year, they got the Academy of Fine Arts on board to draw the attention of a wider public to the prize and award winners (see also pages 48/49). What role does art education play today? What do the various players in the art scene expect from the academies? Philippe Pirotte is Rector of the Frankfurt Städelschule, which is regarded as one of the most successful art academies in terms of its graduates’ career prospects. He will be talking to Nicolaus Schafhausen, director of Kunsthalle Wien, about the current chances and challenges in academic art education. Philippe Pirotte was head of Kunsthalle Bern and has been rector of the Staatliche Hochschule für Bildende Künste – Städelschule in Frankfurt am Main since 2014.

Curator: Nicolaus Schafhausen Minouk Lim, United Paradox, 14 May–5 July 2015 Portikus, Frankfurt on the Main

Photo: Helena Schlichting, Courtesy Portikus 19

Art Cluster

Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien

Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien Maria-Theresien-Platz 1010 Vienna T +43 1 525 24 4025 F +43 1 525 24 4098 E info@khm.at www.khm.at Opening hours: Tue.–Sun. 10:00 am–6:00 pm Thu. 10:00 am–9:00 pm

LECTURE

Modern & Contemporary Talk: “Roberta Smith and Jerry Saltz in conversation with Jasper Sharp”* Mon., 16 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm Cupola Hall, Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien In English

Roberta Smith (“The New York Times”) and Jerry Saltz (“New York magazine”) are among the most important and respected art critics working today. In conversation with curator Jasper Sharp they will discuss the historical origins of art criticism, assess its current state of health, and make a prognosis for its future. * Limited number of participants. Registration is required: E talks@khm.at

GUIDED TOUR

“Diversity, Exchange, Integration”* Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm Meeting point: Vestibule, Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien In German

Throughout the ages, art has been invigorated in that techniques and ideas – and ultimately the artists themselves – have migrated between countries and cultures. Follow these migrations in an entertaining tour through the collections of the Kunsthistorisches Museum, and experience how fruitful diversity, exchange 20

and integration have been for the evolution of art over the centuries. * Limited number of participants. Registration is required: E viennaartweek@khm.at

GUIDED TOUR

Combined tour of the exhibition “Joseph Cornell: Wanderlust” and the Kunstkammer* Fri., 20 Nov. 2015 4:00 pm Meeting point: Vestibule, Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien In German and English

Joseph Cornell (1903–1972) was one of the most extraordinary artists of the 20th century. He had no formal training and was unable to sketch, paint, or sculpt, but nevertheless created one of the most original artistic œuvres of modern times. While Cornell’s works were shown in major US museums and art galleries alongside contemporaries like Andy Warhol, Jackson Pollock and Mark Rothko, he remained unknown to the European public. Now the Kunsthistorisches Museum hosts a retrospective in cooperation with the Royal Academy of Arts, London. It is the first Cornell exhibition in London in more than 30 years, and the first-ever exhibition of his works in an Austrian museum. The exhibition “Joseph Cornell: Wanderlust” includes 40 boxes, 15 small objects, 25 collages and several films. Major loans are provided by the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden,

Washington DC, the Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington DC, the Tate Modern, London, and several major private collections. What would have interested Joseph Cornell in the Kunstkammer, and how would he have seen it? Systematics and imagination, combinatorics and the poetry of things … experience the Kunstkammer through Cornell’s eyes: a collection that aspires to reflect the world, that enables visitors to make a picture of the world for themselves – a world-picture, as it were, in which reality and dream, science and religion, superstition and delusion fuse into the fantastical. *

Guided tour in two groups (English and German). Limited number of participants. Registration is required: E viennaartweek@khm.at

EXHIBITION

“Joseph Cornell: Wanderlust” 20 Oct. 2015–10 Jan. 2016

Left ill.: Joseph Cornell, Tilly Losch, c. 1935

Collection of Robert Lehrman, courtesy of Aimee and Robert Lehrman © The Joseph and Robert Cornell Memorial Foundation / Bildrecht, Vienna, 2015

Right ill.: Hans Schlottheim, Table Automaton, in the Form of a Ship, Augsburg, 1585 © KHM-Museumsverband

Art Cluster

Künstlerhaus

Photo: Nadine Wille Künstlerhaus Karlsplatz 5 1010 Vienna T +43 1 587 96 63 F +43 1 587 87 36 E office@k-haus.at www.k-haus.at Opening hours: Tue., Wed., Fri.–Sun. 10:00 am–6:00 pm Thu. 10:00 am–9:00 pm

CONVERSATION

OPENING

PANEL DISCUSSION

“LOOP – Concepts of Exchange and ‘Shared Communication’”

“ARTmART”

“ARTmART” podium

Wed., 18 Nov. 2015 1:00 pm

Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 5:00 pm

Tue., 17 Nov. 2015 6:00 pm In English

Live-streaming talk with Barbara Höller and Michael Wegerer from Austria, and Scott Betz and Richard Phillips from the USA. EXHIBITION

“LOOP – Concepts of Exchange. International and Intermedial Collaboration Project and Exhibition” 13–29 Nov. 2015 Künstlerhaus Galerie In cooperation with Night Gallery, University of North Carolina School of the Arts, USA. Featuring works by Michael Wegerer and Barbara Höller from Vienna, and Scott Betz and Richard Phillips from the Winston-Salem State University, North Carolina, USA.

In German and English

“ARTmART” is both exhibition and experimental examination of mechanisms of the art market. For only five days, artists will be making an exceptional offer: 250 artists – over 2,500 works of art – egalitarian conditions of exhibition – all works for 80 euros! PERFORMANCE / FILM & VIDEO SCREENING

“What is left?” Tue., 18 Nov. 2015 6:00 pm “What is left?” brings together a group of artist including Zbyne˘ k Baladrán, Maja Bajevic´, Nemanja Cvijanovic´, Ibro Hasanovic´, and Nesˇ a Paripovic´ and to reveal several turning points where a subject open to controversy arises.

The curators of “ARTmART” introduce the project in their experimental art market and put it up for debate. CONVERSATION

The 4 Graces, “Markieren” Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 6:00 pm Passagegalerie In German

The 4 Graces, a group of women artists, mark their territory and explain how to pee standing up. Including a cocktail reception and artist talk at Passagegalerie.

Performance: Lilo Nein Curators: Gülsen Bal, Walter Seidl

Art Cluster

Leopold Museum

Leopold Museum Museumsplatz 1 1070 Vienna T +43 1 525 70 0 F +43 1 525 70 1500 E office@leopoldmuseum.org www.leopoldmuseum.org Opening hours: Wed.–Mon. 10:00 am–6:00 pm Thu. 10:00 am–9:00 pm Tue. closed

Exhibition

“A Rush of Color. Masterpieces of German Expressionism” EXHIBITION

“A Rush of Color. Masterpieces of German Expressionism” 9 Oct. 2015–11 Jan. 2016 The exhibition “A Rush of Color” features outstanding masterpieces of German Expressionism from the Osthaus Museum in Hagen near Dortmund, Bochum and Wuppertal in the Ruhr area. It features a selection of around 30 paintings and 80 works on paper by major exponents of German Expressionism, including Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Erich Heckel, Karl Schmidt-Rottluff, Max Pechstein and Otto Mueller from the artists’ association Die Brücke, and representatives of the artist groups Neue Künstlervereinigung München and Der Blaue Reiter such as Gabriele Münter, Alexej von Jawlensky and Franz Marc. Many works have never

been on show in Vienna before. Expressionists provoked bourgeois audiences and challenged the traditional concept of art by distorting shapes, overemphasizing contours, radically reducing features and interpreting perspective in a highly idiosyncratic way. The exhibition is complemented by a selection of Expressionist works from the collection of the Leopold Museum and the Leopold Private Collection.

Right ill.: Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Artists’ Group (Artists’ Discourse), 1913 (dated 1912)

Courtesy: Osthaus Museum Hagen & Institute for Cultural Exchange, By Ingeborg & Dr. Wolfgang Henze-Ketterer, Wichtrach/Bern, 2014

GUIDED TOUR

“Radically Subjective” – curator-guided tour with Franz Smola and Ivan Ristic´ Mon., 16 Nov. 2015 4:00 pm On the eve of World War I a group of outstanding German artists renounced the traditional moral values and departed into Modernism. Their creative work was characterized by the desire for originality and the – frequently painful – quest for identity. Franz Smola and Ivan Ristic´ , curators at the Leopold Museum, welcome visitors for an introduction to the big issues of expressionist painting and graphic art. Left ill.: Alexej von Jawlensky, Girl’s Head with Yellow Turban and Yellow Agraffe, c. 1912 Courtesy: Osthaus Museum Hagen & Institute for Cultural Exchange, Tübingen

Art Cluster

MAK

© MAK/Nathan Murrell MAK – Austrian Museum of Applied Arts / Contemporary Art Stubenring 5 1010 Vienna T +43 1 711 36 231 F +43 1 711 36 291 E office@MAK.at www.MAK.at Opening hours: Tue. 10:00 am–10:00 pm Wed.–Sun. 10:00 am–6:00 pm Free admission on Tuesdays 6:00 pm–10:00 pm

PANEL DISCUSSION

“MAK NITE Symposium: Can Art Change the World for the Better? Perspectives on the VIENNA BIENNALE 2017” Tue., 17 Nov. 2015 7:00–10:00 pm MAK Columned Main Hall

Vienna, Kunsthalle Wien, Architekturzentrum Wien, and departure, the creative center of the Vienna Business Agency. Representatives of these institutions and future partners of the Vienna Biennale 2017 meet artists and members of the Vienna Biennale Circle to discuss possibilities for art to contribute to a positive social change in interaction with design and architecture.

In German

From June till October the “Vienna Biennale 2015: Ideas for Change” took place as the first multi-genre biennale in the world, focusing on art, design and architecture. It was organized by the MAK in partnership with the University of Applied Arts

Moderation: Christoph Thun-Hohenstein, Director of the MAK and head of the Vienna Biennale

Art Cluster

mumok Museum Moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig Wien

© Tanya Leighton Gallery mumok Museum Moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig Wien MuseumsQuartier, Museumsplatz 1 1070 Vienna T +43 1 525 00 0 F +43 1 525 13 00 E info@mumok.at www.mumok.at Opening hours: Mon. 2:00–7:00 pm Tue., Wed., Fri.–Sun. 10:00 am–7:00 pm Thu. 10:00 am–9:00 pm

Film Festival

“We Are a Parasite on the Institution of Cinema, an Institution of Parasites” FESTIVAL

“We Are a Parasite on the Institution of Cinema, an Institution of Parasites” – the Studio for Propositional Cinema’s first film festival 18–20 Nov. 2015 “We are a Parasite on the Institution of Cinema, an Institution of Parasites” is a film festival organized by Studio for Propositional Cinema at the mumok cinema. The Düsseldorfbased artist platform Studio for Propositional Cinema believes that, as the linguistic terminology around cinema erodes, new possibilities crop up in spaces in which language ceases to function. During the threeday festival, several projects by collaborators, affinity groups, fellow travellers and colleagues will be presented, all of which are contextualized by, but not necessarily rooted within cinematic normativity. These include the world premiere of “Single” by Jan Bonny and Alex Wissel, a new feature-length film produced by Studio for Propositional Cinema.

There will also be events, performances, screenings and other contributions by artists and artist groups including A.P.E. (art projects era), Keren Cytter, Feminist Land Art Retreat, Sarah Kürten and Christopher Williams. Studio for Propositional Cinema was founded in 2013 with a public call to action. By means of language, actions, sounds and images, and through productions, publications and exhibitions they seek to reconfigure culture from a network of ideological formations into a dialogue of hypothetical gestures. Curator: Barbara Rüdiger OPENING | FILM SCREENING

Festival opening speech; world premiere of “Single” by Jan Bonny and Alex Wissel Wed., 18 Nov. 2015 6:00–10:00 pm In German

PERFORMANCE | PRESENTATION

Performance by Studio for Propositional Cinema; installation by Sarah Kürten; presentation by Keren Cytter Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 10:00 am–11:00 pm In English

PRESENTATION

Book presentation by A.P.E (art projects era); project by Christopher Williams Fri., 20 Nov. 2015 10:00 am–10:00 pm In English

Art Cluster

MUSA

Margot Pilz

Photo: Daniel Ferstl

© MUSA MUSA Museum Startgalerie Artothek Felderstrasse 6–8 1010 Vienna T +43 1 4000 8400 F +43 1 4000 99 8400 E musa@musa.at www.musa.at Opening hours: Tue., Wed., Fri. 11:00 am–6:00 pm Thu. 11:00 am–8:00 pm Sat. 11:00 am–4:00 pm

OPENING | PERFORMANCE

Exhibition opening “Margot Pilz – Milestones. From Performative Photo graphy to Digital Field Studies” and performance “DELPHI DIGITAL enters the Piratebox” Tue., 17 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm MUSA Museum Startgalerie Artothek Margot Pilz is a conceptual and media artist of the first hour; even her early photographic works show an experimental and performative approach. Conceptually, her œuvre is influenced by the avant-garde scene of the 1960s and 1970s. The present exhibition and accompanying catalogue represent the first comprehensive look at the significance of Margot Pilz’ performative works in the medium of photography, along with her pioneering role in the field of new media and digital art. Margot Pilz is a boundary-crosser who never ceased to explore daring new techniques and materials while pointing out both social taboos and stereotypes. Radical, actionist, feminist, self-determining … all of these characteristics define her biography

and body of work, which are closely linked. Pilz was among the first artists in Austria to use a computer in her work. Starting 1986, she began to use it to develop new possibilities beyond the boundaries of analog photography. The computer was used as a tool to dissolve the unity of the image into a number of individual frames; its binary data became a formal and aesthetic factor in composing the image. And yet Pilz also had an early interest in public space. Her œuvre includes a number of performances and actions for common outdoor areas, including the legendary project “Kaorle on Karlsplatz” (1982). Other media sculptures – like “The Spirit of St. Lucifer 1” (1991) for Kunststraße Innsbruck, tackling the subject of homeland – also doubled as an intervention into public space. That same year, at the invitation of Ars Electronica in Linz, Pilz collaborated with Roland Scheidl on the installation “Delphi Digital,” a sculpture with a public terminal permitting access to more than 5,000 topical documents pertaining to environmental issues. Users could ask questions about the environment and policy in mailbox forums and print newspaper articles. The issue is no less urgent today and resonates now more than ever. At the opening of the exhibition, the artist and Roland Alton-Scheidl – who is now a lecturer

in Communication, Network Culture and Media Ethics at the University of Applied Sciences Vorarlberg – are reprising the installation as a performance in which visitors participate through an autonomous PirateBox on their smartphones. Curator: Silvie Aigner Concept and performance idea: Margot Pilz Technical concept and realization: Roland Alton-Scheidl EXHIBITION

“Margot Pilz – Milestones. From Performative Photography to Digital Field Studies”  18 Nov. 2015–5 Mar. 2016 PRESENTATION

“Titania Seidl / Melanie Ebenhoch – yet, other events go on and on” Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 7:30 pm Startgalerie

Art Cluster

Q21/MuseumsQuartier Wien Q21/ MuseumsQuartier Wien Museumsplatz 1 1070 Vienna T +43 1 523 58 81 F +43 1 523 58 86 E q21tours@mqw.at www.Q21.at Admission is free!

WORKSHOP | PRESENTATION

Make-It-Yourself Festival Day 1: “Self Publishing Saturday” Sat., 21 Nov. 2015 10:00 am–10:00 pm MQ, Electric Avenue | MQ, Room D, Fischer von Erlach section The artists and cultural workers of Q21 celebrate their enthusiasm for the DIY and self-publishing culture and the urge to take matters into one’s own hands. The two-day festival includes workshops and project presentations revolving around the culture of self-empowerment. On “Self Publishing Saturday,” selfpublished books, zines and other publications are presented, swapped, sold, and given away in the Electric Avenue of quartier21. Concept & realization: eSeL / Q21 / MQ 10:00 am–7:00 pm: Self Publishing Saturday – bring, trade & sell your own books, zines & publications! Featuring ASIFA, EIKON, monochrom, Say Say Say, Inc., SRA, q/uintessenz, et al. 11:00 am: Build your own (mini) synthesizer – workshop with Artistic Bokeh 12:00 noon: New publication modes – the group OR-OM presents e-books 2:00–8:00 pm: DIY culture, tapes, vinyl, zines, coffee & community featuring TRANSFORMER 2:00 pm: SOYBOT body painting workshop 4:00 pm: Station Rose – catalogue presentation and sound performance 5:00 pm: Josef Wiesner and Felix Bohatsch present the game “CHESTO – At the Checkout” 7:00 pm: Panel discussion “Wir, Autoren unserer eigenen digitalen Vita” with q/uintessenz: as we write our own history, Big Data is interpreting our life.

WORKSHOP | PRESENTATION

SYMPOSIUM

Make-It-Yourself Festival Day 2: “Museum Camp”

“Levitate”

Sun., 22 Nov. 2015 11:00 am –10:00 pm MQ, Electric Avenue | MQ, Room D, Fischer von Erlach section 11:00 am: School of Data Austria: Citizen Sensor Project 1:00–7:00 pm: Museum Camp featuring Mar Dixon 7:00 pm: Exhibition opening Artistic Bokeh GUIDED TOUR

Curator Daria Khan gives a tour of the exhibition “Levitate” Fri., 20 Nov. 2015 4:00 pm MQ, freiraum Q21 INTERNATIONAL In English

One of the most prominent subjects in art, Levitation – hovering in the air – is attributed various meanings. The exhibition “Levitate” features works by contemporary artists Iván Argote, Anton Burdakov, Cooking Sections, Krisˇtof Kintera, Rä di Martino, Karthik Pandian, Julijonas Urbonas, among others.

Sat., 21 Nov. 2015 6:00 pm Baroque Suite A, 1st floor In English

The symposium puts a conceptual and philosophical frame around the exhibition “Levitate,” focusing on a brief history of levitation, the scientific colonization of sleep, and lucid decapitation. Participants: Julijonas Urbonas, Karthik Pandian, Alexei Penzin, Aaron Schuster PARTICIPATORY INSTALLATION

“Oneiric Hotel” 16–22 November 2015 1:00–8:00 pm on all days MQ, freiraum Q21 INTERNATIONAL The mobile “Oneiric Hotel” of the Lithuanian artist Julijonas Urbonas is equipped with contraptions that induce lucid dreams in which the dreamer can willingly defy gravity and fly, fall, or levitate. The sleepers book a nap in one of the hotel’s sleep capsules to carry out their own individual oneiric experiments (Registration at E q21tours@mqw.at).

Installation view of Oneiric Hotel by Julijonas Urbonas, Photo: Aiste˙ Valiu¯te˙ and Daumantas Plechavicˇ ius

Art Cluster

Secession

Secession Friedrichstrasse 12 1010 Vienna T +43 1 587 53 07 F +43 1 587 53 07 34 www.secession.at Opening hours: Tue.–Sun. 10:00 am–6:00 pm

OPENING

EXHIBITION

Exhibitions Vija Celmins / Julia Haller

Vija Celmins

Julia Haller

20 Nov. 2015–31 Jan. 2016

Vija Celmins’ paintings, drawings, prints and sculptures reveal a meticulous artistic process. Since the 1970s, she has been realizing her works – whose well-known subjects include oceans, deserts, night skies and spider webs in a variety of media – from found printed clippings, which she displaces from their original contexts and reassembles in new compositions. The images often suggest boundless spaces and actions fixed in a new, unalterable physical presence. Celmins’ work always keeps the balance between abstraction and image, surface and proportion, implied movement and stillness.

In her work, Julia Haller deals with the conventions and history of painting, aiming to overcome or negate them altogether. Her aesthetic repertoire is characterized by subtle gestures of refusal and defiance. Heller often leaves the canvas unprimed and paints it with ornamental patterns in simple geometrical shapes. The colors or surfaces are mostly semitransparent, standing out from the backdrop and revealing abstract scribble. For example, a canvas from the small-format series “Ohne Titel” (2014), primed with deep-black iron oxide, was put behind glass to produce a violet-blue, reflecting surface that gradually reveals subjacent layers and drawings that appear to be defying their own discovery.

Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm

FAMILY ART DAY

Guided tour for families through the Vija Celmins and Julia Haller exhibitions* Sun., 22 Nov. 2015 3:00 pm In German * Registration is required: T +43 1 587 53 07, E kunstvermittlung@secession.at

The Secession puts the focus on the prints Celmins produced during the last four decades. Made from scraped copper plates, carved wood and painted stone, the prints show the artist’s great interest in the creative process and the act of marking.

Vija Celmins, Untitled, 1970 two-color lithograph (detail)

Art Cluster

Sigmund Freud Museum

Sigmund Freud Museum Berggasse 19 1090 Vienna T +43 1 319 15 96 F +43 1 317 02 79 E office@freud-museum.at www.freud-museum.at Opening hours: 10:00 am–6:00 pm, daily

SCREENING | PANEL DISCUSSION

“Picture Messages: Selfand External Perception in Animated Films”* Tue., 17 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm In English

Screening of animated films follow ed by a discussion, in cooperation with the Tricky Women International Animation Film Festival and the Vienna University’s Department for Theatre, Film and Media Studies. Animated film – very much like the dream – shifts the unconscious into a spectrum of perception which, because of its visual imagery, at first seems superior to the spoken word: after all, images are immediate and invite multifaceted interpretations. 28

In them, the sometimes disquieting relationship between self- and external perception is enacted in striking representation. This dynamic interplay applies as much to the director’s message as it does to the viewers’ perception. Scenarios of adoption and appropriation by and through hallucinated fellow-travellers, the synchronization of different perspectives held by participants in a psychotherapeutic session, a female body which is absorbed and disgorges life, and many visually stunning reflections on the status of the self in the world are as much a part of this picture show as reflections on first meetings and separation, as well as a tongue-in-cheek visualization of the fear of growing up. The aesthetics of metamorphosis that characterize the essence of animated film open up various perspectives that (re-)

negotiate the sensuous cognition of being-in-the-world. Program: “Obida/The Wound” (Anna Budanova, Russia 2013), “Through to the Hawthorn” (Anna Benner, Pia Borg, Gemma Burditt, UK 2014), “Man on the Chair” (Dahee Jeong, France 2014), “Achill” (Gudrun Krebitz, Germany/Austria 2012), “Herzurbeltzak, una fosa común/ Herzurbeltzak, A Common Grave” (Izibene Oñederra, Spain 2007), “Gerascophobia” (Shuangshuang Hao, UK 2014) * Limited number of participants. Registration is required: E veranstaltung@freud-museum.at

Anna Benner, Gemma Burditt, Pia Borg, Through The Hawthorn, 2014 (film still)

Art Cluster

University of Applied Arts Vienna

University of Applied Arts Vienna Exhibition Centre Heiligenkreuzer Hof Schönlaterngasse 5 1010 Vienna T +43 1 71133 2160 E info@uni-ak.ac.at www.dieangewandte.at Opening hours: Mon.−Fri. 1:00−6:00 pm

Exhibition

“Donations Oberhuber Donations” GUIDED TOUR

Curator’s tour of the exhibition “Donations Oberhuber Donations” with Oswald Oberhuber Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 6:00 pm EXHIBITION

“Donations Oberhuber Donations” 23 Oct.–22 Nov. 2015 Opening: 22 Oct. 2015, 7:00 pm On the occasion of this year’s VIENNA ART WEEK the Academy of Applied Arts dedicates a special exhibition to Oswald Oberhuber. Not only did its systematic collecting activities start during his period as rector; he also donated a comprehensive bundle of more than 900 pieces of art to the academy and was the intermediary in procuring many

works for it through his excellent contacts to artists, galleries and collectors. Besides superlative works by artists like Josef Hoffmann, Friedl Dicker-Brandeis and Giovanna Klien, it was Oberhuber’s special concern to acquire very specific work groups for the university. The incumbent rector Gerald Bast managed to win Oswald Oberhuber for a show in the Exhibition Centre Heiligenkreuzer Hof, which presents a selection of these gifts. With a specially developed display, Oberhuber dovetails artistic and art-historical discourses and strategies. He sees his own artistic work as a catalyst not only for his confrontation with the ongoing political and aesthetic debates, but also for relaying connections between potential relationships. Oberhuber is a master in the game of transposition and in forming synapses. The list of his works reads like a kaleidoscope of art: in his sculptures, collages, posters, drawings and paintings Oberhuber is able to interlink aesthetic categories that sensuously simplify

complexity of information, casting ever new perspectives on things that are contradictory, forgotten and suppressed. Born in 1931, Oswald Oberhuber was Rector of the Hochschule für angewandte Kunst (as it was then called; today’s Academy of Applied Arts) from 1979 to 1987 and from 1991 to 1995, and has had a profound formative influence on the institution. He is an artist, curator, collector and teacher and has been continually committed to interlinking these areas and genres.

Oswald Oberhuber, Profil, 1986

Art Cluster

Wien Museum Wien Museum Karlsplatz 1040 Vienna T +43 1 505 87 47 0 F +43 1 505 87 47 7201 E service@wienmuseum.at www.wienmuseum.at Opening hours: Tue.–Sun. and on public holidays 10:00 am–6:00 pm

Exhibition

“Ballgasse 6. Galerie Pakesch and the 1980s Art Scene” GUIDED TOUR

Peter Pakesch gives a tour of the exhibition “Ballgasse 6” 17 Nov. 2015 5:00 pm In German

CONVERSATION

“When We Invaded Vienna” – Max Hetzler in a conversation on the art axis Cologne/ Vienna in the 1980s Tue., 17 Nov. 2015 6:30 pm In German

“Hetzler makes art history,” reported “Berliner Zeitung” in 2014 on the 40th anniversary of the world-ranking art dealer’s gallery. In 1983 Max Hetzler moved from Stuttgart to Cologne, the new art mecca; he made a name for himself with artists like Günter Förg, but above all with the Eulenspiegellike rebels Martin Kippenberger and Albert Oehlen. Both were soon to be exhibited by Peter Pakesch in Vienna as well, in the show “Schwerter zu Zapfhähnen” and in solo exhibitions. Vice versa, Pakesch’s protégés Herbert Brandl and Franz West were shown in Cologne. Hetzler also worked early on with Jeff Koons and Cindy Sherman. He moved to Berlin in 1993. The Hetzler–Pakesch axis typifies Vienna’s new approach to art and its importance in the art network. The 30

collectors, says Hetzler, were to be found in the Rhineland: “Vienna was a city of production.” He frequently visited Vienna in the 1980s with Kippenberger and Oehlen and was a regular at Oswald & Kalb and Alt-Wien. The visitors were excited not only by Vienna’s exoticism but also by the intellectual climate. Provocation was commonplace. 30 years later, Hetzler speaks about the globalization of the art market, on which he has long been a prominent player. Conversation and moderation: Wolfgang Kos EXHIBITION

“Ballgasse 6. Galerie Pakesch and the 1980s Art Scene” 24 Sep. 2015–7 Feb. 2016 The early 1980s were a crucial period for Vienna in becoming a modern metropolis: a spirit of departure was tangible in the art, music and design scenes, manifesting itself above all in the emergence of new studios. Hitherto marginalized, Vienna now appeared on the international radar as a vibrant hub of art: in 1986, “Art” magazine ran a title story on “The Art Miracle of Vienna.” When Peter Pakesch, a young man from Graz, started a gallery in Vienna’s Ballgasse in 1981, he created an artistic hotspot in what had hitherto been an inconspicuous little lane near the

city’s central square, Stephansplatz. From here, a new generation of young artists emerged, including Herbert Brandl, Otto Zitko, Heimo Zobernig and others, all in their early twenties, who had graduated from the University of Applied Arts shortly before. In 1985 Franz West, until then something of a fixture in Viennese underground circles, joined the Pakesch troupe and quickly rose to international acclaim. The international orientation of galleries like Pakesch, Grita Insam or nächst St. Stephan was equally important for the success of Vienna’s “rising stars”: their global radius paved the way for Pakesch’s artists – West, Zitko, Zobernig and others – to big international shows such as documenta and the Venice Biennale. At the core of the exhibition is Galerie Pakesch, whose archive has been donated to Wien Museum, making it possible to document and provide background information on key exhibitions. It features major works by Austrian and international artists which were on show in the period, including works by Brandl, Kippenberger, West, LeWitt, Zobernig, Pistoletto, and Kelley. It also contains documentary material like poster sketches, price sheets and photos that provide interesting insights into the art sector in the early stages of globalization. A key exhibit is an office desk designed by Franz West for the gallery, which is now to be found in the Wien Museum’s collection. Herbert Brandl, Heimo Zobernig, gallerist Peter Pakesch and Franz West (f. l. t. r.), 1987 © Didi Sattmann / private archive

Art Cluster

The Winter Palace of Prince Eugene of Savoy

Olafur Eliasson, The Organic and Crystalline Description, 1996

© Installation view: Remote connections, Neue Galerie am Landesmuseum Joanneum, Graz, 1996 The Winter Palace of Prince Eugene of Savoy Himmelpfortgasse 8 1010 Vienna T +43 1 795 57 134 E public@belvedere.at www.belvedere.at Opening hours: 10:00 am–6:00 pm, daily

Exhibition

“Olafur Eliasson – Baroque Baroque” OPENING

guided tour

EXHIBITION

Exhibition “Olafur Eliasson – Baroque Baroque”

Curators Mario Codognato and Daniela Zyman give a tour of the exhibition “Olafur Eliasson – Baroque Baroque”*

“Olafur Eliasson – Baroque Baroque”

Fr., 20 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm Key works by Danish-Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson from major private collections – TBA21, Vienna, and The Juan & Patricia Vergez Collection, Buenos Aires – are at the heart of a comprehensive solo exhibition shown at the Winter Palace of Prince Eugene. In addition, newly created commissions will reference the location and highlight the relationship between Eliasson’s œuvre and his critical and tropological interest in the Baroque style.

21 Nov. 2015–6 Mar. 2016

Sat., 21 Nov. 2015 1:00 pm (in English) 3:00 pm (in German) Mario Codognato, curator at the Belvedere, and Daniela Zyman, curator at TBA21, give a tour of the exhibition “Olafur Eliasson – Baroque Baroque.” * Limited number of participants. Registration is required: www.belvedere.at/de/events

Winter Palace, © Belvedere, Vienna 31

Art Cluster

departure, the creative center of the Vienna Business Agency

© Katarina Šoškic´ departure, the creative center of the Vienna Business Agency Hörlgasse 12 1090 Vienna T +43 1 4000 87 100 F +43 1 4000 87 109 E departure@ wirtschaftsagentur.at www.wirtschaftsagentur.at

In German

worked in Vienna and Moscow for seven years; since 2008 she has been located exclusively in Vienna. Her collections and accessories are regularly presented in Paris and at international trade fairs. www.artpoint.eu

Vienna’s first district offers more than just high-street fashion and global luxury brands. The departure tour takes you to fascinating homegrown design in the fields of fashion and jewelry, surprising creative spaces and traditional handicraft. Four studios, shops and showrooms open their doors to a backstage view of their concepts, designs and production processes. The tour guide is Elisabeth Noever-Ginthör, manager of departure, the creative center of the Vienna Business Agency.

A presentation platform for art, artists and culture, as well as showroom for fashion and design, IM ERSTEN sees itself as a crossover communication space and experimentation lab. As an example, IM ERSTEN – more a walk-in magazine than a conventional gallery – presented the first collection of handmade shoes by the Viennese designer Danijel Radic´. They have been on sale ever since in DER SCHOP in the backyard of the building. www.imersten.com

For Lena Kvadrat, designer of the label art point, fashion is far more than mere clothing. In her collection she investigates social codes and symbols, decrypting the complex semiology of fashion. Lena Kvadrat

Now in the fourth generation, Klaus Mühlbauer has since 2001 directed the family enterprise of Mühlbauer Hutmanufaktur, founded in 1903. Like his forefathers he trained as a milliner. The exclusive headgear

GUIDED TOUR

“VIENNA ART WEEK 2015 – departure tour”* Sat., 21 Nov. 2015 11:00 am–2:00 pm

designed and handcrafted in his own factory in Vienna boasts an international fan community, which includes stars like Brad Pitt. www.muehlbauer.at STOSSHIMMEL is a group of eight artists from various parts of Europe artistically committed to the theme of jewelry. Each piece is made by hand in the group’s own studio. Its creative results have won several international awards and were already featured in books and magazines. Regular exhibitions are held in the studio facilities and international galleries. www.stossimhimmel.net *

Limited number of participants. Registration is required: E departure@wirtschaftsagentur.at. The meeting point will be announced after the registration.

Guided Tours

Guided Gallery Tours 2015

Granted, New York, London, and Shanghai have impressive gallery scenes, but so has Vienna! The proof will emerge during the Guided Gallery Tours, and there’s no danger of wearing out shoes on long marches to Vienna’s artistic hotspots: apart from a few exceptions, Vienna’s galleries are concentrated on Schleifmühlgasse, Eschenbachgasse and the inner city. Experience Vienna’s diverse and international program as the highly reputed experts and art connoisseurs Manisha Jothady, Andreas Müller, Claudia Slanar, Hemma Schmutz and Angela Stief take you on tours of Vienna’s galleries.

Guided tour with Angela Stief, freelance curator Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 5:00 pm

Guided tour with Andreas Müller, artist and art historian Fri., 20 Nov. 2015

Guided tour with Hemma Schmutz, freelance curator Sat., 21 Nov. 2015 12:00 noon

1:30 pm: Kro Art Gallery 2:00 pm: Knoll Galerie Wien 2:30 pm: Galerie Reinthaler 3:00 pm: Galerie Hubert Winter 3:30 pm: Galerie Gans 4:15 pm: Krinzinger Projekte 4:45 pm: ZS art Galerie 5:15 pm: Galerie Raum mit Licht Meeting place: Galerie Kro Art, Getreidemarkt 15, 1060 Vienna

• Galerie Steinek • Galerie Meyer Kainer • Krobath • Galerie Martin Janda • Crone Wien Meeting place: Galerie Steinek, Eschenbachgasse 4, 1010 Vienna

Guided tour with Claudia Slanar, freelance curator

Sat., 21 Nov. 2015 1:00 pm

Sat., 21 Nov. 2015 11:00 am

• Hofstätter Projekte • Charim Galerie • Galerie Ernst Hilger • Galerie Elisabeth & Klaus Thoman • Mario Mauroner Contemporary Art • Projektraum Viktor Bucher Meeting place: Hofstätter Projekte, Vienna Dorotheergasse 14, 1010 Vienna • Galerie Krinzinger • Galerie Emanuel Layr • Galerie nächst St. Stephan Rosemarie Schwarzwälder Meeting place: Galerie Elisabeth & Klaus Thoman, Seilerstätte 7, 1010 Vienna

Guided tour with Manisha Jothady, freelance art critic

• Galerie Jünger • Charim Events • Gabriele Senn Galerie • Christine König Galerie • unttld contemporary • Galerie Andreas Huber Meeting place: Galerie Jünger, Paniglgasse 17 a, 1040 Vienna

Program

DIE GALERIEN Association of Austrian Galleries of Modern Art Aa collections

Crone Wien

Galerie bei der Albertina

Exhibition: Peter Tauber

Exhibition: Peter Miller, “Aktinität”

Exhibition: Painting, Sculpture, Design

11 Nov.–12 Dec. 2015

on the corner of Lobkowitzplatz 1 / Gluckgasse, 1010 Vienna T +43 1 513 14 16, F +43 1 513 76 74 E zetter@galerie-albertina.at www.galerie-albertina.at

20–28 Nov. 2015 Opening: Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm Burggasse 68/2-a, 1070 Vienna M +43 699 175 36 814 E aacollectionsgallery@gmail.com www.aacollections.net

Artmark Galerie Program available on request Singerstrasse 17 / entrance on Grünangergasse, 1010 Vienna T +43 1 512 98 80 F +43 1 512 98 804 E wien@artmark.at www.artmark.at

Projektraum Viktor Bucher Exhibition: Canan Dagdelen 12 Nov.–19 Dec. 2015 Praterstrasse 13/1/2, 1020 Vienna T +43 1 212 69 30 F +43 1 212 69 30 E projektraum@sil.at www.projektraum.at

Charim Galerie Exhibition: Robert Muntean, “Only the intense can dance without moving” 4 Nov.–31 Dec. 2015 Dorotheergasse 12/1, 1010 Vienna T +43 1 512 09 15 F +43 1 512 09 15 50 E charim@charimgalerie.at www.charimgalerie.at

Charim Events Exhibition: Nils Röller & Ingrid Wiener 15 Oct.–23 Nov. 2015 Schleifmühlgasse 1A, 1040 Vienna E charim@charimgalerie.at www.charimgalerie.at 34

Getreidemarkt 14, 1010 Vienna E info@galeriecrone.com www.cronegalerie.com

Galerie Wolfgang Exner Exhibition: Adolf Frohner, works on canvas and paper 31 Oct.–23 Nov. 2015 Rauhensteingasse 12, 1010 Vienna T +43 1 512 99 17 F +43 1 512 52 65 E office@galerie-exner.at www.galerie-exner.at

Galerie Gans Exhibition: Anna Khodorkovskaya & Michael Kos 22 Oct.–21 Nov. 2015 Kirchberggasse 4, 1070 Vienna T +43 1 895 94 97 E office@galerie-gans.at www.galerie-gans.at

Galerie Johannes Faber

Galerie Ernst Hilger

Exhibition: Charles Schwartz, “Light Reclaimed. Photographs 2011–2013”

Exhibition: Mona Kuhn, “Private”

11 Sep.–5 Dec. 2015 Brahmsplatz 7, 1040 Vienna T +43 1 505 75 18 E office@jmcfaber.at www.jmcfaber.at

Lukas Feichtner Galerie Exhibition: Richard Kaplenig, “ansichts.SACHEN” 14 Nov.–19 Dec. 2015 Seilerstätte 19, 1010 Vienna M +43 676 338 71 45 F +43 1 513 05 47 E office@feichtnergallery.com www.feichtnergallery.com

20 Oct.–22 Nov. 2015 Event: Book presentation and artist talk with Mona Kuhn Tue., 17 Nov. 2015, 7:00 pm Dorotheergasse 5, 1010 Vienna T +43 1 512 53 15 F +43 1 513 91 26 E ernst.hilger@hilger.at www.hilger.at

Galerie Hilger NEXT Exhibition: Massimo Vitali 22 Sep.–22 Nov. 2015 Absberggasse 27/2, 1100 Vienna T +43 1 512 53 15, F +43 1 513 91 26 E ernst.hilger@hilger.at www.hilger.at

Galerie Frey

Hilger BROTKunsthalle

Exhibition: Herbert Golser

Exhibition: “Nassau Calling,” curated by Amanda Coulson

Opening: Tue., 17 Nov. 2015, 6:00 pm Gluckgasse 3, 1010 Vienna T / F +43 1 513 82 83 E art@galerie-frey.com www.galerie-frey.com

22 Sep.–22 Nov. 2015 Absberggasse 27/1, 1100 Vienna T +43 1 512 53 15, F +43 1 513 91 26 E brot@brotkunsthalle.com www.brotkunsthalle.com

Hofstätter Projekte

Galerie Martin Janda

Galerie Krinzinger

Exhibition: Tobias Rehberger

Exhibition: Maja Vukoje

18 Nov. 2015–30 Jan. 2016 Opening: Tue., 17 Nov. 2015, 7:00 pm

11 Nov. 2015–21 Feb. 2016

Exhibition: Jonathan Meese, “DR. NO-SPORTARZATOOTH (EVOLUTION STEP DE FIT)”

Dorotheergasse 14, 1010 Vienna T +43 1 890 18 68 E office@hofstaetter-projekte.com www.hofstaetter-projekte.com

Galerie Ulrike Hrobsky Program available on request Grünangergasse 6, 1010 Vienna T +43 1 513 76 76 F +43 1 513 76 09 E galerie@hrobsky.at www.hrobsky.at

Showroom Ulrike Hrobsky Program available on request Grundsteingasse 40, 1160 Vienna M +43 676 518 32 01 E galerie@hrobsky.at www.hrobsky.at

Galerie Andreas Huber Exhibition: Jasper Spicero 13 Nov. 2015–2 Jan. 2016 Schleifmühlgasse 6–8/2nd floor, 1040 Vienna T +43 1 586 02 37 F +43 1 586 02 37 12 E art@galerieandreashuber.at www.galerieandreashuber.at

Galerie Hummel Exhibition: “Nature and Form,” J. Beuys, G. Brus, J. Cage, S. Dalí, Dreamstones, M. Duchamp, E. Kalligraphie, H. Frank, A. Frohner, Gelitin, F. González-Torres, F. Graf, H. Harsieber, A. Jelinek, B. F. Löffler, A. Loos, E. Mallina, O. Muehl, M. Ray, B. Nauman, H. Nitsch, M. O’dora, N. J. Paik, T. Redl, M. Schauer, R. Schwarzkogler, S. Shimamoto, R. Stanzel, L. Stolba, C. Uemae, W. Vopava, F. West, Wols, E. Wurm, H. Zobernig 18 Sep.–19 Dec. 2015 Bäckerstrasse 14, 1010 Vienna T +43 1 512 12 96 F +43 1 512 12 964 E office@galeriehummel.com www.galeriehummel.com

Eschenbachgasse 11, 1010 Vienna T +43 1 585 73 71 F +43 1 585 73 72 E galerie@martinjanda.at www.martinjanda.at

Galerie Jünger Exhibition: Gerald Obersteiner, “Wie uns geschieht” – objects, sculpture 13 Nov. 2015–end of Jan. 2016 Paniglgasse 17 a, 1040 Vienna M +43 664 111 47 71 E office@galerie-juenger.at www.galerie-juenger.at

Knoll Galerie Wien Exhibition: Ákos Birkás 19 Nov. 2015–16 Jan. 2016 Opening: Wed., 18 Nov. 2015, 7:00 pm Gumpendorfer Strasse 18, 1060 Vienna T +43 1 587 50 52 F +43 1 587 59 66 E office@knollgalerie.at www.knollgalerie.at

Christine König Galerie

13 Nov.– 16 Jan. 2016 Seilerstätte 16, 1010 Vienna T +43 1 513 30 06 F +43 1 513 30 06 33 E galeriekrinzinger@chello.at www.galerie-krinzinger.at

Krinzinger Projekte Exhibition: CCC#4 (Curators Collectors Collaborations) 5 Nov.–18 Dec. 2015 Schottenfeldgasse 45, 1070 Vienna T +43 1 512 81 42 E krinzingerprojekte@gmx.at www.galerie-krinzinger.at/projekte

Galerie Kro Art Exhibition: Larissa Leverenz, “Iron Girl and Goose Stove” 22 Nov. 2015–9 Jan. 2016 Opening: Sat., 21 Nov. 2015, 7:00 pm Getreidemarkt 15, 1060 Vienna T +43 1 585 71 43 F +43 1 587 20 98 E office@kroart.at www.kroart.at

Exhibition: Natalia Zaluska

Krobath

13 Nov.–23 Dec. 2015

Exhibition: Sonja Gangl

Schleifmühlgasse 1A, 1040 Vienna T +43 1 585 74 74 F +43 1 585 74 74 24 E office@christinekoeniggalerie.at www.christinekoeniggalerie.com

Konzett Gallery Exhibition: KKK 5: Rita Nowak & Michael Horsky 6 Nov.–5 Dec. 2015 Event: Artist talk with Rita Nowak Tue., 17 Nov. 2015, 4:00 pm Event: Artist talk with Michael Horsky Wed., 18 Nov. 2015, 4:00 pm

11 Nov. 2015–9 Jan. 2016 Eschenbachgasse 9, 1010 Vienna T +43 1 585 74 70 F +43 1 585 74 72 E office@galeriekrobath.at www.galeriekrobath.at

Galerie Emanuel Layr Exhibition: Nick Oberthaler 20 Oct.–29 Nov. 2015 Seilerstätte 2, 1010 Vienna T +43 1 524 54 90 F +43 1 523 84 22 E gallery@emanuellayr.com www.emanuellayr.com

Kabinett: a selection of works by Joseph Beuys, Dieter Roth, Franz West, and others Spiegelgasse 21, 1010 Vienna T +43 1 513 01 03 F +43 1 513 01 04 E gallery@artkonzett.com www.artkonzett.com 35

Program

Mario Mauroner Contemporary Art Vienna Exhibition: “Andante Giocoso – A Birthday Tribute,” Carlos Aires – Vadim Zakharov Exhibition: “Défileé,” works by graduates of the Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague, curated by Elisabeth Längle 15 Nov. 2015–15 Jan. 2016 Weihburggasse 26, 1010 Vienna T +43 1 904 20 04 E office@galerie-mam.com www.galerie-mam.com

Galerie Meyer Kainer Exhibition: Annette Kelm 11 Nov.–19 Dec. 2015 Eschenbachgasse 9, 1010 Vienna T +43 1 585 72 77 F +43 1 585 72 77 88 E info@meyerkainer.com www.meyerkainer.com

Galerie Raum mit Licht Exhibition: Käthe Hager von Strobele and Eva Stenram 22 Oct.–28 Nov. 2015 Event: Artist talk and tea with Melissa Lumbroso; the artists will be present Sun., 22 Nov. 2015, 3:00 pm Kaiserstrasse 32, 1070 Vienna T +43 1 524 04 94 E galerie@raum-mit-licht.at www.raum-mit-licht.at

Galerie Reinthaler Exhibition: Catharina Bond 18 Nov.–19 Dec. 2015 Opening: Tue., 17 Nov. 2015 Gumpendorfer Strasse 53, 1060 Vienna M +43 669 106 81 871 E office@agnesreinthaler.com www.agnesreinthaler.com

Gabriele Senn Galerie Exhibition: Hans Weigand 13 Nov.–19 Dec. 2015 Schleifmühlgasse 1A, 1040 Vienna T +43 1 585 25 80 F +43 1 585 26 06 E office@galeriesenn.at www.galeriesenn.at

Galerie Slavik

unttld contemporary

Exhibition: Jewellery art – “shapes and structures,” Stephan Hampala and Yoko Shimizu

Exhibition: Sofia Goscinski, “Angsthase”

23 Oct.–21 Nov. 2015

Schleifmühlgasse 5, 1040 Vienna M +43 676 765 08 66 E office@unttld-contemporary.com www.unttld-contemporary.com

Himmelpfortgasse 17, 1010 Vienna T +43 1 513 48 12 E galerie.slavik@vienna.at www.galerie-slavik.com

Galerie Steinek Exhibition: “Vivace,” Renate Bertlmann, Gloria Friedmann, Natalia LL, Jana Sterbak 10 Nov.–18 Dec. 2015 Eschenbachgasse 4, 1010 Vienna T / F +43 1 512 87 59 E galerie@steinek.at www.steinek.at

Galerie nächst St. Stephan Rosemarie Schwarzwälder Exhibition: Sonia Leimer 6 Nov. 2015–beginning of 2016 Grünangergasse 1, 1010 Vienna T +43 1 512 12 66 F +43 1 513 43 07 E galerie@schwarzwaelder.at www.schwarzwaelder.at

Galerie Suppan Contemporary Program available on request Habsburgergasse 5, 1010 Vienna T +43 1 535 53 54 F +43 1 535 53 54 35 E info@suppancontemporary.com www.suppancontemporary.com

Galerie Elisabeth & Klaus Thoman Exhibition: Peter Sandbichler 15 Nov. 2015–Jan. 2016 Seilerstätte 7, 1010 Vienna T +43 1 512 08 40 F +43 1 512 08 40 13 E galerie@galeriethoman.com www.galeriethoman.com

13 Nov. 2015–Jan. 2016

Galerie V&V Exhibition: Ursi Fürtler “Licht im Schatten” – textile pictures 20 Nov. 2015–Jan. 2016 Opening: Thu., 19 Nov. 2015, 7:00 pm Bauernmarkt 19, 1010 Vienna T +43 1 535 63 34 E vereinvvv@aon.at www.galerievundv.at

White8 Gallery Program available on request Zedlitzgasse 1, 1010 Vienna M +43 664 202 67 54 E dagmar@white8.at www.white8.at

Galerie Hubert Winter Exhibition: Fred Sandback 12 Nov.–23 Dec. 2015 Breite Gasse 17, 1070 Vienna T +43 1 524 09 76 F +43 1 524 09 769 E office@galeriewinter.at www.galeriewinter.at

ZS art Galerie Exhibition: “Reduktion,” group exhibition Walter Angerer-Niketa, Karl Hikade, Eric Kressnig, Alfred J. Noll 20 Nov. 2015–15 Jan. 2016 Opening: Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 Westbahnstrasse 27–29, 1070 Vienna T +43 1 895 93 95 0 F +43 1 895 93 95 20 E galerie@zsart.at www.zsart.at

Program

Open Studio Day Saturday, 21 November 2015

Open Studio Day offers art lovers a unique opportunity to take a look behind the scenes of art production and speak with Vienna-based artists in the creative atmosphere of their studios. Around 80 artists selected by Manuela Ammer, curator at mumok, GĂźnther Oberhollenzer, curator at the Essl Museum, and Luisa Ziaja, curator at 21er Haus â&#x20AC;&#x201C; will keep their studios open for visitors on Saturday, 21 November 2015, from 1:00 to 6:00 pm. Those who prefer to visit artist workshops in company can do so by joining renowned art experts on a Guided Open Studio Day Tour of selected studios. The Open Studio Day program is rounded out by numerous events in the studios, including artist talks and readings, screenings and performances, as well as hands-on workshops and participatory performances. For details, visit: www.viennaartweek.at/open-studio

Photo: eSeL.at/Lorenz Seidler 37

Program

PANEL DISCUSSION

OPEN TALKS

“From Art to Creating Common Good. Eight International Curators in Dialog”

Artists in a conversation with the curators of Open Studio Day

Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 6:00 pm Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, Schillerplatz 3, 1010 Vienna

Sat., 21 Nov. 2015 starts at 1:00 pm

In English

Art has never been more visible and present than it is today. It permeates all areas of life. But can it do what people expect, can it provide alternatives to existing value systems? Can art help restructure (socio-)economic, global, political and moral matters? Can artists inspire new social systems? Or is it too much to expect from art production to take on the challenges that politics have failed to master? How much social responsibility do curators have in this context?

Open talk with Günther Oberhollenzer 1:00 pm: Michael Goldgruber, 1030 Vienna, Apostelgasse 25–27/brick building in the backyard/2nd floor Open talk with Luisa Ziaja 3:00 pm: Seth Weiner, 1050 Vienna, Gartengasse 9–11/4/16 Open Talk with Manuela Ammer 5:00 pm: Barbara Kapusta, Schönbrunner Strasse 14A/13, 1050 Vienna GUIDED OPEN STUDIO DAY TOUR

With these questions in the background, the international curators invited to attend Curators’ Vision will present their curatorial approaches and visions to stimulate active involvement in shaping our society. Participants: Çelenk Bafra, curator at the ˙Istanbul Museum of Modern Art, Turkey; Jaya Klara Brekke, multimedia designer, social scientist and author, London, UK; Roger Buergel, essayist, university professor and curator, Switzerland; Fulya Erdemci, freelance curator, Istanbul, Turkey; Elham Puriyamehr, freelance curator, artist and author, Tehran, Iran; Ewa Skolimowska, art and literary historian, Warsaw, Poland; Hajnalka Somogyi, freelance curator, Budapest, Hungary; Ana Devic´ for the curatorial collective What, How & for Whom/WHW, Zagreb, Croatia Moderation: Robert Punkenhofer, Artistic Director VIENNA ART WEEK

Ten art experts give tours of selected artist studios on Open Studio Day For details and meeting points, visit www.viennaartweek.at/open-studio

Photo: eSeL.at/Lorenz Seidler 38

Program

Open Studio Day Saturday, 21 November 2015, 1:00–6:00 pm Artists open their studios to the public

1st District Tal Adler Academy of Fine Arts, Schillerplatz 3/top floor 14 Sekretariat für Geister, Archivpolitiken und Lücken Austrian Association of Women Artists (VBKÖ), Maysedergasse 2 2nd District Ricarda Denzer Obere Donaustrasse 99/1/63 Ahu Dural Kurzbauergasse 9 Judith Huemer Novaragasse 17/22 Stefan Klampfer Böcklinstrasse 80/7 Ronald Kodritsch Grosse Mohrengasse 23 Stefanie Seibold Leystrasse 161/Tür 2/2 Konrad Strutz Haidgasse 7A tat ort (Berlinger, Fiel) Taborstrasse 22 transparadiso Grosse Mohrengasse 34/3 Anita Witek Taborstrasse 57/1/22 Siegfried Zaworka Ybbsstrasse 12/3/32 3rd District Ramesch Daha Obere Weissgerberstrasse 5/1/1 Michael Goldgruber Apostelgasse 25–27/brick building in the backyard Alex Kiessling Dapontegasse 10/7 Isa Rosenberger Hohlweggasse 28/1/13 Viktor Svikis Boerhaavegasse 9/1 Ekkehard Tischendorf Klimschgasse 14/4 Marko Zink Boerhaavegasse 9/1

4th District Birgit Graschopf Wiedner Hauptstrasse 40/ stairway in the garden 1/13 Sascha Regina Reichstein Mommsengasse 6 Lisa Ruyter Brucknerstrasse 6/basement Borjana Ventzislavova Waltergasse 5/1/11 Eva Wagner Kleine Neugasse 9/1 5th District Adel Dauood Wiedner Hauptstrasse 125/18 Dejan Kaludjerovic´ Gartengasse 9–11/4/16 Barbara Kapusta Schönbrunner Strasse 14A/13 Wolfgang Obermair Schönbrunner Strasse 85 Sasha Pirker SIZE MATTERS, Margaretenstrasse 110 Ekaterina Shapiro-Obermair Schönbrunner Strasse 85 Zsolt Tibor Schönbrunner Strasse 85 Seth Weiner Gartengasse 9–11/4/16 6th District Laurent Ajina Mollardgasse 85A/60 Iris Christine Aue Mariahilfer Strasse 89a/30 Manfred Gruebl STUDIO GRUEBL, Bürgerspitalgasse 18 Tanja Widmann kunstbüro, Schadekgasse 6–8 7th District Daniel Domig Wimbergergasse 27/7 Johannes Gierlinger Lerchenfelder Gürtel 38/2 Lena Göbel Neustiftgasse 77

Lazar Lyutakov Westbahnstrasse 27/29/Atelier 2 Eva Petric´ Myrthengasse 4 STATION ROSE MQ, Electric Avenue, Museumsplatz 1 8th District Sissa Micheli Albertgasse 4/9 Thomas Riess Lerchenfelder Strasse 124–126/2/2 9th District Antonella Anselmo Glasergasse 4A Christian Bazant-Hegemark Pramergasse 5 Wolfgang Pavlik Glasergasse 4A 10th District Eva Hradil Leebgasse 30–32 Gabriele Sturm Zur Spinnerin 37 Salvatore Viviano Wielandgasse 16 11th District Gino Alberti Gänsbachergasse 2 Martin Praska DIESEL building, Grillgasse 51 12th District Isabella Langer Aichholzgasse 51–53 Lisa Rastl Schönbrunner Strasse 152/8 15th District Bernhard Buhmann Pelzgasse 20 Sophie Dvorˇák Pelzgasse 20 Larissa Leverenz Diefenbachgasse 49–51/2/R01

Bernd Oppl Hackengasse 10 Farid Sabha Mariahilfer Strasse 191/32 Magda Tothova palme13, Schwendermarkt 13 Kay Walkowiak Märzstrasse 7 Katharina Walter Mariahilfer Strasse 191/44 Clemens Wolf Preysinggasse 5/1A 16th District Sabine Bitter Lorenz-Mandl-Gasse 33/2 Karen Holländer-Schnur Münzwardeingasse 2A Michael Kos Bachgasse 20/5 Michael Michailov Habichergasse 30/35 Martin Schnur Münzwardeingasse 2A Nina Rike Springer Lorenz-Mandl-Gasse 33 Helmut Weber Lorenz-Mandl-Gasse 33/2 18th District Markus Hiesleitner Kulturdrogerie, Gentzgasse 86–88/1–2 Daniel Leidenfrost Antonigasse 44/courtyard/ stairway 2 19th District Richard Kaplenig Heiligenstädter Strasse 154 Christoph Luger Zacherlfabrik, Nusswaldgasse 14 23rd District Michael Kienzer Richard-Strauss-Strasse 12/ courtyard, on the left/1st floor Photo: eSeL.at/Lorenz Seidler 39

Program

Curatorial Conditions Three questions for the curators of Open Studio Day

Günther Oberhollenzer, Manuela Ammer and Luisa Ziaja Photo: Yasmina Haddad

Text by Ursula Maria Probst

Manuela Ammer, Luisa Ziaja, Thomas D. Trummer and Günther Oberhollenzer are curating this year’s Open Studio Day. In their statements they reflect on their role as curators with regard to the motto of this year’s VIENNA ART WEEK, “Creating Common Good.”

Ursula Maria Probst lives and works in Vienna as an art historian, university lecturer, art critic, freelance curator, and artist (Female Obsession). 40

Unthinkable just a few years ago, today changes like the privatization of public spaces and assets are the status quo. How do you see your position as a curator within this context? Manuela Ammer: As a curator at a public institution, you inevitably come face to face with the issue of common good. Obviously you are dealing with public funds, and you are involved in maintaining, managing and, in the ideal scenario, substantially expanding a public collection, a collection that “belongs” to us all. The idea of opening up this common good again and making it productive for the here and now – rather than regarding it primarily as a historic public asset – will largely shape the mumok’s collection shows in the fall.

Luisa Ziaja: Particularly in institutions financed by the public purse, and now against the background of the growing privatization of public assets that you mention, I think that curators have a key role to play in creating openness: for artistic positions and relevant current themes, production conditions inherent to the field, and, beyond this, for negotiating what society can mean today. Günther Oberhollenzer: Regardless of whether it lies in private or public hands, art is in itself a common good. However, those of us who operate in the art industry are often unaware or no longer aware of this. My experience of the attitude to contemporary art is frequently that of an elite circle in which only “connoisseurs” and “experts” are allowed to belong – a small, close-knit group who give art an intellectual superstructure and thus an aura of being important and untouchable, of having content that is only revealed to the select few. And yet art belongs to everyone and should be accessible and comprehensible to everyone. Making art public, breaking down barriers and fears of the new, dispelling prejudices, speaking in an

Manuela Ammer is a curator at mumok – Museum Moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig Wien. Until March 2014 she worked as a research associate at the Collaborative Research Centre 626: Aesthetic Experience and the Dissolution of Artistic Limits at the Free University of Berlin. She is author of articles in magazines such as “Frieze,” “Texte zur Kunst” and “Parkett” as well as numerous catalog texts about contemporary art. Günther Oberhollenzer has been curator at the Essl Museum in Klosterneuburg near Vienna since 2006. Since 2014 he has been a member of the South Tyrolean cultural committee and a lecturer at the Institute of Cultural Management and Cultural Studies at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna. His work includes curatorial projects, texts and jury participation in Austria, Italy and Germany, as well as the volume of essays “Von der Liebe zur Kunst“ (Innsbruck 2014). Luisa Ziaja is an art historian and curator at the 21er Haus in Vienna. Her work focuses on the relations between contemporary art, society, contemporary history, the politics of history, exhibition theory and practice. Since 2006 she has been co-director of the post-graduate course for exhibition theory and practice at the University of Applied Arts Vienna. Regular publications on contemporary artistic and curatorial practice, art and exhibition theory. Thomas D. Trummer has been director of the Kunsthaus Bregenz (KUB) since 2015. Prior to that, he was artistic director at the Kunsthalle Mainz and project manager for visual art at the Siemens Arts Program in Munich. He is visiting scholar at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Hall Curatorial Fellow at the Aldrich Museum of Contemporary Art, Ridgefield, USA. Previously, he was curator at the Belvedere Vienna and guest curator at the Grazer Kunstverein. Numerous publications.

understandable language: all of this can help to embed art more firmly within our society. Thomas D. Trummer: We are currently experiencing a techno-linguistic automation process that is accelerating communication processes, rather than means of production. We live in a circulation of numbers and algorithms. And yet, unlike the degrading assembly-line work that Marxist critique made visible and clear, we perceive the results of these algorithms as a gain in freedom and personal range of movement. I recently moved into an office at the Kunsthaus Bregenz and by chance found an invitation from Sven Johne lying on the desk. It is a portrait of Mark Zuckerberg. I immediately stuck it up on the wall: his secret laugh pervades every communication. His smiling face (“Face-Look”) is like the presence of a friendly dictator. To what extent do socio-political or economic considerations influence your exhibition concepts? Luisa Ziaja: They always play a role, of course, since both art and exhibition making are never free of these factors; in fact they are permeated by them. In this context, I would use Donna Haraway’s key term “situated knowledge” and argue for a situated curatorial practice, as curators should also be viewed as subjects of knowledge who are situated and act in historical, cultural and economic terms. We are talking about a particular position in society with a particular history and a particular horizon of specific experiences, cultural values, norms, but also inherent conflicts and potential alternative concepts. Thomas D. Trummer: I am currently working on the economic basis of art as a semiotic system. The idea is to counter the thinking of the financial world with one’s own means by demonstrating that ultimately algorithmic decisions are developed according to the model of seeing images, e.g. in diagrams, statistics, curves. In other words, it is possible to apply the economy’s potential for theory in art perception, which is why I call this discipline “Iconomy.” Manuela Ammer: I am interested in curatorial (and artistic) approaches that pose relevant questions at a structural or methodical level about our society, about how we coexist, our historical moment: how are notions of work or communication changing, what role do images and media play in the (self-)portrayal of individuals and communities, what do terms like “autonomy” or “capacity to act” mean nowadays. Günther Oberhollenzer: Art as aesthetic activism can draw attention to social wrongs, highlight sensitive issues, unsettle people, make them think – sometimes even with the claim of changing life and society. In 2008 I oversaw an exhibition at the Essl Museum with the title “Overlapping Voices. Israeli and Palestinian Artists,” curated by Karin Schneider and Friedemann Derschmidt, the Israeli artist Tal Adler and Palestinian singer Amal Murkus. If even just a few visitors left the exhibition with an altered view of the conflict in the Middle East, then the effort was worthwhile.

Vienna has become more attractive as a location for art. What potential should be further developed? Thomas D. Trummer: Thanks to the huge number of foreign students attending its art schools and universities Vienna is a vibrant center of art, with non-Austrian curators working at its major museums and art institutions. And yet the current situation can still be seen as critical because art funding continues to lie almost entirely in public hands and people do not identify sufficiently with contemporary art. The decline in collectors, the faintheartedness of companies (apart from EVN), the lack of feature sections and the fact that almost no new galleries are being founded – these are deficits that are increasingly obstructing development overall. Manuela Ammer: There is still a lot of potential for private initiatives in Vienna; it doesn’t have to all go into individual exhibition spaces. In comparison with other large cities I find the Vienna residents’ identification with their art institutions relatively weak, there is room for improvement. I like the idea that “we are all mumok and KHM and MAK.” And as a visitor of exhibitions I do not need to identify with the role of “consumer,” I can choose other forms of reception and participation. Günther Oberhollenzer: Internationalization in terms of a consciousness of the outside world has been consolidated over the last few years in Vienna, which is both welcome and necessary. However, one must be careful not to neglect the local art scene. Sometimes I would like to see a stronger dialogue between Austrian and international art. Luisa Ziaja: Vienna has an exceptionally diversified cultural sphere, within which contemporary art has assumed an increasingly important position since the 1990s, with certain booms, and ups and downs, of course. Reopening the old 20er Haus as a museum of contemporary art, specializing the institutions and improving their interaction, invigorating the alternative scene, which is fast-paced and capable of reacting immediately to gaps and needs … all of this certainly makes a difference.

Interview

How do you feel about society? Tell me, pray. Eight curators take a stand. VIENNA ART WEEK has invited eight international curators to participate in the Curators’ Picks series, whose goal is to promote international curators and connect them with Viennese artists. This year’s focus is on the curators’ social responsibility.

The term ‘curating’ derives from the Latin curare, which means to take responsibility for something. As a curator, what do you think about your responsibility towards society, which goes beyond responsibility towards the exhibition or participating artists? “Who would get VALUE from this? What would be the EFFECT of this action, production or gesture (which, by the way, is not the same as “instrumentalizing” cultural production). What I mean is that you can’t [pretend to] be ignorant of what you know to be the effects on people and processes around you, while allowing maximum freedom to explore what you actually don’t know. Would this be part of producing a MULTIPLICATION of possibilities and ways of life, rather than restriction? Is this GENEROUS or boring to those around me? Am I doing this because I think I should or because it is exciting?” Jaya Klara Brekke Çelenk Bafra is head of the curatorial department at the ˙Istanbul Museum of Modern Art. Prior to that, she worked at the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts (IKSV), and was director of the Istanbul Biennial, artistic director of the “Saison de la Turquie en France” and advisor for the Turkish pavilion at the Venice Biennale. Çelenk Bafra studied political science and cultural history in Turkey and France. She is on the MuCEM board of directors and a member of AICA Turkey.

Jaya Klara Brekke works on independent projects as a visual practitioner, curator and researcher. Her interests and concerns include power, infrastructure and violence (fleshandconcrete.net), the impact of crises and austerity on public space (crisis-scape.net) and, more recently, the role of new technology in post-financial crisis (self)governance through her PhD research at Durham University. She is currently based in London and Athens.

“As a curator based in Istanbul, a city full of sociocultural contradictions, with a background in social sciences focused on political history, I presume that my main responsibility towards society is political. I feel responsible in two ways. First, as a curator, programer and critic, I have to anticipate, evaluate and position my artistic programs and curatorial discourse according to the immediate needs of Turkish society, i.e. critical thinking vis-à-vis the past, the current time and future of this society. Second, I constantly have to question, discuss and re-model the politics – meaning the policies, economies and other dynamics – of curating in a museum context, or an institution with a public responsibility per se.” Çelenk Bafra “Curating is a practice that creates space where cultural interchange can take place. It produces knowledge that can be transmitted not only through space but also through time. It creates an awareness of the existence of different cultures as shaped by historical processes.” Ewa Skolimowska

Roger Martin Buergel, essayist, university professor and curator, was artistic director of the 2007 documenta 12 in Kassel. From 2007 to 2009 he was guest lecturer on art history at the Karlsruhe Academy of Fine Arts. Buergel is founding director of the Johann Jacobs Museum in Zürich, which focuses on research into global trade routes.

Fulya Erdemci is based in Istanbul. Her work as a curator includes the 13th Istanbul Biennial, the 54th Venice Biennale, the 25th São Paulo Biennial, ˙Istanbul Modern, the 2nd Moscow Contemporary Art Biennial, and the 5th SCAPE Biennial of Art in Public Space in Christchurch. She initiated the Istanbul Pedestrian Exhibitions and was director of the SKOR Foundation in Amsterdam. She was member of international committees including MAXXI in Rome and the SAHA in Istanbul. Erdemci taught at various Turkish universities.

“In my eyes, society is a living organism, or a sort of matrix that can shape and create culture and also accepts new cultures. In my years as a curator, I have learned that the function of the curator in this social matrix is to bring art to a level of understanding that is accessible to everyone. Without this point of view, the notions of concept and art are one-dimensional. The curator is not just an expert on display, reception and interpretation; he or she is a collaborator in an art project. By accepting the role of collaborator and cultural producer, I begin to examine how the relations of artist, curator, exhibition and society are altered and transformed in the process. So curating, for me, is an investigation motivated by self-interest as a way of conceptualizing what I do as a producer, consumer and communicator in society.” Elham Puriyamehr “We believe the exhibition genre has the capacity to reframe the times and spaces of the social world and to produce knowledge and ideas. An exhibition can open up a different perception of the political environment, which in turn might offer a different view of social reality. How can we as cultural workers be more responsible to society? The key is to insist on the fact that the field of culture and art is not neutral and apolitical, nor is it predetermined. It is necessary to continue expanding areas of one’s own activity while defending the field of art as a public resource available to everyone. In that way, art can actively correspond with broader political articulations and struggles.” What, How & for Whom/WHW

Elham Puriyamehr is an Iranianborn artist, independent curator and writer with an MA from the Art University of Tehran. She curates exhibitions and projects related to curating contemporary art in a social context and has worked with the Mohsen Gallery in Tehran for two years. Elham teaches at various Iranian universities, has curated, organized and participated in international exhibitions and programs, and is founder of the Institute for Curatorial Practice in Iran.

Ewa Skolimowska studied art history and history of Polish literature at the Warsaw University. She has worked with several public institutions including the Museum of Modern Art and the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts. She currently cooperates with the Adam Mickiewicz Institute and does archival research, e.g. for the Andrzej Wróblewski Foundation and the Foksal Gallery Foundation.

“I don’t distinguish between responsibility towards the exhibition and towards society. I think that the role of the curator is to decide on the theme and format of the exhibition, and the selection of the artists for that specific exhibition always involves a consideration of context. An exhibition can open up urgent issues in relation to the society and communities that it takes shape in and responds to.” Fulya Erdemci “Admiration at their novelty heightens the value of your achievements. It is both useless and insipid to play with the cards on the table. If you do not declare yourself immediately, you arouse expectation, especially when the importance of your position makes you the object of general attention. Mix a little mystery with everything, and the very mystery arouses veneration. […] Cautious silence is the holy of holies of worldly wisdom. A resolution declared is never highly thought of; it only leaves room for criticism. And if it happens to fail, you are doubly unfortunate. Besides you imitate the Divine way when you cause men to wonder and watch.” Baltasar Gracián Roger Buergel “Working as a curator in Hungary, one is taken in by responsibility towards the local scene. Sustaining contemporary art that is distinct from kitsch and a representation of power has become a task in itself here. The scene has to be reset, and this often means you have to learn stuff you thought you have known for a long time. It means enacting (micro)politics you believe would also be OK on a macro level. Sustaining art practices that are critical, serious, and witty is good for this society – even if it has yet to be convinced that this is so.” Hajnalka Somogyi Hajnalka Somogyi is an independent curator based in Budapest. She was curator at the Trafó House of Contemporary Arts, Budapest (2001–2006), and at the Ludwig Museum of Contemporary Art, Budapest (2009–2012). Currently she is project leader and co-curator of the Budapest OFF-Biennale, which she initiated in 2013. She holds a diploma in Art History from ELTE Budapest, and a master’s degree from the Center for Curatorial Studies, Bard College, NY.

What, How & for Whom/WHW is a curatorial collective formed in 1999 and based in Zagreb and Berlin. It organizes a broad range of productions and directs the Galerija Nova in Zagreb. WHW have curated numerous international projects, including “Collective Creativity” at Kunsthalle Fridericianum, the 11th Istanbul Biennial and the Croatian pavilion at the 54th Venice Biennial. Recent projects include the festival Meeting Points 7 and the exhibition “Really Useful Knowledge” at the Museo Reina Sofía in Madrid.

Photos: eSeL.at/Lorenz Seidler 43

XXXXX Program

Creating Common Good When art pours salt into society’s open wounds Text by Robert Punkenhofer and Ursula Maria Probst

Jorge Galindo & Santiago Sierra, Los Encargados, August 2012 Video stills, Courtesy: the artists and Galería Helga de Alvear, Madrid

Lisl Ponger, Wir sind viele – “Quod erat demonstrandum” no. 1, 2011

c-print, Copyright: Lisl Ponger. Courtesy: Galerie Charim

In the global age, people increasingly retreat into environments that suit their own private interests. Yet at the same time, they take the initiative for a new public sense of common good, not least in the form of art projects. Thus art itself increasingly aspires to shape society. Robert Punkenhofer is Artistic Director of VIENNA ART WEEK and founder of Art&Idea. As curator he works at the crossroads of art, design, architecture and international business. He curated the Mur Island with Vito Acconci in Graz as well as Austria’s contributions to the world exhibitions in Aichi, Japan, Zaragoza, Spain and Shanghai, China. After more than 100 artistic projects on three continents he only recently realized exhibitions at the Triennale Design Museum in Milan and at the Goethe Institute in Barcelona. He lectures at New York University and is member of the international advisory board of Princeton University/ PLAS. 44

Art has never been more visible, tangible and influential than today, and it is more a part of social processes than ever before. At the same time, the ubiquity of art shows the degree to which art has to satisfy expectations in contributing to the restructuring of geopolitical, socio-economic and moral value systems by providing alternative concepts to the current establishment and its populist tendencies. How do contemporary artists respond to current global events, and with what means? Judging by the examples of Santiago Sierra, Walid Raad’s project The Atlas Group, Teresa Margolles, Lucy + Jorge Orta, Democraci, Fahim Amir or the Russian protest art group Voina, the answer seems clear: political art is no longer a mere reaction to existing conditions; instead, it has the ethical aspiration

to shape society and counteract corrupt systems. Freedom of expression is under threat around the world, and Europe is no exception. Human dignity, solidarity, justice and responsibility are the keywords that ring in our heads when considering the motto of “Creating Common Good.” For us, the idea of “common good” derives first and foremost from the joint use of ecological resources available in the environment. Public welfare and the common good build on what we share – air, water, public spaces, health, public services, education, research, the Internet and cultural heritage. Common property has always been an important foundation of human civilizations and is essential to the survival of all societies. The Greek philosopher Aristotle understood the common good as the greatest possible happiness for the greatest number of people, while liberalism finds the best expression of the common good in the realization of individual freedom. More and more, the last remnants of what we perceive as common good are being dismantled and placed in the service of global capital. We are told that regulatory measures introduced by the establishment are represented not as politically motivated decisions, but as imperatives of a financial logic. To this end, states, communities of nations and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) turn to targeted, super-ego strategies. High budget deficits

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Tamara Grcic, Lucy, Avonmouth, 2001 (video still)

are the direct result of massive bailouts in the financial sector. Mass unemployment, reduced investment in education, research and development are results of misguided policy decisions. We are now in the midst of a global digital age, the flip side of which – according to American sociologist and economist Saskia Sassen – is that an unfettered world market including the realm of financial production causes conditions that make it possible for people to create an environment for themselves that suits their individual interests, but ignores the public good. We are entering an era in which a socio-economic state of emergency is becoming a permanent condition, a constant, a way of life.

Ursula Maria Probst lives and works in Vienna as an art historian, university lecturer, art critic, freelance curator, and artist (Female Obsession). She specializes in art collections, performance art, and public art with a view to developing new structures in the art business.

At the same time we see initiatives for a new public awareness of common good. Resistance to water privatization in Europe and South America or the artivisms of the “Occupy Wall Street” movement, networks for the development of alternative banking systems, local and regional projects aimed at creating social structures are in part aspects of how initiatives for a new, public awareness are created. Artistic projects and performances discuss the possibilities of alternative systems (guerilla gardening, alternative loans, or questions regarding basic income, etc.), and

practice these in micro models. With projects that enact specific social measures, artists call not only for more political responsibility, but also raise critical questions and propose new criteria to benefit the common good.

EXHIBITION

“Creating Common Good” 16 Nov.–13 Dec. 2015 Opening: Mon., 16 Nov. 2015, 6:00 pm KUNST HAUS WIEN, Untere Weissgerberstrasse 13, 1030 Vienna Opening hours: daily 10:00 am–7:00 pm With works by: Akram Al Halabi, Bernhard Cella, Ramesch Daha, Ines Doujak, Teresa Estapé, Peter Friedl, Leon Golub, Tamara Grcic, gruppe uno wien, Markus Hiesleitner, Heidrun Holzfeind, Anna Jermolaewa, Folke Köbberling, Ernst Logar, Teresa Margolles, Adrian Melis, Lucy + Jorge Orta, Lisl Ponger, Martha Rosler, Isa Rosenberger, Tim Sharp, Wael Shawky, Santiago Sierra, Axel Stockburger, tat ort, Johanna Tinzl, transparadiso, Patricia Triki, Nasan Tur, Anna Witt, Ina Wudtke, Sislej Xhafa, and others Curator: Robert Punkenhofer and Ursula Maria Probst 45

Interview

“The state is the cause” Austria’s cultural policy of nostalgia and tourism Interview by Angela Stief

Has the state given up its responsibility for the visual arts? Is the local scene wallowing in self-imposed provinciality? And is the proposal to make art tax deductible little more than a toothless measure? In a conversation with curator and publicist Angela Stief, established representatives of the local gallery scene do not mince words, even when it comes to their own sector.

20th- and 21st-century Austrian art has more potential than its international position would suggest. What would make it stronger? Ursula Krinzinger: The galleries have been preaching for decades that we have to find the ways and means to foster exchange between Austria and other countries. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs does not provide a meaningful basis. There is no cultural organization with the financial resources to subsidize art productions, for instance, or invite experts from abroad to work with Austrian artists. A number of European countries have found exemplary solutions with institutions like Pro Helvetia and the Mondriaan Fund. What else could be done? Ernst Hilger: Galleries should take more risk at the international level! Christian Meyer: You could take yourself to task on that one. Miryam Charim: Art and culture are what gives Austria its global significance. There is a lack of state funding and reinforcement for the ever-neglected visual arts, mainly because most of the support goes to theater and music. Major sponsors have pulled out, so it’s important that some official players at least articulate an interest in Austrian contemporary art, to encourage private initiatives. Would you be in favor of a new distribution basis for the culture budget? Miryam Charim: I don’t think redistribution is possible 46

because the other disciplines would go under. We need larger budgets for culture in Austria. There are big gaps, also in areas like architecture and film. Christian Meyer: The state can’t solve the problem, because it’s the cause. It’s given up its responsibility in terms of culture, research and collecting, and focuses on representation instead. We need practical, meaningful structural measures. The art world and art market are internationally oriented, yet at the same time anchored in the region. How important is the international network? Rosemarie Schwarzwälder: The local connection is important, because your own gallery space reinforces a sense of identity in both artists and regular clients. They belong to the “brand.” The fact that the international network is absolutely indispensible – both artistically and technically in terms of market – goes without saying. Gabriele Senn: In a globalized world, you have to try to reinforce the local scene. It’s wearing down the local scene that causes the most damage. Compared to other countries, we have little awareness about the significance of our own art. All of us need to work together. This is also a plea to those who have money and power. This dependence on foreign countries throws us miles behind. But art cannot survive without input from abroad. Or can it? Christian Meyer: Austria has voluntarily isolated itself and has yet to join the rest of Europe. Voluntary provincialism is comfortable. It goes up to the political level. It has traditionally held art hostage and focuses primarily on nostalgia and tourism, where it should be engaging in serious discussion and showing financial responsibility. The minister still calls the shots: who runs the institutions, the amount of subsidies, who sits in the commissions and who goes to the biennials. If we’re going to leave this self-satisfaction behind, we have to give culture a different status and look at what is going on outside.

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companies, media and politics have to pull together to promote and foster local artistic potential. The interlocking gears for Austria’s entire cultural industry would have to work much better. Ernst Hilger: I think the planned deductibility of art is a toothless measure, because it doesn’t recognize the real problem. First, there is a lack of motivational role models, and besides it isn’t art purchases that should be deductible, but donations and support for exhibitions and exhibition venues; second, there is no money for museum and public purchases; and third, art promotion should be supported through fairs, etc. Austria needs to keep its ten percent VAT rate. To me, that’s more important than tax deductibility. Christian Meyer: The US managed to generate the highest government subsidies by offering tax breaks. A state that cares about its art and culture has to involve third parties. It would help if the state supported private initiatives. Karlheinz Essl’s museum devoted especially to Austrian art took on a role that should actually fall to the government. This does not, of course, mean that the state should go and buy up private collections after the fact. And yet these kinds of initiatives act as catalysts. I would also commend the auction house DOROTHEUM for its role in linking Austria with countries abroad. Gabriele Senn, Ernst Hilger, Christian Meyer, Ursula Krinzinger, Rosemarie Schwarzwälder and Miryam Charim (f. l. t. r.)

Photo: Katharina Gossow

Austria has almost no young gallery scene to speak of. To what extent could more diversified commitment help expand the pool of local collectors and boost international visibility? Rosemarie Schwarzwälder: Of course we would like to see more young colleagues attracting a younger generation of collectors. The fact that there is no new gallery scene could stem from the fact that many lack the necessary financial backing for a risky venture like opening a gallery. Angela Stief is a Viennabased curator and journalist. She was a curator at Kunsthalle Wien from 2002 to 2013, where she realized group exhibitions such as “Dream & Trauma,” “POWER UP – Female Pop Art,” and solo exhibitions with artists including Yüksel Arslan, Leigh Bowery, Urs Fischer, Nathalie Djurberg, and Gert & Uwe Tobias. Since 2003, she has lectured at various universities both in Austria and abroad and regularly edits and publishes texts on contemporary art. Together with Lorenz Estermann, she founded the Temporäre Halle für Kunst in Linz, with exhibitions including “Bildbaumeister” and “Serendipität. Kunst zwischen Programm und Zufall.” In spring 2015 she published a comprehensive Leigh Bowery monograph with Piet Meyer Verlag.

What role does an art fair play in Vienna? Ernst Hilger: A city like Vienna needs a good art fair. Without the fair, Vienna would slide out of the international spotlight completely. Rosemarie Schwarzwälder: The fair’s role goes without question these days; it’s been a fact for years now. All of us worked for it. And yet Vienna as a city for art doesn’t depend on that alone.

Doesn’t the power of private individuals create a new kind of dependence? Ursula Krinzinger: Private involvement in Austria is not comparable to what you see in some neighboring countries, where the collector might have too much say. Both the scene and politics have a distorted view of contemporary art and its structures, and that is why Austria is stagnating. Rosemarie Schwarzwälder: I agree with you, but would like to stress that the task of public museums, namely to establish or expand a consistent collection, cannot be compensated through art donations from private patrons. We also have to rethink the role of collection directors, who are not always able to influence the donations and their quality. Christian Meyer: Austria’s real constitution dates from the time of Josephinism; the state is huge compared to its little civil subjects. But before Austria completely drops out, it should consider whether it still sees itself as a Biedermeier empire or is finally ready to start rethinking its structures.

There is a plan to amend the laws regarding the tax deductibility of art. It includes a scheme for a new fund, or funds might also be tax-deductible for a specific purpose. What is your opinion on this? Gabriele Senn: This pool is very important; there should definitely be more of a budget for art purchases. There is no shortage of money in Austria. Major corporations – including those in which the state has a stake – should be held accountable. We’ve articulated what an “Austria Foundation” might look like. But regardless of this, big 47

Program

Snowball Effect in the Art Scene Kunsthalle Wien prize fills a void Text by Michael Huber

For the first time this year, the Kunsthalle Wien prize has been awarded to graduates from both Viennese art universities. For many artists, the prize offers a launching pad for work in institutions.

“The first prize you receive is the most important,” says Eva Blimlinger, rector of the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna. She knows how the art system works: hardly any reputed art prize or sought-after studio grant is awarded without some kind of track record. Once a career has been launched, the prizes frequently pour in: “It’s like a snowball effect.” 48

The Kunsthalle Wien prize also demonstrates this snowball effect, offering an entrance into the complex field of art, in which renown and money are always interlinked. The prize was set up in 2002, but it is the first time it has been awarded to a graduate of the Academy of Fine Arts. In the past it was always seen as a cooperation between the Kunsthalle Wien and the University of Applied Arts. “We are a public institution and observe the young art scene in the city. As I see it, that means we should work together with both art universities when awarding the annual prize,” says Nicolaus Schafhausen, director of

Kunsthalle Wien. Schafhausen, who inherited the prize competition from his predecessor Gerald Matt, has enlarged the format: in addition to the 3,000 euros offered by sponsor hs art service austria, Kunsthalle Wien also organizes an exhibition of the winner’s work at its site on Karlsplatz and a book, also on Schafhausen’s initiative, published by Verlag Sternberg Press. In 2015 the Kunsthalle Wien prize was awarded to Karina Mendreczky, a graduate of the University of Applied Arts, and Anastasiya Yarovenko from the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna. The exhibition of their works can be seen from 27 November 2015 to 6 January 2016. Each art university appoints a five-person jury to select a prizewinner. Apart from Nicolaus Schafhausen and Lucas Gehrmann, curator of Kunsthalle Wien, as permanent members, each institution nominates further jury members. “The prize exhibition is often the first time the artists have had an opportunity to work with an institution,” says the director. “They come from the protected environment of the university – an extremely interesting situation also, of course, for the institution, which is always put on trial itself under such circumstances.” Some of the prize-winning artists from the University of Applied Arts have made a career in the art scene. After winning in 2004, for example, Ernst Logar became widely known with his thought-provoking public photography and art projects. Nina Rike Springer (2007) and Claudia Larcher (2008) have had works shown in galleries and exhibitions around the world. Leander Schönweger, the 2014 prizewinner, was included by Schafhausen in the group exhibition “Destination Vienna 2015.”

Nicolaus Schafhausen, Gerald Bast and Eva Blimlinger Photo: Yasmina Haddad

Michael Huber, born 1976 in Klagenfurt, has been art correspondent for the “Kurier” newspaper since 2009. He studied communication studies and art history in Vienna and New York (NYU) and took a master’s degree in cultural journalism from Columbia University, New York, in 2007.

The popular criticism that Vienna already has too many venues for contemporary art falls on deaf ears as far as Nicolaus Schafhausen is concerned. “On the contrary, there is a level missing – below the Kunsthalle or Secession – where there is no coercion to meet quotas,” he says. Even if the Kunsthalle Wien often eschews big names for the sake of content, as a large publicly subsidized institution it must appeal to a wide audience. The same applies to other institutions like the 21er Haus, which often shows young artists in its 21er Raum. Cooperations between universities and museums, such as the exhibition “Prosperous Poison” (10 September 2015–24 April 2016), organized by mumok with students of the master’s degree in Critical Studies at the Academy of Fine Arts, are laudable initiatives, says Blimlinger, “but they are only possible because some of them are co-financed by the art universities. Otherwise it’s almost impossible to find sponsors.” At the same time, support for young artists would stimulate the market, insists Bast, in terms not only of the increased value of works, but also of the dynamics of institutions, projects, group, and large-scale exhibitions. “It’s fascinating to see how many internationally acclaimed prizes for young artists there are in the music scene,” says Bast. “If musicians or actors win a prize, it immediately gives them advantage in terms of concerts or engagements. There is an evident imbalance here.”

The fact that several institutions cooperate in the development, promotion and exhibition of young artists makes the Kunsthalle Wien prize stand out from other awards presented by companies, education establishments, or the public sector. The three representatives of the sponsoring organizations agree that the prize clearly fills a void in the Austrian art scene. “In the long term, I would like to see more sustainable subsidy instruments giving young people – and both the Applied Arts and the Academy produce outstanding personalities every year – more opportunities to show their work,” says Gerald Bast, rector of the University of Applied Arts. He believes that the government has a responsibility here. “There is no private capital willing to venture into this area,” he says. “Wealthy people, in particular, usually have only a marginal interest in young art. A lot of them collect art to hedge their capital.”

Interview

“I want to do something for this country” A conversation with Matti Bunzl Interview by Nicole Scheyerer

The anthropologist and culture manager Matti Bunzl is returning as director of Wien Museum to his home town, which he left after high school to study in the USA. In his new position, the former director of the Chicago Humanities Festival will have to deal with the incisive changes that will occur as the city museum on Karlsplatz is refurbished and the collection rearranged in the coming years. The designated director has already taken receipt of the first donation: a clothes stand from the 1960s, which he obtained for the Wien Museum collection from his favorite Aida cakeshop.

curatorial work. I came up against a very dominant point of view, which stated “money decides everything.” This attitude is, of course, not completely wrong, but it doesn’t by any means tell the whole story. What conclusions did you come to? Matti Bunzl: I defend contemporary museums against the reproach of being a neoliberal sellout. My book shows how curators as a group stand up to other dominant departments in the museum like fundraising. The curators’ role is to defend a traditional or modernist approach to art against a very neoliberal attitude.

Your latest book, “In Search of a Lost Avant-Garde,” discusses your observations and analysis during a fivemonth field research mission in the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago. What did you find out about museum work? Matti Bunzl: As an ethnologist it was a great privilege to be able to look behind the scenes in a contemporary museum. This is ultimately where contemporary art is canonized, with incredible consequences for the art market. There are good reasons why museums don’t like people seeing how they work. As they say: “You don’t wanna show how the sausage is made.”

Wouldn’t Austrian state museums benefit from a certain degree of Americanization? Matti Bunzl: I firmly believe that museums should be research institutes, but the visitor’s perspective is vital for me. In practically every meeting I ask “What are we saying, and to whom?” We exist as a public institution for our public. What can we offer them and how can we be useful to people? I want to pick them up, I want to move them and do something for this country. An audiencecentered museum is no doubt very American. But it doesn’t mean visitors should not be challenged.

What made you do this study? Matti Bunzl: It started when my husband and I bought a house and we began to collect art. I wanted to write a book about the contemporary museum as an institution, because there isn’t one based on participatory observation. Implicitly, the book is also a comparison between the European and the American systems. The two differ fundamentally in the type of funding, in Europe through the state, in the USA through private donors. I was interested in how these financial questions impacted on the

You often speak of civil society. How do you propose to attract visitors to Wien Museum? Matti Bunzl: We have a friends association, which is fantastic: around 1,400 members interested in culture and history. It’s a nice number, even if I wish we had 2,000. That’s what I mean by civil society, and they are donors in the American sense. Everything there is done through donors. The Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago has board members, who each pay 25,000 dollars a year; donations can reach millions, however. That’s one side of

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Matti Bunzl

Photo: Katharina Gossow

Nicole Scheyerer was born in Salzburg in 1974 and studied philosophy in Vienna. She writes regularly for the Vienna weekly magazine “Falter” and the newspapers “Der Standard” and “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung,” with a focus on art and the art market.

it. But much more important than competition for money is the competition by all cultural institutions for the people who don’t have a share in what we do. It is a competition for time, because people have so many other things to do. Fundraising is also one of the most intensive forms of contact with the public. In America they call it development, systematic work to cultivate people and bring them into the museum’s orbit. A conference took place at Wien Museum in March on the future of municipal museums. Were the contributions informative? Matti Bunzl: For me the results were very pragmatic. For example, a colleague from Basel spoke about their digital initiatives. We also talk about that a lot. The museum in Frankfurt is currently being modified, and the concept was presented. We are just at the beginning of this process. The conference confirmed that Wien Museum is a great institution – thanks to the City of Vienna, which has collected over a million items since the 19th century. A museum, in essence, is a collection; all the rest is ephemeral. How would you like the reconstruction to turn out? Have your suggestions been heeded? Matti Bunzl: Yes, I was involved from the outset in the planning. The first thing we need is more space. I want the institution to be part of the public space. This is something I learned in America. At the moment we are the exact opposite. As a nostalgic modernist, I love the Haerdtl building, but as a box in a corner of Karlsplatz it couldn’t be less inviting. For example, we have a good café open to the public, but to get to it visitors have to pass through the foyer, which is much too low, and the atrium, which is much too high, and then right to the

back of the building. I want the opposite, a place to which the people of Vienna like to come. Karlsplatz has so much potential, but on our side of the square it’s much too calm. What do you understand by the term “global cities”? Matti Bunzl: I mean cities whose daily reality is linked with the daily reality of other global cities. Vienna must be part of these networked hubs and shouldn’t get bogged down in the trivial problems of a comic Central European nation state. Places like Berlin, Paris, London, or Chicago are the relevant context for Vienna, and not Austria. With its plethora of cultural offerings, Vienna belongs in this category, which was not the case in the 1970s. It needs to defend and develop this position and to establish itself internationally. For me it’s incredibly important that we can communicate through Wien Museum with these other cities. What exhibitions are you planning? Matti Bunzl: In the fall we are opening an exhibition on the Vienna art scene in the 1980s, for which Peter Pakesch has donated the archive of his former gallery as an early legacy. It is fascinating the way gallery owners like Peter Pakesch, Rosemarie Schwarzwälder, or Grita Insam have been involved on the international scene. They have represented Vienna abroad, for example at the art fair in Chicago, in a manner that the likes of Monsignore Otto Mauer never did. And they have given their artists an international platform. The careers of Franz West or Heimo Zobernig didn’t happen by chance. The gallery owners represented Vienna as a global city, and this vision became a reality.

Interview

A Question of Life and Death The exhibition “Drawing Now: 2015” in the Albertina Interview by Joachim Riedl

The term “graphic art collection” is obsolete and has been for a long time, says Klaus Albrecht Schröder, director of the Albertina. An inventory of how contemporary artists use the medium and methods of drawing can be seen in his museum until October. A talk with Schröder and curator Elsy Lahner about Edvard Munch, paradigmatic change, and tattoos.

The Albertina has organized an exhibition in “Drawing Now: 2015” which no one could actually have expected of the museum in this form. It presents a very broad interpretation of graphic art. Klaus Abrecht Schröder: There’s no doubt that people expect the Albertina to take up positions with regard to the art of drawing. If it concerns a reference to the present day, it might be perhaps self-evident to people that we act within the limitations set by genre. But this is absurd because classifying the arts according to genres has caved in. Not even the Albertina can overlook the fact that art-alien materials – everyday objects, adhesive tape, assembly belts and what have you – have invaded the genre of drawing. The concept of drawing has assumed a metaphorical connotation, as we know from the 1980s, when everything was suddenly declared to be architecture. … in the sense of intellectual edifices. Klaus Abrecht Schröder: The metaphor of architecture was used as a supporting structure: the architecture of a religion, of a society, and so on. Today, this function seems to have taken over drawing. 52

So a drawing can be three-dimensional as well, can’t it? Klaus Abrecht Schröder: It is simply abandoning in every respect the logic of development we expect within a genre. When we show Edvard Munch, we are showing a graphic artist rivaled only by the likes of Dürer, Rembrandt, or Goya. But the point is that Munch was acting within the developmental logic of a specific art genre. He reacted to what he found. Contemporary art no longer does this. Each work justifies itself out of itself. A graphic collection therefore has no right to push artists who have done everything to break out since the 1960s back into the art-of-drawing corner. On the contrary, we indeed operate based on an attitude of expectation, but only in order to thwart it in the end. Visitors should forget everything they consider safe. Elsy Lahner: We’re going the whole hog and showing everything in all its diversity. But don’t worry, pencil and ink drawings are also included. Klaus Abrecht Schröder: Stop, there’s no reason to allay. If the world loses its faith we can’t console ourselves by knowing that churches still at least exist. Churches aren’t by any means proof that faith exists, but merely an archaeological relic. It’s the same with drawing. It is not for us but for art to define what a drawing ought to be. Art calls us to question. This kind of exhibition has a retroactive critical effect on the entire Albertina. Edvard Munch is a great master of what the Albertina has stood for throughout 250 years. This exhibition is an example of what a museum should stand for today.

Photo: Yasmina Haddad

Klaus Albrecht Schröder and Elsy Lahner

How do you define drawing in the first place? Klaus Abrecht Schröder: Not at all. Drawing is only a metaphor for an intervention. The concept of drawing manifests itself in the preposterous medium of the tattoo, where it is now omnipresent. I’m one of the few who are still uninked, by the way. If we think it’s no more than a fad, we’ve overlooked how much the body has become a writing surface. I wish we could spontaneously put all visitors with tattoos on show as exhibits in this exhibition. Frau Lahner, as a curator, do you refuse to define the term of drawing as well? Elsy Lahner: Drawing has emancipated itself in contemporary art, and it’s interesting to note what artists themselves see as drawing. Wouldn’t it be the task of a curator to “draw the line” somewhere? Klaus Abrecht Schröder: No. These lines don’t exist anymore. The genre has caved in, just like sculpture or the installation. We might get by with genre terminology, but in actual fact everything overlaps now, the borderlines are blurred. Have all categories lost their validity? Klaus Abrecht Schröder: Completely. When I became director of the Albertina in 2000 I pointed out that the expansion of the concept “art” since the 1960s doesn’t allow us to speak of a graphic art collection. It’s about time we erased this term from the Albertina’s name!

Joachim Riedl, born 1953 in Vienna, is an author, exhibition designer and journalist. He studied English literature, sociology and psychology in Cambridge and Vienna. Riedl currently heads the Vienna office of the “ZEIT” newspaper and lives in Vienna.

erment of the subject. People have always been able to define drawing just as they pleased. The holiest definition is Hegel’s: he saw drawing as the shortest connection of head, heart and hand. Nothing stands between the drawn subject and the artist’s temperament. This idea was overturned by minimal art, concept art and pop art, where artists no longer succumb to the temptation – or even consider themselves capable – of expressing personality. Elsy Lahner: But we might ask: why is the Albertina reacting to this development only now, in 2015? It’s not about showing the world that we, too, have acknowledged this paradigmatic change. We wanted to take stock of how artists use means and methods in drawing today, not an exhibition that aims to elucidate everything a drawing can be. Klaus Abrecht Schröder: People used to think that the special thing about drawing is its immediacy and speed. But we’re showing a number of artists who say: “No, drawing is actually very slow. And to make people realize this, I draw a certain film frame that whizzes by in the fraction of a second, and it takes me four months to do it. I already decide beforehand not to make any decisions, so that nothing arbitrary invades the work. This is why in all films I only use the frame saying ‘The End’.” What we see here is almost an anti-drawing affect.

So a “graphic collection” can only exist in cultural history? Klaus Abrecht Schröder: The term has no meaning in contemporary art. This is why in most museums exhibitions of contemporary art are so embarrassing, because an idea of drawing hibernates there that can only be found in adult evening classes.

If you deny all categories, what consequences will that have for a museum director? Klaus Abrecht Schröder: Museums change every 15 to 20 years, because of art, the public, social demands and expectations. If they’re not famous for being famous like the Louvre or the Uffizi, they lose their public. The Albertina still has a second Achilles’ heel: limitation to a genre. We had two choices in reacting to this: either to make the museum into an archive, or to open it up to the full diversity of available options in artistic expression and so become relevant again for the present age. We chose the latter path.

What was the decisive factor in the 1960s for the devaluation of the term? Klaus Abrecht Schröder: Actionism, performances, Fluxus and all the new splinters of style. It was the disempow-

… which didn’t always run smoothly. Klaus Abrecht Schröder: On the contrary, we met with resistance everywhere, and still do. But it was a question of life and death. 53

Program

Approaching the Infinite Vija Celmins in the Secession Text by Michael Huber

Jasper Sharp and Herwig Kempinger Photo: Yasmina Haddad

Supported by the philanthropic initiative “Phileas,” the Secession is organizing the first Vija Celmins exhibition in Austria – a “milestone project,” as Secession president Herwig Kempinger and “Phileas” co-founder Jasper Sharp explain.

is barely known in Austria, is infectious, and he really ignited a spark. When the retrospective of Celmins’ graphic work opens on 19 November during the VIENNA ART WEEK, the public will be able to find out why the work of this 76-year-old artist exerts such a pull.

“In my opinion she is the most important post-war American artist. And for some strange reason she’s never had an exhibition here.” When Herwig Kempinger was elected president of the Association of Visual Artists Vienna Secession in late 2013, he proposed at the first board meeting that a major exhibition be devoted to the work of Vija Celmins. Kempinger’s enthusiasm for the artist, who

Celmins became known in the 1960s during the Pop Art movement and was later often associated with Hyperrealism. But as with the work of other similar great artists, including Ed Ruscha and Chuck Close, her art cannot be described solely in terms of schools or styles. The defining feature is the method by which she has appropriated a handful of subjects, the most well-known being water,

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the night sky, and spiders’ webs. As a determined creator, Celmins is a singular and to a certain extent insular phenomenon.

Jasper Sharp knows her well. The British curator, who was appointed in 2011 to run the newly founded Modern & Contemporary Art program at the Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien (KHM), also had Celmins high on his list of artists he wanted to exhibit. Sharp knew about Celmins’ reclusiveness: “I tried for over a year to contact her through her gallery, told her I was serious, and that I was inquiring on behalf of a major institution,” he says. “But to no avail.” Through personal contacts, Sharp

finally managed to arrange a meeting in Celmins’ New York studio. “She’d baked a cake, we drank tea, she explained that Velázquez was her first contact with art, and that everything she knew about painting in shades of grey she had learned from him. She also spoke a lot about Dürer, and I thought to myself: ‘This is great!’ But when I asked if she was interested in an exhibition at the Kunsthistorisches Museum, she just said no.” Sharp regards Kempinger’s achievement in persuading her three years later to exhibit at the Secession as an “incredible compliment to that institution.” Sharp, who in the meantime has organized blockbusters at the 55

fascinated the artist and Secession president Herwig Kempinger for many years. “I work very slowly myself and was immediately sympathetic to Vija’s relaxed approach. She takes a long time with her pictures, looking again and again at what works and what doesn’t. And she has this precise work routine,” he adds. “I can also sit for hours in front of the sea and observe the surface without getting bored. I’m sure I’m not the only one; it’s the complexity of this structure that is so fascinating.”

Vija Celmins and Herwig Kempinger

Kunsthistorisches Museum, including the major exhibition on Lucian Freud (2013/14), was to come on board by another route: through the “Phileas” project co-founded by him and Moritz Stipsicz, which since the beginning of 2015 has been subsidizing art projects from a fund financed by private donors. “For ‘Phileas’ this exhibition was a blessing,” says Sharp. “It represents everything we want to do: help milestone projects like this to come about.” Even some members of the “Phileas” donor group, which recently co-financed the purchase of works by Amie Siegel for the MAK and by Latifa Echakhch for the Lentos Art Museum in Linz and supported the Austria pavilion at the 2015 Biennale in Venice, were unfamiliar with the name Vija Celmins. But the fascination of her works and Sharp’s infectious enthusiasm soon put that right. “What I like so much about Vija is that there are no preordained ways of reading her work,” says Sharp. “You can approach it as an absolute beginner, as a practicing artist, as a philosopher, teacher, or eight-year-old child. All you need is two eyes.” Despite the accessible subjects, Celmins’ work could not be farther from dreamlike landscape painting or simple reproduction. In an interview for the “Oral History Project” by the MoMA in New York she described the development of her works as a process in which visual impressions and practical considerations always go together. The artist started with pictures of pictures – old photos or newspaper cuttings, for example. “Instead of choosing an everyday subject, I turned towards events that were beyond anything that could be portrayed in a picture, to things that could not really be painted,” she said. The final work always has a duality, as the representation and the traces of the design come together. It is this complex interplay of picture and process that has

For Jasper Sharp, Vija Celmins’ work is the “antithesis of lots of art produced today and of the circus surrounding this art.” The intensity and continuity with which Celmins works on pictures appear embedded in her works: in the systematic investigation of the subject, picture, and craft is a constant attempt to reassure herself of existence and the artistic act itself. Her art is almost certainly informed by the fact that she had to flee at the age of ten from the Red Army in Latvia, where she was born, and thus had an early experience of what it feels like to be uprooted. “I try not to read too much into her biographical background,” says Sharp, “but it is often difficult not to do so.” The curator, who parallel to the Secession exhibition is presenting the work of Joseph Cornell, another great outsider, at the Kunsthistorisches Museum (“Wanderlust,” 20 October 2015–10 January 2016), has also been able to observe how collectors react to Celmins’ works. “It’s often very difficult to borrow her works, because the owners don’t want to part with them,” he says. “They treat them like family heirlooms; the works play an important role in their lives.” The Secession is now showing only those prints of Celmins’ graphic works that the artist has kept herself. In the tradition of the Secession, the accompanying publication is not a classic catalogue but an unusual art book, a very elaborate project for the institution. But just as Celmins’ pictures keep on captivating viewers anew and gradually find their way into their owners’ hearts, the exhibition at the Secession will also be long-remembered, Kempinger and Sharp are convinced. “Perhaps we won’t notice it directly,” says Sharp, “but in ten years we’ll look back and recognize the importance of this exhibition. Vija is one of those artists who make other artists stop and think about what they’re doing and how they do it. This is an immensely important exhibition for the art scene here.”

Interview

“It could really be better!” A conversation about Vienna as a city for art Interview by Nina Schedlmayer

What’s to say about Vienna as a city for art? To clear up this question – certainly not for the last time – VIENNA ART WEEK magazine met Vienna-based, internationally active artists Plamen Dejanoff, Anna Jermolaewa and Constanze Ruhm at the tradition-steeped Café Korb.

The first VIENNA ART WEEK took place in 2004. How has Vienna as an art city changed since then, from your perspective? Anna Jermolaewa: There are fewer institutions, especially when I think back even further, to the time when I was a student. It seems to me that a lot more was happening then than now. Constanze Ruhm: I think there is quite a lot of activity. I teach at the Academy of Fine Arts, so I have an insight into what the young artists are doing and what is going on in the independent and off-spaces. But a lot of the people running those spaces don’t take the next step into professionalization, opening a gallery. Vienna is very interesting for young artists, but the gallery scene has not changed. There were a lot of new galleries in Eschenbachgasse and Schleifmühlgasse around 2000; it’s time something like that happened again. But somehow, it doesn’t seem like we really have this new generation. Plamen Dejanoff: I don’t agree. I left an established gallery and a chose a younger one: Emanuel Layr is bringing a lot of fresh energy to the table, both within the city and internationally. He and others like Andreas Huber, for example, are doing good work.

Constanze Ruhm: But they are also long established. It’s hard to speak of a new generation coming up as far as galleries are concerned – which I think is strange, precisely because the Vienna art scene is so lively. Plamen Dejanoff: Conversely, you could also say that they’re catching on and gaining respect because they are doing good work. Who or what could come next? Plamen Dejanoff: When artists and curators need new spaces, they will create them. We don’t have to wait for a gallery to open for something to happen. Constanze Ruhm: It’s not a question of individual choice. The fact that people are not taking the next step towards professionalization has to do with the economy and certainly the financial crisis as well. The business has become much more difficult, for artists and galleries alike. On the other hand, the art market has changed dramatically in recent decades. There are a lot more international art fairs, for example. Does this affect your work? Plamen Dejanoff: It has become much more difficult, because galleries have to fight harder in this global environment. The young galleries go to fewer fairs, but choose them very carefully. Some gallerists say they sell most of their art abroad. Where are your collectors? 57

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Constanze Ruhm, Plamen Dejanoff and his dog Lupus Dejanoff, Susanne Widl, owner of CafĂŠ Korb, and Anna Jermolaewa (f. l. t. r.) Photo: Yasmina Haddad 58

Plamen Dejanoff: There are good collectors here, too. Since no one can ever constantly buy something by one and the same artist over and over again, you have to be internationally present. But Vienna has a lot of interesting collections, proportionally speaking. Anna Jermolaewa: My Moscow gallery has decided not to come to the Vienna art fair anymore. They say there aren’t enough collectors here. Plamen Dejanoff: Vienna isn’t the only city where that is the case. Constanze Ruhm: I do a lot of international travel and also work abroad, so I miss a lot here and don’t have much time to think about questions of location. Plamen Dejanoff: But now we’ve decided to live here. I used to be uninterested in the local. I thought if you’re working internationally anyway, it doesn’t matter where you live. But I’m interested in it now. Anna Jermolaewa: You can say one thing, though: Vienna is a great location for young artists. Life is cheap, and the city has a lot to offer after graduation as well, at least compared to Germany. I currently support a mentoring program that focuses on building networks between women. You also have a lot of scholarships and residencies. When I told the students in Karlsruhe about them, they considered Vienna a land of plenty. As for international networking: there is a strong link between Vienna and Russia. A lot of Russians study here. Constanze Ruhm: And yet the Russian colleagues who study with me often have trouble with the authorities due to visa issues. It is very complicated for them to come to Austria to study. I think it’s terrible that the hurdles are so high. Could it be that Vienna is a good home base more than anything, a good place to come back to after traveling? Plamen Dejanoff: I would advise anyone at the beginning of their career to travel a lot. After that, Vienna is a very pleasant place to work. Anna Jermolaewa: I am constantly on the move, and I’m happy and productive when I travel. Constanze Ruhm: The right place can be another one every time. Various cities have played an important role for me in various work cycles. Nina Schedlmayer, born in 1976, studied art history in Vienna and Hamburg. After freelancing in the gallery and exhibition business, she has worked in free journalism and art criticism. Since 2004, she has written for such journals as “profil,” “artmagazine.cc,” “Handelsblatt,” “EIKON” and “Spike Art Quarterly.” Her work further includes numerous catalogue and book contributions and a thesis on art historiography in the time of National Socialism. She lives and works in Vienna.

Anna Jermolaewa: I think the format is great. My participation in the show “Lives and works in Vienna” at Kunsthalle did a lot for me back then, and I’m glad to see that Nicolaus Schafhausen is continuing that now. How is the Vienna scene perceived internationally? Austrian artists are hardly ever represented in major exhibitions like documenta or the Venice Biennale, or not at all. Plamen Dejanoff: I don’t see any lack of internationality in the Austrian scene. Fully established artists like Heimo Zobernig or Erwin Wurm are everywhere, the younger generation has its opportunities, and the gallery scene and curators are connected very well. Just the fact that we all have a lot to do is a sign that the scene here is registering elsewhere. Of course: it could always be better. Anna Jermolaewa: Yes, it could really be better! When I studied at the Academy, they would invite curators like Kaspar König or Harald Szeemann to make exhibitions with our work. Even for “Lives and works in Vienna” they invited curators from abroad. This view from the outside: it really did add something. It led to important cooperations. Vienna is not international enough today. Constanze Ruhm: It isn’t just one outside perspective, but a diverse exchange, for example between artists and theorists. In this regard you have a very strong axis between Berlin and Vienna, for instance, because many colleagues at the Academy are from there. Sure, there has been a dip in international attention in recent years. BAWAG P.S.K. Contemporary gave up its spaces; the Generali Foundation moved its collection to Salzburg … but now we also have a lot of very established, great formats like mumok cinema, for example. Plamen Dejanoff: And yet hardly any city in Europe has as many opportunities for artists as Vienna. I’m also pleased to see a lot of good things happening in Salzburg, Graz and Linz. Not everything has to be in Vienna.

Again and again, there have been attempts to present the Vienna scene in ambitious group exhibitions – it used to be the “Junge Szene” show at the Secession, now it’s “Destination Vienna” at Kunsthalle. You also showed in these kinds of exhibitions at the beginning of your careers – exhibitions that are not entirely uncontroversial. What do you think about those shows now? Constanze Ruhm: Something like that is obviously always going to be complicated – simply because it reflects such a diversity. But I think these exhibitions are very important. 59

Interview

“We seek challenges” Agnes Husslein-Arco and Francesca Habsburg on their extraordinary cooperation Interview by Michaela Knapp

In a show at the Winter Palace and TBA21 in the Augarten, the Danish-Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson looks at Baroque and Prince Eugene as a pioneer of modern knowledge production. Belvedere director Agnes HussleinArco and collector and patron of the arts Francesca Habsburg call for more bold visionary projects like this.

Michaela Knapp has a degree in theater studies and since 2006 has been editor-in-chief of the culture and lifestyle section of the business magazine “FORMAT.” She has also presented the annual “FORMATKunstguide” since 2002, which ranks the top 100 Austrian artists. She has written numerous essays for catalogues and books about the interface between theater, fine arts, performance, and fashion. 60

You have been friends for a long time. How did you decide to work together on the Olafur Eliasson project? Francesca Habsburg: We have indeed been friends for a long time. Agnes Husslein-Arco encouraged me to go into the art business while I was still living in Salzburg. My collection contains many light art works. Some, including works by Olafur Eliasson, were shown in 2004 at “ein-leuchten,” the opening exhibition at the Modern Art Museum on Mönchsberg. Last year we were involved together on a small scale in the exhibitions on Carsten Höller and Ernesto Neto in Vienna. It simply makes sense to create a bridge between private and public institutions. Agnes Husslein-Arco: Francesca is a collector who has worked closely and for many years with contemporary artists. On the other hand, the Belvedere offers attractive baroque castles and the Winter Palace for exhibitions. As we are always looking for contemporary art to exhibit at these venues, it seemed to me like a good idea to work together.

Olafur Eliasson’s works are about light, color, and phenomena like mist and waves, and he investigates how the interplay of sensory impressions influences our perception of the environment. How does he fit in with your foundation’s program, which has specialized in 21st-century art? Francesca Habsburg: I am one of many people who support Olafur, and we have become good friends. When we spoke about the current exhibition, Agnes suggested the Winter Palace, and I was immediately taken with the idea. The artist was also enthusiastic. He designs his works, above all, for public spaces, white cubes, and large modern exhibition venues, so the Winter Palace is a new challenge. And this is precisely what the role of private collectors is about: personal commitment and, to a certain extent, bold vision. I sometimes miss this in the art world. That is why I appreciate the collaboration with the Belvedere so much. Together we can make things happen that demand more courage, know-how and commitment than is often found in conventional business. Agnes Husslein-Arco: People sometimes forget that contemporary art has always been shown on these premises. The former occupant, Prince Eugene, exhibited contemporary art three hundred years ago. Today, of course, the use of these rooms as a venue for contemporary subjects is a different matter.

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Agnes Husslein-Arco and Francesca Habsburg Photo: Yasmina Haddad

Olafur Eliasson will be exhibiting in a Baroque setting … Francesca Habsburg: There are lots of points of contact. Eliasson is interested in architecture, design, science, psychology, natural phenomena, and geology. If you look more closely at the extraordinary life of Prince Eugene and his outstanding contribution to science and art, parallels very soon become apparent. Eliasson’s elaborate installations are based on complex research, and the passion of the two in this regard is probably c omparable. Agnes Husslein-Arco: Looking at the range of Prince Eugene’s interests – from science to the architecture of his castles and his outstanding collections, from the Eugeniana book collection to a vast mineral collection – we can see that this undersized man had a great intellect. He was a true Renaissance man. Olafur Eliasson reflects all these aspects in his show. Creative ideas for improving the world are currently in vogue in the art world, from the Venice Biennale to the new Vienna Biennale. TBA21 presented the Brazilian artist Ernesto Neto, who embeds ritual and healing in his work, and the 21er Haus showed Tomás Saraceno’s new life models. Are these exhibitions popular with visitors? Francesca Habsburg: They might not be blockbusters, but they attract more and more visitors. The work of TBA21 focuses in particular on artists with social and environmental themes and work at the interface of art and science. Social change is slow, and certain topics tend to be avoided for a long time. Artists often function in this regard as ambassadors. They consider model societies with a sustainable approach to the environment or develop products that change our lives. Olafur Eliasson designed the “Little Sun” lamp, whose batteries are powered by solar energy, bringing light to people who still live without electricity. We must realize that every decision we take has an effect on our planet. Museums can nevertheless attract visitors more easily with a different kind of art … Agnes Husslein-Arco: Museums have the task, above all, of spotlighting relevant questions. They have long become something more than simply the repositories of artifacts. Institutions have changed considerably in the last twenty or thirty years – in their understanding of themselves and naturally in their relationship to artists, visitors, and employees. They have opened up to new artistic developments, new types of visitors, and also new tasks. This includes contributing to society or sometimes making a clear statement. Francesca Habsburg: Art has the power to provoke or change thinking and hence to make the world progress. It is not just about answers but about asking the right questions. 62

Agnes Husslein-Arco: And it’s also about doing something for future generations. In that regard artists are in many ways more farsighted than some politicians. What is the future of TBA21 in the Augarten? The lease runs out in 2017. And the ambitious project at the Hauptbahnhof, Vienna’s main railway station, has evidently run aground. Francesca Habsburg: At some point, everyone at the Hauptbahnhof began simply to pursue their own interests, and the great vision of a cultural area has unfortunately been lost. Agnes Husslein-Arco: Because of the agreement with the federal government regarding the Ambrosi Museum, the Augarten space has only limited potential. That’s why the Belvedere terminated the lease. The space is now being returned to the Burghauptmannschaft, Austria’s castle and fortress authority, who will hopefully devise a new concept. I would naturally welcome it if the TBA21 were involved, but it is unfortunately beyond my control. Francesca Habsburg: We have invested a lot, both financially and in terms of content, in making this space attractive. We have invited internationally renowned artists like Ragnar Kjartansson, Carsten Höller, Ernesto Neto, and now Olafur Eliasson. But a lot more could be done. And here we are back at the bold vision that I would like to see and that I stand for. Agnes Husslein-Arco: This is what worries me precisely. Francesca Habsburg has outstanding international connections, and I am sure that there are enough offers from abroad. It would be an indescribable loss for Vienna. But for the moment the focus is on the Olafur Eliasson show, a major cooperation between the Belvedere and TBA21 Augarten. Francesca Habsburg: … a cooperation between the Belvedere, TBA21 and two other important private collections, – the Juan & Patricia Verges Collection based in Buenos Aires and the Boros Collection in Berlin – although many works come directly from Olafur Eliasson. It's definitely going to be a wonderul project!

Interview

The Green Museum The new profile of KUNST HAUS WIEN Interview by Christian Höller

Bettina Leidl

Photo: Yasmina Haddad

KUNST HAUS WIEN is already quite distinctive on account of its architecture. It is now also developing a new profile in terms of its content. Bettina Leidl, director of the museum since 2014, talks about challenges and new plans.

In spring 2014 you took over as director of KUNST HAUS WIEN. What plans do you have for the museum and how would you like to see it develop in future? Bettina Leidl: One of the fascinating aspects of taking over a new role is to discover the history of the institution. KUNST HAUS WIEN, designed by Friedensreich Hundertwasser and opened in 1991, has a special status within the Vienna museum scene. On the one hand, it is a museum for Hundertwasser’s works, but on the other hand it was also planned as an international art museum. In the early 1990s this was quite novel in terms of modern art because neither the Kunsthalle nor the annex to the Albertina existed in their present form. The museum scene has changed considerably since then, making it an even greater challenge to devise an attractive program for the museum, not least as it is situated outside the museum cluster in the city center. At the same time, there is still the responsibility to Hundertwasser as one of the most important post-war Austrian artists. Christian Höller, born 1966, lives in Vienna. He is editor and co-publisher of “springerin – Hefte für Gegenwartskunst” (www. springerin.at), freelance author and translator and has published widely on art.

What changes have taken place in the year since you took over as director? Bettina Leidl: The first exhibition I programmed, featuring the Japanese photographer Rinko Kawauchi, was a deliberate attempt to emphasize the curatorial aspect. We also have more space, such as the Gallery, to show the

work of contemporary young photographers and to focus more on the present-day photography scene. We will also be making greater use of the inner courtyard and Garage and emphasizing the connection between art and the environment, a concept that was central to Hundert wasser’s ideas and vision. Your predecessor began to focus more on photography. Will you retain this focus? Bettina Leidl: The museum’s focus on photography has a lot to do with making it stand out from other contemporary art institutions. Unfortunately, there is no publicly funded institution in Vienna specializing in photography, hence the importance of historical and contemporary photography for KUNST HAUS WIEN. If the opportunity presents itself, as with Rinko Kawauchi, environmental issues or the relationship between art and nature will also be spotlighted. Are you considering taking a new look at Hundert wasser? Bettina Leidl: There are works on permanent loan from the Hundertwasser Private Foundation on show in the Museum Hundertwasser, which was set up by the artist himself. We are currently negotiating with the Foundation about redesigning the exhibition and taking a new curatorial approach to Hundertwasser’s œuvre. In our new program we focus on Hundertwasser’s visionary idea of combining art, life, and the environment. For example, we offer space to artists who deal with environmental themes. 63

Interview

“There is a curiosity for unknown places” Interim use – a win-win situation? Interview by Karin Cerny

Demand for affordable spaces for creatives is growing. The interim use of empty buildings or apartments is a useful tool from which both property owners and the city stand to profit.

Vienna is rumored home to some 500 empty storefronts and an estimated 60,000 unoccupied apartments. Unused buildings fall into disrepair; an interim use scenario would at least allow owners to recoup operating costs and boost the value of the building and surrounding area. A conversation between Jutta Kleedorfer, project coordinator for multiple usage at MA 18, the municipal department responsible for urban development and urban planning, and Andrea Braidt, vice-rector for art and research at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna. The concept of interim use came to Vienna relatively late. What hurdles do you see here? Jutta Kleedorfer: It’s the same thing you see so often in Vienna: once a trend is established in other cities, people allow it here as well. Peter Stein’s 2001 project “Faust” at Kabelwerk definitely opened a lot of doors. After that, you couldn’t really say that interim use doesn’t work in Vienna. We also have strong tenancy laws. If you want to 64

force interim use, then you have to clarify legal questions like: Who is liable in case of problems? Andrea Braidt: It’s always been easy to generate interest for events. But we run up against limits when it comes to long-term use. Classic interim use means a period of one and a half to two years. For our projects in the area of artistic research, a period of two to four years would be useful. What are landlords afraid of ? Andrea Braidt: Interim use projects are often experimental in nature. You don’t know in the beginning how a project will play out. You have to weigh the different interests and clarify as much as possible in advance. Jutta Kleedorfer: A lot of property owners are cautious, but open. One example: Packhaus in the 3rd District. They recently allowed use of another floor because the owner noticed that the project was good for the building and the area. But Vienna is not the most experimentfriendly city. Here’s my tip: whenever I see an unoccupied space, it doesn’t hurt to call the owner directly to explain my project and ask about options for interim use. We often speak too indirectly in Vienna … and not too much.

How useful are interim use agencies like Nest or Paradox, which mediate between users and landlords? Andrea Braidt: With a large object, it is important that there is an organization that makes the rules and assumes some sort of project management role. Packhaus, which is run by Paradox, is curated. Interested parties had to apply, and a jury selected from the applicants. Packhaus is exciting because it not only practices, but also explores the phenomenon of interim use. Equally important is a contact point on the part of the City of Vienna. Jutta Kleedorfer mediates between artists looking for spaces and real estate companies. This kind of basis of trust is extremely important. Jutta Kleedorfer: Property owners are understandably hesitant to bother drawing up a lot of individual contracts. They want one representative or at least a group that takes on that kind of responsibility. But a lot of applicants have to realize that interim use is not free; tenants pay operating costs, which are usually rather high, especially in older buildings.

Photo: Yasmina Haddad

Andrea Braidt and Jutta Kleedorfer

What does the Academy expect from an interim use situation? Andrea Braidt: Many artists want to interact with society, so location is crucial in that regard. At the same time, you have to know exactly what resources are available for adapting a space for short-term use. Setting up an exhibition space is expensive, even if it isn’t supposed to look like it. The lighting has to be right, you need barrier-free entrances …

Karin Cerny was born in the Waldviertel region and studied German and theater studies in Vienna and Berlin. She works as a freelance journalist, writing regular theater and literary texts for “profil,” and fashion and travel stories for “Rondo” and “Diva.”

Is the Vienna public flexible when it comes to leaving familiar venues? Andrea Braidt: The popular perception of Viennese audiences is that they are very sedate. This is especially evident in the theater: a shuttle has to be organized for anything outside of the Gürtel beltway. The public is accustomed to short distances. The galleries are close together; you can tour all of them on foot. Although it might also be an age thing: students have a much more pronounced desire to discover new things. Jutta Kleedorfer: There is a curiosity about unfamiliar places. That desire is clearly growing, but there is so much going on in Vienna every day that smaller events are easily overlooked. Do interim-use occupants hope to reach a non-art audience as well? How realistic are these expectations? Andrea Braidt: Going to a non-central location in hopes that the neighbors will automatically show up only works in the restaurant business. With art and cultural events, you have to go directly to the people. Not every art gets its point across right away. Does interim use really contribute to gentrification? In what sort of timeframe does a transformation like this happen? Jutta Kleedorfer: We are not in America, where speculation takes hold very quickly. Property prices do not sky-

rocket just because artists move there for a few months. Gentrification is not a big problem here. You don’t see the kind of aggressive, crowding-out process and displacement you see in other cities. Areas do not change fundamentally in periods of less than ten years. Andrea Braidt: A metro connection is certainly the decisive factor for gentrification. And yet there are places in Vienna that do not change, despite the potential to do. Taborstrasse is a good example: it is centrally located, and yet every shop that opens up there closes soon after. Cities like Berlin are much more market-compatible in that regard. How do the older tenants deal with their new residents? Jutta Kleedorfer: Living together requires a certain degree of dependability. You can’t do anything you want. The majority of landlords don’t want a mix between working, living and making art, people leaving the door to the building open at night, or people living in art studios. Rules agreed upon beforehand have to be followed. Andrea Braidt: Contracts are drawn up with the Academy, and we then enter into agreements with project managers. This allows us to guarantee a high degree of liability. Although there is often a lot of boundary-testing of course, especially when it comes to art projects. Do a lot of real estate companies extend the lease? Jutta Kleedorfer: If things are going well, then they are happy to extend the agreement. Or the owner has other properties that he’d like to make available for interim use. The important thing is that the city becomes more involved in the future. 2016 should supposedly see the start of an “agency for vacancy activation,” as laid out in the red-green coalition agreement. An agency like this would reinforce the principle of interim use and make the mediation more systematic. I hope real estate companies also recognize that this is an effective and inexpensive way to advertise a location.

PANEL DISCUSSION

“The Art of Temporary Use. Slogan or Strategy?” Fri., 20 Nov. 2015 6:00–7:30 pm DOROTHEUM, Dorotheergasse 17, 1010 Vienna In German (see page 13) 65

Interview

“Passion is always the main driving force” The new museological director of the Leopold Museum in conversation Interview by Silvie Aigner

Over the past seven years, Hans-Peter Wipplinger has built Kunsthalle Krems’ profile as an international exhibition center; in fall 2015 he took the helm at the Leopold Museum as its museological director. Silvie Aigner spoke to him about his work to date, the role contemporary art has always played in his programming, and his ideas for the Leopold Museum.

Silvie Aigner studied art history at the University of Vienna, with postgraduate studies in cultural management at the Danube University Krems and a doctorate at the Art History Department at the University of Applied Arts Vienna. She currently works as an author and curator of international and Austrian museums and collections, mainly in the field of contemporary art. Aigner has been editor-in-chief of the art magazine “Parnassus” (www.parnass.at) since May 2014. 66

In 1997, you and Heide Linzer founded the art and communication office art:phalanx, a company involved in the conception, financing, implementation and mediation of art and cultural projects in Austria. It combined art and business and put a clear focus on mediation to a larger public. Hans-Peter Wipplinger: I have always thought of myself as an art mediator. My intention was to bring producers from the visual arts, theater, music, literature and architecture and the public together. We worked with all the tools available to us at the time, meaning strategic concepts, press and public relations, marketing and other communication formats. For us as a private sector company, realizing art projects depended on acquiring sponsorship and subsidies. We obviously did something right, because our passion for developing and mediating pro jects drew interest from both sides, attracting artists and funders alike. In 2003, you took over as director of the Museum Moderner Kunst Passau and quickly put it on the map with international exhibitions by Franz West, Yoko Ono, Yves Klein and others. Hans-Peter Wipplinger: The freedom to do that kind of programming was something I had to work for. Until then,

the museum was very much off the radar when it came to the international scene. Our program was decidedly international in orientation, without neglecting outstanding positions within the region. With a small budget and a small, but highly motivated team, we were able to implement large projects. Ultimately, the main driving force is always the passion to make extraordinary exhibitions possible, working with artists and a dedicated team to mediate content that will inspire the audience. You became director of the Kunsthalle Krems in 2009. Once again, you headed a strong international program and won the public over with sensational retrospectives on Paula Modersohn-Becker, Francis Picabia and solo exhibitions by artists like Pipilotti Rist and Ernesto Neto. Hans-Peter Wipplinger: Before taking the position, I looked at what my predecessors had done. I wasn’t trying to break with that; on the contrary, my intention was to build on the priorities set by former directors from Wolfgang Denk to Carl Aigner to Tayfun Belgin. This idea – thinking along these contexts of the past and generating something new out of them – was crucial to developing a new profile. But ultimately, the main thing is always to have an idea of which topics and artists you want to work with to define that direction, because the latter in parti cular have a strong impact on an institution’s identity. The exhibitions have always strived for a museum-type quality, which is rather unusual for a Kunsthalle. Hans-Peter Wipplinger: I mostly based the concept on German Kunsthalles which – like those in Bremen or Hamburg – have a long tradition of museological presentation as well as a collection, the latter of which Krems

does not have. Museum-like exhibitions on the 19th century and classical modernism have dominated the program since the beginning of Kunsthalle Krems’ 20-year history. In my time as director, the team managed to create these kinds of shows for contemporary art as well. In autumn you took over as artistic director of the Leopold Museum, one of the most important museum collections in Austria. What is your focus there? Hans-Peter Wipplinger

Photo: Jasmina Haddad

Hans-Peter Wipplinger, born 1968 in Schärding, studied art history, journalism and communications and theater studies at the University of Vienna. He has worked, among other places, at the OK Centrum für Gegenwartskunst in Linz, as dramaturgy assistant at the Theater in der Josefstadt, at the New Museum in New York, and finally for Hans Hurch at the Viennale, for which he curated exhibitions on Hiroshi Sugimoto and Yoko Ono, among others. In 2003 he became director of the Museum Moderner Kunst in Passau, and was director of the Kunsthalle Krems starting in 2009.

Hans-Peter Wipplinger: At the heart of this museum’s internationally outstanding collection are masterpieces that admirably document the change in style around 1900 and the subsequent two decades. Vienna, as we know, played a significant role in modernism’s revival movement. This atmosphere spawned innovations that had a profound impact on the last century. I want to draw more attention to the intellectual aura of that period, to focus even more on the intellectual and cultural history, and in doing so embed art production in the social and political developments of that time. With this unique collection as a basis, the plan is to create important themed and monographic exhibitions, and not least draw international art historical comparisons. Retrospective one-person exhibitions will focus on artists that have never been seen in Austria until now, or have not been exhibited here for a long time. This was also the case in Krems with our exhibitions of work by Modersohn-Becker and Picabia, for example. Your recent programs stressed contemporary art as well. How important will recent work be for the Leopold Museum?

Hans-Peter Wipplinger: The Leopold Museum offers a number of opportunities to develop contemporary art projects. The exhibition of works by Tracey Emin in dialogue with works by Egon Schiele was one example of how the Leopold Museum can intelligently integrate contemporary art into its traditional program. It doesn’t always have to be a dialogue – prominent contemporaries can be featured in one-person exhibitions. What we will not do is allow contemporary artists to curate works in the collection, because we already have a professional team of scholars and very good exhibition organizers within the institution. As curators, we have to assume this responsibility. Exhibition making has a lot to do with attitude – towards history, the artists, the public, etc. It is always a political act. At Kunsthalle Krems, you also pushed for the involvement of other art disciplines and collaborations with institutions like the Danube Festival. Hans-Peter Wipplinger: This is clearly my intention for the Leopold Museum as well. I have had conversations with my longtime collaborator Tomas Zierhofer-Kin, former head of the Danube Festival in Krems and designated director of the Wiener Festwochen (Vienna Festival), and have been in talks with Hans Hurch of the Viennale film festival and Karl Regensburger from ImPulsTanz Festival, for example. Whether it’s performance, music, cinema or dance: all of these genres were very important for the modern period. That makes them ideal for interesting collaborations and synergies with visual art. Such synergies or antitheses can be starting points for new paths and perspectives, such as those that triggered off the modern period. 67

Interview

“How do you deal with the public?” On art around 1990 and its re-presentation Interview by Christa Benzer

The mumok exhibition “To expose, to show, to demonstrate, to inform, to offer” sheds light on “artistic practices around 1990.” In an interview, exhibition curator Matthias Michalka discusses key issues of the period and the challenge of presenting these practices in a museum.

The exhibition covers “artistic practices” developed between about 1985 and 1995. Why this time frame? Matthias Michalka: Urgent economic and social challenges in the years around 1990 fueled intense discussion, not only about the social significance of artistic work, but also concerning the relationship between art and its public, its presentation and the conditions of reception. The question as to what an exhibition achieves or can achieve as a medium became a key concern and focus of artistic work. This wasn’t a completely new concept, of course, but the late 1980s and early 1990s saw developments coming together in a way that led to a very specific discourse that struck me as important, especially considering the current social situation and what appeared important in the contemporary art scene. Adding to this is the fact that artistic work from that time, or this topic as a historical phenomenon, have hardly been shown or discussed in a museum context. How did art become repoliticized? Matthias Michalka: There are several explanations as to why a connection to society, artistic and self-criticism are gaining traction again. Artistic developments were accompanied by a critique of representation as it was also articulated in cultural studies. They were accompanied by debates about social and cultural inclusion and exclusion, 68

identity and gender politics, and took place against the backdrop of the AIDS crisis. The stock market crash of 1987 was not without consequences, either. But as far back as 1990, in the first issue of “Texte zur Kunst,” editor Isabelle Graw notes that one-dimensional explanatory models – such as the assertion that because of the looming economic crisis artists were no longer working with traditional or expensive materials and were renouncing the visual in favor of the linguistic – were far too narrow a view. While the accelerated art and social criticism around 1990 certainly had to do with economic challenges, even the economic boom of the early 1980s saw important artists working in a socially critical, conceptual way, like the collective Group Material, for example. Founded in 1979, the group engaged the question as to how one can even continue to produce and exhibit artwork given the AIDS crisis. These developments led to a surge in discourse and theory. How did this change artistic forms of representation? Matthias Michalka: They expanded them more than anything. Conceived as an interface between artistic production and social reception, an exhibition is the link between art and the public. So it wasn’t just socio-political issues that were being discussed, but also the way in which these topics were introduced to society. The rhetorics of institutional exhibition spaces were thrown into question, new modes of display created, forms of representation and discourse emerged. Around 1990, artworks could also be products or processes; they came in the form of discursive contributions or magazine inserts, but also appeared as objects, photographs, installations, dis-

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collaboration with Judith Barry were much-discussed, and it’s no coincidence that he also had a hand in Helmut Draxler and Andrea Fraser’s “Services” project. “Services” asked what services cultural workers and artists might offer established museums. Ken Saylor is interesting when it comes to these questions. We are also in a lively exchange with the artists themselves, of course, who since then have continued to experiment with new exhibition formats and whose knowledge will enter into the exhibition. The artists from that time are still active. Are you only showing works from around 1990? Matthias Michalka: We’re only showing historical pro jects and works. But re-exhibiting them in 2015 calls, in some cases, for a re-formatting of the historical materials. Judith Barry, for example – who designed the 1986 exhibition “Damaged Goods” as her artistic contribution to that show – will build an elaborate model of the situation at the time for “To expose, to show, to demonstrate, to inform, to offer.” Some of the projects can only be understood through documentary material, and then there are original objects that the artists partly restage. One of the works we’re showing is by Fareed Armaly, which he realized in Cologne in 1992. That work was absolutely site- and timespecific in its approach, so for us he developed a form of re-presentation that includes historical material, but also draws attention to the fact that 25 years have passed since then and now, and that we are now in a museum.

Matthias Michalka

Photo: Yasmina Haddad

plays, services or performative interventions. Magazines and fanzines became very important: “Message as Medium” from the Vienna-based “museum in progress” or publications like “A.N.Y.P.,” “Artfan,” “Dank,” “springer,” “Texte zur Kunst,” “Vor der Information,” to name a few German-language examples. Art spaces became club spaces with archives, reading rooms and information services, but symposia like the 1992 “Das ästhetische Feld” (The Aesthetic Field) symposium at the University of Applied Arts Vienna were also very influential.

Christa Benzer is coeditor of the art magazine “springerin – Hefte für Gegenwartskunst” and works as a freelancer for the daily newspaper “Der Standard.” She lives in Vienna.

How does one deal with these critical approaches in a museum exhibition? Matthias Michalka: This question is of course something I have been thinking about for quite a while. In the end it was clear to me that this can only succeed in close cooperation with the artists, whose critical examinations of the exhibition format form the core of our historical survey. We were lucky to work with Ken Saylor on the exhibition design, who attended the Whitney Independent Study Program in the 1980s and designed the fair booths for American Fine Arts around 1990. His exhibitions in

What prompted this look back at the 1990s now, at this particular point in time? Matthias Michalka: I think the question as to what exhibitions can do as a format warrants as much discussion now as it did back then. The influx of events and publications of late speaks volumes to this effect – not to mention the current discussions surrounding the role of the exhibition maker, or the curator. But to do this you have to know the history behind it, and the point of departure: the early 1990s saw the founding of the first formal training programs for curators, and cultural studies was introduced to the art academies. Back then it was mostly the artists themselves who slipped into the role of curators and exhibition organizers, or vigorously questioned these roles. One of the things the exhibition sets out to do is to make the material from that time available. Will it be a sentimental look at the past? Matthias Michalka: As in “everything was better back then?” No, I’m not interested in that and it doesn’t fit the way I work. But questions like “How do you deal with the public?” and “What is the context of one’s own work, and what are the conditions of reception?” are still important for artists, curators, etc. For me, it was also about recalling and reminding audiences of the socio-critical components – key issues for everything that had to do with exhibiting back then. 69

Interview

Launch Pad for Young Artists 28th anniversary of the Start Gallery of the City of Vienna at MUSA Interview by Alexandra Matzner

The Start Gallery at MUSA organizes nine or ten exhibitions a year, enabling young artists to show their work for the first time. Berthold Ecker, MUSA director and head of the Fine Arts section of the Department of Cultural Affairs of the City of Vienna, talks about the history and future of the Start Gallery.

How long has the Start Gallery existed? Berthold Ecker: It was founded in 1987 in Schönlaterngasse, where the Alte Schmiede art association has its headquarters today. The Artothek founded by Helmut Zilk also dates from this time, offering inhabitants of the city the possibility of borrowing artworks for their own homes. What was the background to this encouragement of young artists? Berthold Ecker: When Wolfgang Hilger was appointed in 1985 as art expert in charge of purchases for the Department of Cultural Affairs, he had the idea of setting up a gallery at the same time. Initially it was located next to the offices in Schönlaterngasse and in the Künstlerhaus arcade. Later, the room where the Artothek artworks were hung was redesigned as the Förderungsgalerie Alte Schmiede. Regular exhibitions by young Viennese artists started in 1988/89.

Alexandra Matzner, born 1974 in Linz, studied art history, history, and romance philology in Vienna and Rome. Her work as an art communicator, cultural journalist and curator includes numerous publications and catalogue articles on photography and art in the 20th and 21st centuries. She works as a freelance author in Vienna and is currently developing the independent culture platform www.textezukunst.com. 70

Who chose them? Berthold Ecker: At the time, the decision lay exclusively with Wolfgang Hilger. He nominated young artists whom he had met as an art buyer. Hilger was completely familiar with the art scene and it was therefore easy for him to identify artists worthy of encouragement. What is the main focus of the Start Gallery’s activities? Berthold Ecker: It offers artists the opportunity of exhibiting for the first time and also of arranging the exhibitions. They can choose the concept and setting themselves. This enables them to gain experience in all aspects

of a career in fine arts today. It allows us to stage eight or nine exhibitions a year, and we gather lots of experience. All of the proceeds from the sale of artworks go to the artists. How many exhibitions have there been to date at the Start Gallery? Berthold Ecker: The current exhibition by Iris Dittler is number 245. There is no other gallery presenting as many young artists for the first time in Austria. For a long time, the Neue Galerie in Graz operated the Studio, a similar institution, but it unfortunately no longer exists. Does the 21er Raum in the 21er Haus have a similar launch function to the Start Gallery? Berthold Ecker: In my opinion, the 21er Raum program reflects the aims of the institution. The curators choose exhibitors who fit its profile as an avant-garde exhibition space. That is not our primary objective. We look to cover the entire spectrum.

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Is that still possible today? Berthold Ecker: It’s probably impossible in the long run, but this is a question of attitude. The MUSA collection is also conceived in this way. There are around 5,000 artists in Vienna, and 4,500 from the period since 1945 are now represented in the collection. Practically all art genres relevant to Vienna end up in the collection sooner or later. We would like to do the same with these first exhibitions. How has the choice of artists changed over the years? Berthold Ecker: Wolfgang Hilger introduced a jury for purchases in 1986, which was of great benefit for the Department’s collection. This seven- or eight-person jury contained representatives from educational institutions, museums, the academic world, art media, and art associations such as the Secession, Künstlerhaus, or IG Bildende Kunst. It is now a committee with five members and since 2003 has been nominating candidates for the following year. How can artists apply to exhibit in the Start Gallery? Berthold Ecker: Applications for all fine arts subsidies – including study trips, purchases, backing for studios, and participation in the Start Gallery – are submitted in January and February. For 2016 there were around 150 applications. The decision was made in March. The Start Gallery is now located at MUSA, next to the city hall. What changes did that involve? Berthold Ecker: The incorporation in MUSA brought about some fundamental changes. The Start Gallery is now combined with a museum that contains an exhibition from the collection and with the Artothek. This triad is one of the secrets to MUSA’s success. The MUSA prize for young artists is worth 5,000 euros and has been awarded since 2014 as an acknowledgement of particularly successful exhibitions. It is supposed to be an additional encouragement for artists showing an outstanding conceptual approach to art and to raise public awareness. The Media Art Grant was also awarded in 2014 for the first time.

Berthold Ecker

Photo: Yasmina Haddad

When the jury nominates young artists who have just finished their studies and are still looking for their own style, it must come as something of a surprise to them to find themselves with an exhibition. Berthold Ecker: It can sometimes be a big surprise! A graphic artist might submit an application and then find herself devising an installation for the exhibition. This is possible because the artists are at the start of their

careers and are still experimenting. It is important for us that the Start Gallery is a place where they can do this, and where they sometimes fail. We are aware of this risk, but I have the feeling that these days students are taught a professional approach. This is very different from the 1970s and 1980s. Does the Department of Cultural Affairs purchase works from the exhibitions? Berthold Ecker: It is not obliged to, but it can happen. The nomination for an exhibition in the Start Gallery also includes a purchasing recommendation from the committee. The work might not be shown in the exhibition. Sometimes I find more suitable items for the collection in the artist’s studio. In other words, an exhibition at the Start Gallery is not only the first public appearance but also an entrance into the City of Vienna’s collection? Berthold Ecker: It helps both sides and it’s a form of recognition. After all, the recommendation comes from five or six experts. I should like to say something about the term “young artists.” Not often, but occasionally, we have artists who started studying later on. Although they are new artists, they are actually older. We have no age limit, however, and we also offer them an opportunity. How do you think the Start Gallery will develop in the future? Berthold Ecker: It will depend on the development of MUSA, which functions as a gallery for Vienna as a province. It is thus of great significance for the urban scene, particularly for artists embarking on an international career. The Start Gallery could perhaps put on more exhibitions. The publication of small catalogues would be another conceivable step. Can you recall any artists who have become famous after exhibiting during the Start Gallery’s thirty-year history? Berthold Ecker: That’s a difficult question. Some of the most successful include Katharina Hinsberg, Ramesch Daha, Moussa Kone, Robert F. Hammerstiel, Michael Schneider, Ronald Kodritsch, Katrin Plavcak, Rita Vitorelli, Andrea Ressi, Fabian Seiz, Sula Zimmerberger, Robert Muntean, Kamen Stoyanov, Anja Manfredi – this is going to be a long list …

www.wien.gv.at/kultur/abteilung/foerderungen/ bildendekunst.html 71

Interview

“The Künstlerhaus is two different things!” Peter Zawrel on the position, program and projects of the Vienna Künstlerhaus Interview by Martin Fritz

The Vienna Künstlerhaus is focusing on some burning questions these days. “Burning Questions” is the aptly titled annual theme of the Künstlerhaus, which is both a striking building and an artists’ association. Managing director Peter Zawrel explains his institution in a conversation with Martin Fritz.

How would you explain the Künstlerhaus to an outsider? Peter Zawrel: The Künstlerhaus is two different things. On the one hand, there is the building on Karlsplatz in Vienna, which is very well known both as a structure and through its exhibitions. But the name also refers to an artists’ association that was founded in 1851 and erected the building here. This artists’ association – called the Künstlerhaus, Gesellschaft bildender Künstlerinnen und Künstler Österreichs [Artists’ House, Society of Women Artists and Artists in Austria] – also owns the property. Do artists still need associations today? Peter Zawrel: They need them again, I would say. That's interesting. Why? Peter Zawrel: Artists’ associations came out of a civic and political attitude in the first half of the 19th century. They were always backed by the notion of cooperative society, of working together. That is why the Widows and Orphans Aid Fund, still a social aid organization today, has always been housed here in the building. It comes from a time when there was no social security, let alone a 72

social security scheme for artists. You might think these social aspects have become obsolete. What purpose could they serve now? But we have clearly entered a time when artists are thinking more about their role in society, about their political and social responsibilities. And this is where an artists’ association suddenly becomes interesting again, because it offers opportunities for dialogue. Is this a new development? Peter Zawrel: No. Although I have had a growing number of requests from association members wanting spaces to be used for events, discussions and meetings, rather than just for exhibitions. Would you say an artists’ association is more like a family or a cooperative? Peter Zawrel: It’s probably more like a family, because there’s more fighting in a family than in a cooperative, and yet you are always conscious of the fact that you share something. There are different views, of course. We have to generate enough income to cover operating costs, which are very high. It’s because of this that we also rent out parts of the building. Theoretically I could rent out the building all year round, but then it would lose its profile completely. Has the association always been interdisciplinary? Peter Zawrel: There have always been architects. The association was multidivisional from the start. It was

meant to give everyone a home and foster dialogue between disciplines. Interdisciplinarity was aggressively pursued and developed over the years, through photography, film and so-called new media. So who decides on the program? Do the members do it or is there some sort of curatorial level? Peter Zawrel: The association is not particularly effective when it comes to curating itself. Members recognized this, and so now we come up with annual themes and invite outside parties to co-curate with us. It’s an interesting process, I think. But here of course you have to distinguish between the in-house program – what we create within the association – and what we have to do in terms of cooperation and rentals. Recent shows have featured Ukrainian revolutionary art, cooperations with Croatian artists and new Slovenian art. Are you actively pursuing an international angle or is it a response to growing demand? Peter Zawrel: Internationalizing is something that interests us of course, especially when it comes to cooperation with other associations, initiatives and artistic institutions. We are interested in opening up to regions that the public might be less familiar with. The next two years will be spent working on projects related to art in Iran, the Arab world and North Africa, for example.

Peter Zawrel

Photo: Yasmina Haddad

Martin Fritz is a consultant, curator and journalist in Vienna, with a focus on art institutions, site-specific art, structural issues and cultural policy. In 2011, he curated the exhibition “Beziehungs arbeit. Kunst und Institution” (“Relationship Work: Art and Institution”) for the 150th anniversary of the Künstlerhaus artists’ association.

Is that also a reaction to the local scene? There are a lot of exhibition spaces in Vienna, and many institutions needing to distinguish themselves. Would you say there is lots of competition here? How does the Künstlerhaus position itself in this context, also from a strategic perspective? Peter Zawrel: The Künstlerhaus would rather not see itself as a competitor, but it is forced to compete. Vienna has a lot of exhibition venues to fill, maybe even too many. So then of course you have to ask yourself: What should be going on at the Künstlerhaus? You have to think very carefully about what kind of exhibition or event you put on in this building. And you have to deal with the problem that an exhibition and event building that is forced to rent itself out will have a very difficult time creating and maintaining a clearly recognizable profile from the outside.

Sounds promising. Do you have something like a working title for it? A kind of newly-defined mission? Peter Zawrel: I can’t say now. There was only this one session. But there were a lot of great ideas, and we articulated some new concepts. We’ll probably know more in two or three months’ time. A number of decisions will be taken by November. Speaking of November: What can VIENNA ART WEEK visitors expect to find at the Künstlerhaus? What specific event are they invited to? Peter Zawrel: The title of our annual theme is “Burning Questions.” By this we mean questions that artists must or choose to ask themselves today in dealing with themselves and their art, but also with regard to society and politics. The fall program also features a number of exhibitions, events, interventions, a performance series, discussions, lectures and much more. Can you tell us a few of these burning questions? Peter Zawrel: One will be the question of the artistic subject. What is it, anyway? Or the question of feasibility. The Künstlerhaus is presenting its first-ever non-curated exhibition, showing everything that comes in, namely unrealized projects. Is anyone welcome to contribute? Peter Zawrel: Any member of the Künstlerhaus. One architect in the building said we could make a sensational exhibition with just the unrealized winning projects of architectural competitions. There will also be events related to political issues. “Art and age” is one topic we will be looking at near the end of November. Artists are getting older. But to what extent do the traditional life and career models still apply? Do you have to earn your first million by the time you are 30, or is it legitimate not to have made it at 70? Is brilliance at 80 allowed? These are interesting questions considering the real circumstances that surround them, in social policy, for example.

Given the Generali Foundation’s migration, the closing of BAWAG P.S.K. Contemporary and changes at the Essl Collection, for example – does the association see new opportunity for itself and feel a certain obligation as a private-sector entity? Peter Zawrel: I would say so. My impression stems from a two-day evaluation session we just had. The activity of our individual members covers a spectrum ranging from what the tax office considers a hobby to official entrepreneurship or a day job. And yet you are always an artist, so you ask yourself: What can I do? What is my contribution? What does society need? So it’s only logical to ask: How can a 150-year-old artists’ association make itself useful? 73

Art and Architecture

Visions With a View Frederick Kiesler’s creative work is more relevant than ever before Text by Stefan Musil

He was an architect, designer, theorist and much more. The Austro-American architect Frederick Kiesler worked in an interdisciplinary way and his thinking anticipated the future. His work burst all boundaries and much of it still remains to be discovered, say Hani Rashid and Peter Bogner, respectively president and director of the globally active Kiesler Private Foundation in Vienna.

Peter Bogner and Hani Rashid

Photo: Yasmina Haddad 74

“I believe the time is now ripe,” says Peter Bogner, director of the Austrian Frederick and Lillian Kiesler Private Foundation. This institution was founded in 1997 after the Republic of Austria and the City of Vienna had managed to acquire the estate of Frederick Kiesler with the help of private benefactors. As a result Kiesler, who was born in 1890 in Chernivtsi, which at that time was in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, finally obtained a platform in his former home where his work could be studied and presented. Of course, the entire potential of this allrounder has not yet been recognized and researched – particularly with regard to his visionary power, which today is increasingly being discovered by contemporary architects and artists.

In the late 1950s Kiesler was still regarded as a kind of “insiders’ tip” in the Austrian art and architecture scene. In 1963 Clemens Holzmeister invited him to participate in an exhibition. The 73-year-old Kiesler was delighted by this invitation but the project never came to fruition. It was only after Kiesler’s death in December 1965 that this exceptional artist personality was finally devoted more attention, also in Austria. A milestone in the reception of Kiesler’s work was an exhibition in the Museum of Modern Art in 1988, which was accompanied by a catalogue edited by Dieter Bogner. Dieter Bogner co-founded the Kiesler Foundation, acquired donations to expand its inventory, and served as its president until 2013. Today Hani Rashid holds this office. Co-founder of the New York office “Asymptote Architecture,” Rashid is among the world’s best-known architects, has taught at the University of Applied Arts in Vienna since 2011, and was himself awarded the Kiesler Prize in 2004, together with Lise Anne Couture. This places him in the ranks of internationally acclaimed names such as Frank O. Gehry, the first Kiesler prize-winner in

1998, Olafur Eliasson (2006), Toyo Ito (2008), Heimo Zobernig (2010) and, most recently, Bruce Nauman in 2014. The Frederick Kiesler Prize for Architecture and Art, which is worth 55,000 euros, a substantial amount in international comparison, is probably the most important instrument in more firmly establishing the significance of Kiesler and his work. Director Peter Bogner regards the decision by Kiesler’s widow Lillian to forego part of the purchase price for the estate as a very wise one. This allows the award to be granted a total of 15 times, which, Bogner believes, is what makes it possible to “properly establish Kiesler internationally.” Like few others in the 20th century, Kiesler linked Europe and America with each other. Bogner certainly knows of no other Austrian artist personality who possesses this dimension, “or this openness that enabled him to work as architect, designer, theorist, teacher and – as a pragmatic response to the need to earn money in his early days in the USA – to even design stage sets or shop windows, for instance for Saks Fifth Avenue.” Alongside Vienna, Berlin and Paris were the most important places in Kiesler’s early life, before he finally settled in New York in 1926 with his first wife Stefi. “Kiesler was an extremely good networker,” says Peter Bogner. He knew many of the most important artists and personalities of his time, “from Josef Hoffman, Hans Arp, Marcel Duchamp to the Surrealists, Peggy Guggenheim, and even Andy Warhol. There are photos of him with Warhol. For me Kiesler is the personality who connects Central Europe, Vienna around 1900 and its protagonists such as Otto Wagner, Josef Hoffmann, Ludwig Wittgenstein and Adolf Loos with the international avant-garde of the 1920s and the 1930s up to the present day. Take, for instance, his concept of Correalism: its idea is that one can work in any medium, move between different media, bring everything together – which is exactly how many artists work today.” Hani Rashid sees this in much the same way: “Throughout his entire life Frederick Kiesler battled as an artist, architect, designer, thinker and provocateur for a future completely liberated from the past. His early experiences with the European fin-de-siècle avant-garde, with De Stijl, Surrealism and Dada led him on a lifelong path of artistic discoveries, involving installations, unorthodox furniture designs, theater designs and, finally, architecture that is as unusual as it is wonderful.”

Stefan Musil is a Viennabased art historian, freelance cultural journalist and music critic.

“Today Kiesler exerts a strong influence on our work at Asymptote, where we traverse boundaries between many disciplines, creating virtual spaces as well as producing radical designs for new buildings and urban planning, installations of very different kinds and other experimental projects,” says Rashid. Presently, as President of the Kiesler Foundation, he is in touch with important personalities in New York who have an affinity with Kiesler in pursuit of his aim to set up a foundation board (without voting power) there. Another goal is to establish a Kiesler space in New York. Among those whom Rashid has already contacted is Glenn Lowry, Director of MoMA. Lowry has a great passion for Kiesler and this “opens the door for us to MoMA’s huge and wonderful Kiesler collection, which many people don’t know at all. One of my motives is to build a bridge for the foundation to New York, as this was where, after leaving Vienna, Kiesler spent the major part of his career and his life. This would also revive the connection between these two cities.” Along with awarding the prize, which is a highly effective external signal, the Kiesler Foundation has numerous other duties. It preserves and processes the material in the estate. Today, it is an important contact point for those carrying out research work – not just scholars, but also many artists. Throughout the world it initiates, plans, curates and supports numerous exhibitions. Kiesler is currently present in New York with an exhibition in the Austrian Cultural Forum and a presentation about the “Endless House” in MoMA. A show in the Israel Museum in Jerusalem examines his “Shrine of the Book,” while discussions, workshops and symposia are being held in Princeton and Vienna, and publications and a documentary film are planned. 2016 will see major retrospectives in the Vienna MAK and the Martin-Gropius-Bau in Berlin. And together with the specialist manufacturer Wittmann a “re-edition” of a number of selected furniture designs by Kiesler is being produced. Naturally, more money is needed. Firstly to expand the foundation’s limited facilities for exhibitions by creating a special Kiesler space at a prominent location in Vienna, but also to carry out more intensive research. Finally, one of Peter Bogner’s greatest wishes is to be able to continue awarding the Kiesler Prize beyond the envisaged 15 times.

Rashid was still a student when he first heard about Kiesler’s surrealism in a lecture. He was particularly inspired by the fact that a trained architect had immersed himself so deeply in this direction of art. Rashid began to have doubts whether his own training was the right way to become an architect. Whatever the case, this contact encouraged him to question a great number of things and to remain open to new discoveries. 75

Program

Electrifying Cultural Offerings Electric Avenue in the MuseumsQuartier Wien Text by Alexandra Matzner

In 2003, a year after it opened, Thomas Trenkler described Electric Avenue as a “thematic focal point in quartier 21,” noting that “the partners gathered in this section work, among other things, with electronic music [...], video art, Internet activism and futurology.”1 Twelve years later, the mixture of autonomous cultural institutions has become more diverse. An on-site investigation.

A trendy, sparkly guidance system has been leading visitors through Electric Avenue since last year, and flyers at the entrances make it clear that the art boulevard probably has more users than you see at first glance. Designed in 2003, the interior architecture by PPAG Popelka and Poduschka traverses the almost 60-meter long corridor like a futuristic piece of furniture – not by chance recalling the “Enzi” seats in the main courtyard, another one of their designs. The goal was to create a 576-squaremeter large platform for cultural workers and institutions that would be sufficient for the widest variety of purposes. The barrel vault of the former royal stables had to be preserved, so the platform was braced inside the building’s baroque outer shell. In 2002, Electric Avenue consisted of five institutions. Two of them are still on board: both monochrom and q/uintessenz deal with digital media and technology. Their socio-critical attitude overturns established structures (monochrom) and calls for civil rights (q/uintessenz). The important thing is that analysis is followed up with discussions, information and events. While monochrome found international prominence with Roboexotica, a festival for cocktail robotics, q/uintessenz, organizer of the Big Brother Award and the Linux Weeks, is active in the area of providing information on data breaches. Their work is accompanied by meetings and talks that create dialogue platforms for scientists, opinion-makers, lobbyists and others interested in the subject. Both q/unitessenz and monochrome chose the MuseumsQuartier based on an early feel for the area as an emerging hub of digital culture, with different trends coming together. 76

Unlike q/unitessenz, whose only office view is the staircase leading to the upper floor, monochrom’s space sits as though on display. Their office-archive-workshop mutates into a kind of constant-flux exhibition space, and also encourages passersby to stick their comments on the glass wall. Today, Electric Avenue’s mixture of artist offices, exhibition spaces, archives, shops and the event space “Room D” has a more than ten-year history. PPAG Architects’ original intention was to provide a gallery-like, open space. Later, the open areas were partitioned with glass walls and repurposed for use as exhibition or work spaces. Currently they accommodate the presentation surfaces of Asifa Austria, Station Rose, Artistic Bokeh and PERFEKT WORLD, as well as the display windows of the photography magazine “EIKON” and the University of Applied Arts. Teachers and graduates of the Fine Arts and Media Art Institute offer a glimpse into their “digital studios” and artistic strategies. Since 2008, the “EIKON Schaufenster” has exhibited mostly (but not exclusively) Austrian artists, with a feature article on each in the current issue of the magazine. Although the magazine understands itself as a platform for photography and media art, they have been known to show installation work as well. For Nela Eggenberger, editor-in-chief of “EIKON,” the Schaufenster adds another level to the publication. Meanwhile, the multimedia event space “Room D / quartier21” has established itself as a place of communication. Many of the Electric Avenue-based institutions use it for presentations and discussions, including the association SUBOTRON, which encourages a younger generation of scholars and artists working in the area of digital game culture. Its colorful display area across from the cafeteria is filled, among other things, with highquality second-hand computer games, attracting customers and others who might be interested. But the shop, which opened in 2004, is not all there is to the SUBOTRON

Partners of Electric Avenue Artistic Bokeh Asifakeil EIKON Schaufenster eSeL REZEPTION Gruppe Or-Om monochrom PERFEKT WORLD QDK – Quarter for Digital Culture q/uintessenz Room D / Q21 Say, Say, Say, Inc. Angewandte SHOWROOM SR-Archiv Station Rose SUBOTRON

to translate the digital into a visual form. The seven colors designate areas of netculture, music, arts, design, publishing, public affairs and gaming. The branches clearly show how many disciplines these cultural producers are involved in – sometimes simultaneously.

René Poell (Say Say Say, Inc.), Elisa Rose and Gary Danner (Station Rose), Georg Markus Kainz (q/uintessenz), Jutta Wacht (Say Say Say, Inc.), Jogi Neufeld (SUBOTRON), Nela Eggenberger (EIKON), Lorenz Seidler (eSeL REZEPTION), and Franky Ablinger (monochrom) (f. l. t. r.) Photo: Yasmina Haddad

business model: the association organizes competitions and developer contests and puts best-practice examples up for discussion, as the concept of games has changed enormously in recent years.

Alexandra Matzner, born 1974 in Linz, studied art history, history and romance studies in Vienna and Rome. She works as a curator, art educator and cultural journalist. Numerous publications and catalogue essays on photography and art of the 20th and 21st centuries. As a freelance writer in Vienna, she is currently building the independent cultural platform www.textezukunst.com.

Design and communication are also important work areas for Say Say Say, Inc., albeit from a completely different perspective. Also based in New York City, Jutta Wacht and René Poell have been working on the upper floor of Electric Avenue since 2012. Say Say Say, Inc. is active in book and magazine design, typography, art direction and digital communication. Working on 33 square meters on the upper floor, members of Design Austria use the MQ’s lively, bubbling atmosphere to capture moods and react to them in their work. For VIENNA ART WEEK 2014, Say Say Say, Inc. collaborated with eSeL on the aforementioned guidance system as a “Running Mindmap.” Wacht and Poell assumed the painstaking work of cutting out and gluing the trashy material to the dark floor. The mosaic tiles are meant to be reminiscent of pixels, that is

Station Rose are among the founders of digital art in Austria. They have been collaborating since 1988 and only recently returned to Vienna. Since late 2012, media artist Elisa Rose and musician Gary Danner can be found in the space opposite monochrome. They use their area as a showroom for their own work, inviting friends to exhibit as well. The duo developed their congenial mix of electronic music, visual arts and interactive media in Frankfurt and San Francisco between 1991 and 2011. The fact that Station Rose is once again a real place (they were based in Vienna’s fourth district from 1988 to 1991), and that this place is the MQ, means a lot to the artist duo. Station Rose have been doing seminal work in the area of digital land art, a combination of land art, performance and their audio-visual implementations. Though the limited space at Electric Avenue means they can only show their work in a reduced form, the space serves as a flagship, hopefully facilitating the step towards making connections in the digital world. So what is Electric Avenue 2015? In any case it is diverse, autonomous, welcoming and communication-oriented, at home in both the digital and the “real” worlds, internationally networked, situated in the heart of Vienna, analytical, discursive-theoretical, informative, entertaining, open twelve hours a day, building for the future … Besides its central location, Electric Avenue is above all a shared workplace inspired by Q21 which – apart from the initiatives on Electric Avenue – boasts additional 40 offices, agencies, editorial offices, and artist studios in the MQ area. www.Q21.at 1 Thomas Trenkler, “Das Museumsquartier Wien. Hier passiert es” (Vienna: Ueberreuter, 2003), p. 77. 77

Cultural Sciences

Sleeping Giants in Our Midst Activating the “soft power” of museums Text by Ngaire Blankenberg

For centuries, museums represented – hard – economic and military power. The modern museum, however, also has soft power, the power to influence society through persuasion, attraction and specialization. For their role to grow, museums need to become aware of their “soft power.”

Ngaire Blankenberg co-authored (with Gail Lord) “Cities, Museums and Soft Power,” a publication that urges museums to play a more vital role in creating equitable, inclusive and empowering cities. As European Director and Principal Consultant at Lord Cultural Resources, the world’s largest museum and cultural professional practice, Blankenberg consults museums, the private sector and governments throughout the world on ways to use their cultural assets to benefit the public. Her clients include the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture (United States), the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, the Bihar Museum (India), the Historic District of Dubai, the King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture (Saudi Arabia), the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, the Barangaroo Delivery Authority (Australia) and the European Parliament’s Parlamentarium visitor center (Belgium). 78

The world’s approximately 80,0001 museums are giants in the urban landscape. Many occupy prime and visible real estate, announcing their presence on billboards, banners and tourism offices. Everyone knows these institutions exist and more or less believes that they should. But despite their symbolic and physical size, museums are often regarded as sleepy if not completely asleep when it comes to their role in the lives of the people who surround them. Museums do a lot more than they get credit for, both within and outside of their four walls. Museum “outreach” and community programs Museum resources are successfully “deployed” in public spaces, schools, shopping centers and airports, community centers, retirement homes, prisons, hospitals and virtually, online and in mobile and social media. Examples of this include: • An arts trail at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in London, where post-operative patients are encouraged to exercise along a path featuring works from its comprehensive collection of contemporary British art, with an audio component consisting of original musical compositions.2 • The Museo Civico di Zoologia, a natural history museum in Rome, has a mobile museum of animal specimens and scientific instruments that it uses in its work with young offenders, refugees at a refugee center, adult immigrants, the elderly and people with hearing impairments.3

• The Apropa Cultura (Closer to Culture)4 / Educa amb l’art (Educate with Art) program in Catalonia, Spain, trains social workers, therapists and care-givers to use performing arts and museums as a tool in their work with vulnerable people. • The gallery and museum Lightbox in Woking, UK, collaborated with the local Muslim community and Shah Jahan Mosque to record contemporary expressions of traditional Islamic poetry with cross-generational and cross-cultural participants and artists.5 Museums have been doing outreach programs like these for decades. The most successful (that is, those that have the greatest and most enduring impact on participants and museums) are programs that make use of museum resources including collections, people and research, but are also prepared to tackle issues of power and identity as they relate to the museum itself. Museums in the age of soft power For centuries, museums have been tools of cultural hegemony and social domination, perpetuating the values of the elite. In the past, museums have represented economic and military might, otherwise known as “hard power.” They displayed trophies of the nobility, war and colonialism; they showed exhibitions focused on hierarchies of civilization and celebrated the accomplishments of “great men.” And yet the museums of today also have “soft power,” a term coined by international relations expert Joseph Nye6 to describe a nation’s ability to influence others through persuasion, attraction and “framing the agenda” rather than by force or economic pressure. Soft power is typically exerted through ideas, values and culture, not only by governments or corporations (holders of “hard” power) but also via networks and the web by universities, non-

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eSeL.at/Lorenz Seidler

governmental organizations, groups, individuals and cultural institutions. In 21st-century digital democracies, soft power is much more fragile than the cultural imperialism of the past. The intent to influence can swiftly be rejected by audiences that are sensitive to imposed social control and have the tools to say so. As museums increasingly become part of civil society – arm’s-length, independent institutions with no single funder dictating their actions – they are recognizing their own soft power, which goes hand in hand with a new accountability to the publics they serve.

es, arguably by design. But if we could, and if we dared articulate it – what would go into a citizen’s manifesto for museums? Museum outreach and community programs point to new and important ways that museums can play a role in our daily lives and the lives of others in our communities. For that role to grow, museums need to consider their power, and we, as citizens, need to consider ours.

Museum outreach programs embody museums’ soft power by meeting audiences where they are and seeking to positively influence or be of use to them. Still, by moving into new spaces beyond the relative safety of the buildings that have defined them, museums must consider how they can use their soft power not to perpetuate the same unequal social relations but to truly empower the local population. In “Cities, Museums and Soft Power,” a book I coauthored with Gail Lord,7 we identify 32 practical ways for museums to activate their soft power. These include outreach programs that not only “present useful ideas in useful places” but also serve to “make space for new perspectives.” Other strategies include removing barriers to access such as admission charges, diversifying museum boards, advisory councils and staff, broadening what is collected and how it is documented, and building interdisciplinary networks.

1 See Guido Guerzoni, “The Museum Building Boom” in “Cities, Museums and Soft Power,” edited by Gail Dexter Lord and Ngaire Blankenberg (Washington, D.C.: American Alliance of Museums Press, 2015): 188–189. Guerzoni identifies 80,000 as a “best guess” estimate based on available data, and also identifies the majority of these in urban centers.

A citizen’s manifesto for museums It is not all up to museums. As museums become more accountable to us, we need to consider what it is that we want from them. Museums seem immutable. This is part of their allure, but also why many are intimidating spac-

5 See the exhibition “Muslim Voices: Songs of Faith and Devotion” at Lightbox, held 4 February 2015–15 March 2015. Information available online, accessed 15 June, 2015: http://www.thelightbox.org.uk/community-groups-case-studies

2 Andrew Nugee, “London-Johannesburg-Dubai: A Three-Part Story of Healing Through Museums,” Presentation at the American Alliance of Museums Annual General Meeting, April 27, 2015. See also “Interactive Arts and Music Audio Tour to Improve Hospital Patients Treatment and Rehabilitation,” press release from 6 June 2014. Imagineer website, retrieved on 15 June 2015: http://www.imagineear.com/pressand-news/interactive-arts-music-audio-tour-improve-hospital-patients-treatmentrehabilitation/ 3 See the section on the Museo civico di Zoologia in Rome, Elisabetta Falchetti, “DIAMOND: Dialoguing Museums for a New Cultural Democracy, Background Research,” May 2013, 47–52. Available online, accessed 15 June 2015: http://www.antipa.ro/ uploads/attachments/558.pdf?1370598511 4 See the Apropa Cultura website, accessed 15 June, 2015: http://www.apropacultura. cat/formacio.aspx

6 See Joseph Nye, Jr., “Soft Power: The Means To Success In World Politics” (New York: Public Affairs, 2004) 7 Gail Dexter Lord and Ngaire Blankenberg, “Cities, Museums and Soft Power” (Washington, D.C.: American Alliance of Museums Press, 2015) 79

Cultural Policy

“Art, sprouting and blooming in every nook and cranny of the city”? Vienna’s creative professionals: between growth and reality Text by Salomea Krobath

Cultural and political developments have raised Vienna’s profile as a contemporary hub for creativity. But many feel that the changes are coming too slowly. Representatives from politics, art institutions and the independent scene discuss past developments and visions for the future.

The numbers have only the best things to say about Vienna’s creative economy: growth in this sector has long surpassed that of the overall economy. In 2011, the city ranked fourth among the European regions with the fastest-growing percentage of creative professionals. Already, as many as one in ten Austrian companies considers itself a creative firm – that’s a total of 140,000 people. The 21er Haus for contemporary art has reopened, VIENNA ART WEEK has grown into a world-class event, and more than 150 galleries in Vienna feature exhibitions of unprecedented quality. Taking stock of the developments in recent years, Andreas Mailath-Pokorny, City Councillor for Culture and Science in Vienna, notes that, “The founding of the MUSA Museum Start Gallery Artothek was a cultural-political milestone, as was the establishing of art in the public sphere. It ensures that art sprouts and blooms in every nook and cranny of the city.”

Salomea Krobath studied social and Chinese sciences in the Netherlands, China and the UK. She has been a freelance reporter for the news magazine “profil” since 2014. 80

But as dynamic as these figures may seem, the reality shows only a hesitant transformation of Vienna from a primarily historical cultural city into a young, cosmopolitan hotspot like Berlin or London. A look at the 2012 budget report confirms this: the lion’s share of Vienna’s 221-million-euro cultural budget went to the performing arts. Visual arts, photography, architecture and design had to make do with only 4.3 percent of the budget. Wolfgang Zinggl, culture spokesman for the Greens, sees little reason for optimism. The percentage of the total budget available for culture is sinking every year, and currently hovers at a meager 0.5 percent: “The biggest [institutions] are unscathed, even in the leanest culture budget years. The little ones have to see how they get along, even if they are doing outstanding work,” he says, criticizing the city’s cultural political attitude towards independent creative enterprises.

The latter feel alone in their quest to provide Vienna’s young artists with a platform. “We’re treated like an insider scene. This is hardly conducive to building an art market where art is sold,” says Max Lust, gallerist and cofounder of the presentation platform Parallel Vienna, describing the lack of publicity for Vienna’s independent scene. The consequence: only a few alternative spaces in Vienna manage the three-year hurdle. A comparison with Berlin shows that while the funds distribution policy is very similar, an overall comprehensive commitment to contemporary art has a balancing effect. The German Federal Initiative Kultur- und Kreativwirtschaft (Cultural and Creative Economy Initiative) boosts visibility for the emerging art scene through nationwide competitions, networking strategies aimed at independent artists, and measures to encourage foreign trade and investment. Even London proudly touts the slogan “Backing the creative industries.” Both the British Council and a “Grants for the Arts” promotion program invest millions every year in programs for the contemporary scene. Upholding the quality of the great houses while promoting emerging art: Arts and Culture Minister Josef Ostermayer sees this as a future challenge. “Politics cannot provide any orientation here; all it can do is lay the basic groundwork for new directions to emerge,” he notes. We can only hope for conditions that allow emerging art to flourish! Vienna’s creative industry: People working in creative industries: 46 % of Austrians working in the creative industries live in Vienna. Creative enterprises: 42 % of creative enterprises are based in Vienna. Net revenue: 10.8 billion / 59 % of the revenues of Austria’s creative enterprises are generated in Vienna, i.e. 4.4 % of the total turnover of Vienna’s businesses. Gross value added: 3.8 billion / 5.3 % of the total net product of Vienna’s businesses. Source: Kreativwirtschaftsbericht Wien 2013 Vienna’s public expenditure on culture in 2012: Total budget: 221.17 million Performing arts: 83.7 million / 37.9 % Museums, archives, and historical buildings: 35.99 million / 16.3 % Visual arts, photography, architecture, and design: 9.41 million / 4.3 % Cultural initiatives and centers: 1.74 million / 0.7 % Education, advanced training: 0.30 million / 0.1 % International cultural exchange: 1.03 million / 0.5 % Source: Kulturausgaben der Länder 2012 nach LIKUS Hauptkategorien, Statistik Austria

Program

Spaces of Commoning1 Urban commons, artistic practices and visions of change Text by Anette Baldauf and Stefan Gruber

In the context of aggressive waves of enclosure and dispossession, the concept of the commons has resurfaced as a key feature in discussions concerning alternative societies. Commons are not only seen as a shared resource; they also denote the social relationships emerging from negotiation processes and therefore provide a guiding perspective. The promise of the commons is that another world is possible, and that this different world is in fact already in the making, right now.

Anette Baldauf, sociologist and cultural scientist, is interested in the relationship between public space, economy and everyday culture. She is professor for methodology and epistemology at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, where she coordinated the PhD-inPractice program together with Renate Lorenz. Stefan Gruber is principal of STUDIOGRUBER, a design and research office working at the intersection of architecture and urbanism. From 2005 to 2015 he taught urbanism at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, most recently as professor of geography, landscape and cities. In 2016, he will join the architecture faculty of Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

While the concept of the commons has a rich history of fighting enclosure with ongoing negotiations over rules of access to and maintenance of shared spaces, it is surprising how quickly it has become a central reference in the programming of alternative project spaces (e.g. Casco in Utrecht; or the Stedelijk Museum Bureau Amsterdam) and major museums (e.g. Tate Modern, London). In the context of extensive cuts to state funding, interest in the commons in the arts is obviously part of a search for cheap labor as much as a refinement of post-Fordist mechanisms of exploitation and urban gentrification. But in addition to these motives, the power of the commons within and outside of the arts is also due to a promising re-positioning of the artist: the protagonists of the commons respond to the call of the crisis, but they are not willing to play the role of the critic as the internal outsider. They refuse to provide the rejuvenating energies of an institutional critique and legitimate the existing conditions of the operation. At the same time, the commoners are also not interested in searching for what, within the field of relational aesthetics, has been called “restitching of the social fabric.” Learning their lessons from the flaws of participation, commoners challenge the privileged position of the artist as choreographer. The commoners are situated neither outside of nor within the system – they search for refuge in the institutions’ basement, its hidden corners, the so-called undercommons. Meanwhile, the art institutions claiming the commons are rarely willing to confront the radical restructuring commoning would imply. Like the arts, the state is also turning to the commons in seeking answers to the many crises it faces. But just as the

concept of commoning is being folded into the official narrative, here too the tensions and conflicts deeply inscribed into the very idea of the commons are obstinately removed. Thus, in its Smart City Strategy Framework, the municipality depicts the Vienna of 2050 as an all-inclusive city defined by social participation and empowered citizens. In Vienna’s ideal future, resistance, antagonism and exclusion seem to have been dissolved by ubiquitous technology and the smartness of its citizens. Understood primarily as creating common good, or sharing (like in car sharing), commoning will simply reaffirm existing power relations. Inevitably, these contradictions press us to ask how we are to engage in a debate on commoning in a world of excessive, uneven distribution, to be more precise: a place that lives off the suffering of others (made invisible). What does it mean that the debate on the commons often thrives on the colonial condition, claiming an innocent beginning from scratch while covering the stains of colonialism? How to deal with the tension between making commons and thus always making exclusions and reaffirming borders? Who is coming together, and for what purpose? How can artists take advantage of the art fields’ and the state’s appetite for the commons and still pursue the making of another world?

PANEL DISCUSSION

“Study and Commoning” Tue., 17 Nov. 2015, 7:00 pm Packhaus, Marxergasse 24, 1030 Vienna In English (see page 9)

1 Spaces of Commoning is a two-year research project funded by the WWTF, with Anette Baldauf, Stefan Gruber, Moira Hille, Annette Krauss, Vladimir Miller, Mara Verlic, Hong-Kai Wang and Julia Wieger, at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna. For details, visit www.spacesofcommoning.net 2 Stefano Harney and Fred Moten. “The Undercommons. Fugitive Planning and Black Study.” Minor Composition: New York 2013. 81

Interview

Need for Continuity Galleries: individuality vs. internationality Interview by Ursula Maria Probst

To what extent can the increasing internationalization of art be reconciled with the desire for focus? What is the significance of continuity in market positioning and artistic programming? An interview with gallery owners Michaela Stock and Georg Peithner-Lichtenfels, operators of the Locomot art platform Anna Mautner Markhof and MariaAnna Goess, and Horst Szaal, gallery owner and chairman of Viennaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s art and antique trade committee.

How important is it for gallery owners to have a distinctive profile so as to be able to assert themselves on the international art market? Georg Peithner-Lichtenfels: Every gallery needs to find a niche to offer its artists a platform and to present art 82

enthusiasts with artworks of the requisite quality. As they establish themselves, artists need to develop a close relationship with the gallery in order to achieve international success. Picasso, for example, is automatically associated with the gallery owner Daniel Henry Kahnweiler. Horst Szaal: Galleries have the structure of small businesses. It is their individuality that makes them distinctive. International businesses have identical branches in Barcelona, Hanoi, New York, and Vienna. I am not a fan of this standardization. The great thing about galleries is that their individuality is evident. Michaela Stock: As a young gallery we clearly donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have the same options as the top Austrian galleries, which have international connections and fair stands, whereas

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Anna Mautner Markhof, Horst Szaal, Michaela Stock, Anna-Maria Goess and Georg Peithner-Lichtenfels (f. l. t. r.) Photo: Yasmina Haddad

we are just starting to work toward this. It is therefore important to start with young artists, to work continuously with them, and to obtain their commitment. Each gallery has to decide what profile it is aiming for and what it wants to do. The more closely this is defined by the choice of artists, the more visible it becomes. Anna Mautner Markhof: It is important for young artists to find a platform where they can display their works. Only in this way will they come to the attention of a large gallery. At Locomot we offer artists the opportunity of showing their work for the first time without any commitment to us. To that extent, we are not actually a gallery. Ursula Maria Probst lives and works in Vienna as an art historian, university lecturer, art critic, freelance curator, and artist (Female Obsession). She specializes in art collections, performance art, and public art with a view to developing new structures in the art business. In 2015 she curated Austria’s contributions to the 12th Havana Biennial, “Between The Idea and The Experience,” and the exhibition “Mujeres Alcanzando la Luz” in Panama City.

Vienna has an international reputation for cultural commitment. Its activity in the art sector is also increasing. Horst Szaal: For various reasons, Vienna is currently developing in a very interesting way as an art location. The VIENNA ART WEEK is an important focus in the fall, and galleries already start to put on great exhibitions in early September. There is a concentrated fair scene, including Viennafair and Viennacontemporary, classical fairs like Art & Antique in the Hofburg, and WIKAM – Wiener Internationale Kunst- & Antiquitätenmesse in Palais Ferstel, which also has quite a lot of modern art.

Georg Peithner-Lichtenfels: The great advantage of Vienna is its intimacy. After going to Beijing, New York, or wherever, I’m always glad to come back to Vienna. Austria is always well-represented at fairs. This speaks for the quality of its galleries on an international scale. Michaela Stock: I live in Vienna and I love the city, but I think there needs to be more going on. Looking at how it was ten years ago, we have a great scene with alternative spaces and museums with young and established people who seek to cooperate with one another. Collecting activity in Austria needs to be stimulated. We have to present our galleries abroad so that they can be seen as institutions promoting young artists. Maria-Anna Goess: A lot has happened in Vienna in the last ten years. I lived in New York for four years working in various sectors: auction houses, a museum, and an online art platform. But I ended up coming back to Vienna. Cities like London, Hong Kong, or Istanbul are interesting, but they are over-saturated. Vienna has amazing potential as an international art platform – not least because of its geographical position between East and West. Is there a need to renew the international perception of Austrian art? 83

Georg Peithner-Lichtenfels: When people think of Austrian art and its international appeal, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s artists like Schiele and Klimt that come to mind. The problem is that no one invests in modern art. Austria also needs to encourage acceptance of modern art. Horst Szaal: The Vienna Actionists were not popular in their day but are now to be found in major international collections. Only 0.2 percent of Austrians collect art. It would be useful to offer collectors more tax benefits. Experienced collectors would perhaps invest more in young artists if it was financially interesting for them in some way or other. Michaela Stock: The collector profile has changed. Collectors now appear in many different forms, as auction houses or Internet platforms, for example. Large-scale collectors today tend to be far more analytical when deciding whether to spend their money on a particular artist or gallery. Art is undeniably seen today as a financial investment. Anna Mautner Markhof: It is important to address the young generation as potential collectors. We do this through a more relaxed approach to art, in some cases through music. Creating points of contact should be fun. Maria-Anna Goess: Our Locomot art salon is in a private apartment in an intimate setting where people can get to know one another. We invite people from different professional backgrounds to talk about art and culture. What about continuity? Georg Peithner-Lichtenfels: Customers want to see continuity in a gallery or artist. Horst Szaal: Sparking an interest in art starts at a young age. Galleries design special programs and open days for the young, and art fairs attempt to interest young people in art through free admission and guided tours. Anna Mautner Markhof: A basis of trust has to be built up in order for people to gain access to art in the first place. Michaela Stock: Contact and the idea of doing something together is important. We have lots of customers who have become friends.

Vienna as an art hub In the last few years Vienna has developed into an important European and international art hub, not least thanks to its art dealers. With around 500 art dealers and galleries for modern and contemporary art, it is a hotspot and focus for the Austrian gallery scene, and hence also an economic center for the Austrian art market. Success does not come of its own accord but is due to the high service quality, intensive interaction with artists, expert preparation and presentation of works, and, above all, personal consultancy for customers. Bold creative talents and artists as well a flourishing art trade and gallery scene are required to ensure that Vienna remains an important art hub. Together they will help to drive forward and maintain Vienna as an international center. DI Walter Ruck President of the Vienna Economic Chamber

Program

A Tour of the Week Guided tours during VIENNA ART WEEK

STUDIO VISITS

Artist-in-residence studios in Vienna

Federal government-sponsored studios

Sat., 21 Nov. 2015 Starting at 12:00 noon, hourly

Fri., 20 Nov. 2015, 3:00 pm Sat., 21 Nov. 2015, 2:00 pm | 5:00 pm

Artist-in-residence programs allow international curators, artists and theorists to network and exchange views with actors of the local art scene. This makes them an important link between the Viennese and international art scenes. Our guided tours of artist-in-residence studios provide a deep insight into a great number of workshops with the most diverse artistic orientations.

Prater studios Guided tour with curator Maria Christine Holter Fri., 20 Nov. 2015, 3:00 pm Meeting point: Meiereistrasse, across from Ernst Happel Stadium, 1020 Vienna Studios on Westbahnstrasse Guided tour with curator Maria Christine Holter Sat., 21 Nov. 2015, 2:00 pm Meeting point: Westbahnstrasse 27, 1070 Vienna Studios on Wattgasse Guided tour with curator Maria Christine Holter Sat., 21 Nov. 2015, 5:00 pm Meeting point: Wattgasse 56–60, 1170 Vienna Party and drinks Sat., 21 Nov. 2015, following the guided tours, ca. 7:00 pm

Krinzinger Projekte Studio visit with cultural journalist Alexandra Matzner 1:00 pm Meeting point: Schottenfeldgasse 45, 1070 Vienna Q21 / MuseumsQuartier Vienna Studio visit with art and cultural mediator Wolfgang Brunner 2:00 pm Meeting point: MQ Staatsratshof, Courtyard 7 (entrance across from Volkstheater), 1070 Vienna VBKÖ – Austrian Association of Women Artists Studio visit with cultural journalist Alexandra Matzner 3:00 pm Meeting point: Maysedergasse 2/4th floor, 1010 Vienna Kunsthalle Exnergasse Studio visit with art and cultural mediator Wolfgang Brunner 4:00 pm Meeting point: Währinger Strasse 59/stairway 2/1st floor, 1090 Vienna

OPEN STUDIO DAY TOURS

Ten renowned art connoisseurs and experts give tours of artist studios selected for Open Studio Day For details, meeting points and times, visit www.viennaartweek.at/open-studio-day

TOUR

VIENNA ART WEEK guerilla walk with Oliver Hangl* Fri., 20 Nov. 2015 5:00 pm Meeting point: U4 subway station Kettenbrückengasse, exit Kettenbrückengasse In quest of some common sense, performance artist Oliver Hangl gives a guided tour of Vienna with wireless headphones, navigating participants through public, and possibly through private spaces. Supported by radio system and a male or female musician he fictionalizes and comments on places and events, encouraging participants to see chance as an opportunity and actively respond to the unexpected. www.olliwood.com * Limited number of participants. Pre-sale tickets for rental headsets (8 euros): Jugendinfo-Soundbase, www.soundbase.at/tickets/ticketliste. The walk takes place come rain or shine. Bring an ID as a deposit for the headset! 85

Interview

Independence by Self-Empowerment Initiators of alternative spaces on their role in the Vienna art scene Interview by Barbara Wünsch

Barbara Wünsch lives and works in Vienna as a cultural manager. A graduate of the University of Vienna and the University of Applied Arts Vienna, Wünsch has been project manager for VIENNA ART WEEK since 2012. 86

Vienna claims a vibrant scene of small independent art spaces. The energetic operations of these alternative spaces are motivated by the desire to be involved and to contribute while retaining independence from the established art scene, and also by a wish for freedom to try out alternative concepts and spontaneous projects. How do the free space initiatives in Vienna see their role in the Vienna art scene?

… contact on the art market as well? Schneiderei: We distance ourselves from the art market, as we have problems with it of a thematic and a political nature. An artist-run space has the function of implementing projects that the art market would not touch and which are uninteresting and irrelevant for it. We can do what we want. That’s not the case with the art market, which has its own constraints.

Can the operation of an alternative space act as a launching pad for the career of an artist or curator? What is your personal motivation? DI∞G: Launching pad is perhaps a bit of an exaggeration, but it nevertheless offers a good opportunity for gaining experience in independent action and in accompanying a program from beginning to end. We were motivated, above all, by the desire to promote sustainable discussion and to permit a more intensive interaction with an artwork. New Jörg: If artists have an exhibition space, they will be able to see and to a certain extent understand the perspective of the other side. The intensive phase of implementation of an exhibition concept in cooperation with the artist is particularly important. It is possible in this way to establish contact and obtain a deep understanding for artists’ methods of working. Good exhibitions are good for all concerned. Schneiderei: Yes, of course, it promotes networks and involves the artist in what is happening. This helps them to make contact outside the alternative space scene.

How does the Vienna artist-run space scene compare with other cities? Under what circumstances do operators of alternative spaces have to work? Schneiderei: Given its size, the situation in Vienna is quite good. We know the situation in London, where it’s much more difficult to operate an alternative space, no doubt because of the size. In Berlin or London it’s easy to get lost; in Vienna you can maintain a perspective and keep in touch with other operators. There’s a lot more dialogue at the individual level. This perspective is what makes Vienna special. New Jörg: In Vienna there’s a fairly good subsidy system. In many other cities this is not the case. That doesn’t stop people from producing a lively program with the few resources at their disposal. We are in contact with other projects in Denmark, France, Portugal, and Spain, so there’s a good exchange of experience at the international level. The culture department of the City of Vienna lists projects and exhibitions in the numerous alternative spaces as one

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Julie Mueller, Annika Lorenz Photo: Yasmina Haddad

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Stefan Reiterer, Axel Koschier and Bernhard Rasinger Photo: Yasmina Haddad

New Jörg Team: Axel Koschier, Bernhard Rasinger, Stefan Reiterer, Saskia Te Nicklin Jägerstrasse 56 1200 Vienna E info@newjoerg.at www.newjoerg.at Opening hours: by appointment Schneiderei Team: Cornelia Auinger, Johann Gröbner, Bettina Klingler, Fernando Mesquita, Wolfgang Obermair Krongasse 10/2–4 1050 Vienna E schneiderei@ seeyounextthursday.com www.seeyounextthursday. com Opening hours: by appointment DI∞G Team: Theresa Eipeldauer, Annika Lorenz, Julie Mueller currently no space E di8g.it@gmail.com https://di8g.wordpress. com Opening hours: by appointment

of the “most essential forms of subsidy.” How did this interest in a diverse artist-run space scene develop? New Jörg: Vienna has relatively few young galleries, and artist-run spaces therefore perform a special function in presenting younger generations of artists. Schneiderei: At the outset we didn’t have any subsidies. To create a firm basis for a well-rounded art scene, you have to be creative! For example, we raised the money for plane tickets with a Saturday flea market with beer and food. DI∞G: Vienna is a good place for the promotion of culture. It’s a win-win situation for everyone involved. Is Vienna’s alternative space scene sufficiently noticed by the culture-loving public or, frankly, does it prefer to remain a closed society? DI∞G: That depends on the space. Not all off-spaces in Vienna have the same character, philosophy, or objectives. One space or group of initiators can differ considerably from another and hence appeal to a different public. Schneiderei: Most of the people in the scene know one another. The artists also introduce people. Because we work in an interdisciplinary manner, there are always new faces. A couple of times we have been contacted by people who had heard of us by word of mouth. These people seek us out actively. Sometimes, when there are several openings going on, people also turn up who would not normally visit us. New Jörg: Most spaces advertise their events on the Internet or with flyers. The doors are open. Is there any contact between the established art scene – institutions, galleries, art critics, curators – and artistrun spaces? DI∞G: There is mediating contact, since off-spaces are platforms that tend to show less well-known artists and offer the established scene the opportunity to discover new talent.

New Jörg: Independent spaces are part of the established art scene. Spaces come and go. Some of their identity is passed on like a baton in a relay race. Artworks that have less exposure can be seen in artist-run spaces, but even established artists might find a different working situation in a non-commercial space than in a gallery. People who are interested also come regularly to alternative space events in Vienna. The Schneiderei took part this year in the “Destination Vienna Extended” program organized by Kunsthalle Wien. How was this first cooperation with an institution? Is this form of exchange between the established art scene and the independent scene mutually beneficial? Schneiderei: Exchange and cooperation are the main tenets of our project, and this also includes the established art scene as a partner. It is not just a question of visibility and access to a wider public but of a balance in the cultural landscape in terms of dependence and independence, risks, expectations, experiments, free and established structures, rigid and open frameworks, and different forms of communication. The distinctions in any case become blurred, and it is then a question of how much initiative is taken. The question of utility is also not at the forefront, because responsibility for the initiative by both sides is extremely important.

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Cornelia Auinger, Wolfgang Obermair, Johann Gröbner, Fernando Mesquita and Bettina Klingler (f. l. t. r.) Photo: Yasmina Haddad

Program

Evocative, Exciting, and Surprising Art in municipal housing estates

Kamen Stoyanov pays Wolfgang Sator a visit

Photo: eSeL.at/Lorenz Seidler

Text by Franziska Leeb

For the fifth time artists are being invited to produce and present works with the tenants of a Vienna municipal housing estate.

Wolfgang Sator has been interested in electric vehicles since the 1960s. Vehicles and the theme of movement play an important role in the work of the artist Kamen Stoyanov. In fall last year, they participated together in a quasireligious ritual as part of the “Kunstgastgeber Gemeindebau” project: two assistants dressed in silver overalls pushed out an electric vehicle also wrapped in silver. With smoke and popping champagne corks, Stoyanov christened the vehicle VE-ICTOR: it will be a “winner in its function of propelling us forward,” said Stoyanov. Watchers were then invited on a test run driven by Sator. The ritual christening took place close to Wolfgang Helminger’s 1978 stone sculpture “Druck Gegendruck” (Pressure Counterpressure) in Robert-Uhlir-Hof in the 2nd District. Whether intentionally or not, the setting highlighted the changing role of art in public spaces in general and in municipal housing in particular. Art was integrated in the first “Red Vienna” municipal housing projects in the 1920s, primarily for decoration. During the Nazi era, this artistic ornamentation of municipal housing was used solely for propaganda and indoctrination, before coming to an end with the outbreak of World War II. 90

After the war, art in municipal housing frequently took on the task of popular education: wall mosaics and frescos often referred to episodes in the city’s history. Even more frequently, the themes and motives in this period of reconstruction radiated the optimism of a new world order. The municipal authorities also supported art and were for many artists an important source of commissions. From the 1960s, art in municipal housing was no longer placed so much on façades but rather in quiet places in gardens, as objects for individual enjoyment. This did nothing to narrow the gap between art and its recipients. In the last quarter of the 20th century art disappeared completely from municipal housing; and in the early part of this century municipal housing itself began to disappear as the city withdrew subsidies for housing construction. It was now up to builders and architects to decide the place of art in housing estates. The result, unsurprisingly, was a reduction in the number of projects completed. “Kunstgastgeber Gemeindebau” thus continues a tradition, but is pioneering nonetheless: it no longer focuses on creating art for the inhabitants, but on developing an idea of community. This new form of art in municipal housing was initiated in 2011 by KÖR Kunst im öffentlichen Raum (art in public space) and the service provider wohnpartner. Wiener Wohnen, which manages the 220,000 municipal apartments, also came on board in 2013.

The staff of wohnpartner help to find occupants to carry out a concept in collaboration with an artist. The idea is to work with the passions and talents of the participants. Curator Gerald Straub brings the two sides together on the basis of shared interests and experiences. The works materialize in a mutually enriching process lasting several weeks and are then shown during guided tours, usually in the apartments themselves.

Gerald Zahn visits Franz Tomasek (“Wiener Austern” race of snails, which are locally also called “Vienna Oysters”)

Photo: eSeL.at/Lorenz Seidler

Franziska Leeb, born 1968, works as a freelance journalist, architecture journalist, communicator, and moderator in Vienna. She writes feature articles on architecture for the “Spectrum” weekend supplement to the newspaper “Die Presse” and contributes to “architektur.aktuell.”

The results are always surprising and bear witness to the enthusiasm of both sides. Apart from the vehicle christening, projects have included a snail race with betting in the occupant’s garden (Gerald Zahn invited to the home of Franz Tomasek in Robert-Uhlir-Hof) and a 1950s revival, organized by Agnes Wohlrab with the artist Fanni Futterknecht on Rennbahnweg in the 22nd District. In Matteottihof in the 5th District, the interest of artist Nikolaus Gansterer and Sanela Jovanovic in Japan and in public drawing led to the creation of a Manga comic. Separated by a partition, both drew a scene in parallel suggested to the artist orally by the inhabitants. Just as the act of drawing rather than the product itself is celebrated here, it is the performance itself that is the focus in all of the interventions. “The project brings all involved out of themselves,” says Straub. “It enabled me to discover what artists mean by art,” said one of the occupants. There were plenty of opportunities for dismantling prejudices and recognizing that both art and municipal housing are as diverse as life itself. The theme of this year’s event is “Ende der Fahnenstange – vom Nehmen und Geben” (End of the Story – of Giving and Taking) which addresses a social theme that has always been inherent in housing. Legendary figures from different eras, oscillating between the extremes of “criminal” and “popular hero” serve as inspiration: people like Carmine Crocco, the 19th-century southern Italian brigand, or the Catalonian anti-capitalist Enric Duran, the “Robin Hood of Banks,” who financed alternative projects by means of credit fraud. This fall the performative interventions by six artists or groups of artists and their hosts will be in the form of a story devised by them in six chapters – a film with six scenes. The venue will be the housing estate Am Schöpfwerk built between 1977 and 1981 under the direction of Viktor Hufnagl. The experimental estate with 1,700 apartments of different types is described by the architect himself as a “program manifesto for an urban structure as an answer to anti-urban linear construction.” It avoids

being a residential mono-culture by including commercial areas, schools, kindergartens, a church, community center, and a socio-cultural infrastructure – an ambitious program, highly unusual for its time. The size, concentration, confusing layout, and building shortcomings, accompanied by one-sided reporting, gave the project a reputation for being problematic. The situation and image have much improved since the refurbishing from 2009 to 2012. The estate is an ideal venue for dialogue between occupants and guests and the creation of fascinating scenarios. This year’s guests are Schule für Dichtung with Camilo Antonio and UrbanNomadMixes, the duos hoelb/hoeb and notfoundyet, the artist, performer, and choreographer Andrea Maurer, the artist Matthias Meinharter, and the Dutch performer Frans Poelstra. Although this year’s project has a stronger sociopolitical focus than the previous ones, Straub does not want it to become “political theater” but rather to offer an evocative arena in which people of different origins and social class can come together and generate knowledge for the future.

1 Maria Welzig, Gerhard Steixner, “Die Architektur und ich” (Vienna, Böhlau Verlag, 2003), p. 71.

TOUR

Art in municipal housing estates – Am Schöpfwerk* Sun., 22 Nov. 2015, 2:00 pm (duration: approx. 2 to 2.5 hrs) Meeting point: exit U6 subway station Am Schöpfwerk (in front of drugstore), 1120 Vienna Opening: Tue., 29 Sep. 2015, 5:00 pm Bassena community center, Am Schöpfwerk 29/14/R1, 1120 Vienna Additional tours on Sat., 3 Oct. 2015; Fri., 9 Oct. 2015; Sat., 10 Oct. 2015; Thu., 15 Oct. 2015, at 5:30 pm on all days. Meeting point: exit U6 subway station Am Schöpfwerk (in front of drugstore), 1120 Vienna * Registration is required: E office@koer.or.at or T +43 1 521 89 1257 91

Interview

On Habs-Burgers and Drawing Robots A wry treatment of imperial heritage Interview by Manisha Jothady

WienTourismus director Norbert Kettner and artist Julius Deutschbauer talk about imperial contemporary Vienna, clichés and their dismantling, and guided tours of “Vienna’s Unnoticed Sights.”

Do you feel the same, Herr Deutschbauer? Julius Deutschbauer: While preparing for the “HabsBurgerstand”1 project, my colleague Klaus Pobitzer and I inevitably examined Vienna’s past very closely. My impression is that its cultural history is presented to the outside world very much according to the logic of operetta, as if Franz Antel was directing a lot of it. One just has to think of the 2014 memorial year, which many museums took as an occasion to celebrate the era of the Habsburg monarchy. And yet 1914 was a year of devastation! Norbert Kettner: Four years later, the monarchy collapsed, Austria lost the war. But the fact that we would even use a defeat as an occasion to celebrate makes us rather likeable, somehow.

For the purpose of marketing the city, it is presumably easier to take the cultural heritage of Vienna as a basis. But how do you manage to balance that with contemporary Vienna? Which features does WienTourismus emphasize in order to achieve this? Norbert Kettner: In many cases we do this by updating the historic context with a contemporary twist. For instance last year, for our Moscow presentation on the occasion of “150 Years of the Ringstrasse,” the Bulgarianborn, Vienna-based artist Olga Georgieva created a mural that incorporated historic Viennese motifs, while the Russian actor Anatoliy Beliy read from Vladimir Sorokin’s text “Cocktail.” Sorokin also co-authored the book “1865, 2015. 150 Years of the Ringstrasse.” In terms of marketing at WienTourismus, technology is also an important aspect, which we likewise combine with artistic creativity. Two years ago Alex Kiessling devised the project “Long Distance Art.” As he drew, his penstrokes were captured by sensors and transmitted via satellite to industrial robots, which then reproduced Kiessling’s picture on canvas in Breitscheidplatz, Berlin, and in London’s Trafalgar Square, simultaneously creating three works of art that raised awareness of the contemporary art scene in the Austrian capital.

Mr. Kettner, you recently said that Vienna, like no other city, knows how to constantly create fresh inspiration for the contemporary world from its rich cultural heritage. Where do you think this is most apparent? Norbert Kettner: As an example, I would take the program at institutions like the Kunsthistorisches Museum or the Belvedere, which also show contemporary art. For

Julius Deutschbauer, as an artist you have the license to do what Mr. Kettner as director of WienTourismus cannot: that is, to dismantle the image of Vienna as a worldfamous metropolis. Julius Deutschbauer: It’s my job as an artist, even. Norbert Kettner: Actually, Vienna has an international reputation for tolerating naughty behavior …

What makes Vienna special compared to other big cities? Norbert Kettner: Its mix of northern European efficiency and the southern European enjoyment of life – its love of good food, for instance. What makes Vienna particularly stand out from other cities, however, is its relaxed approach towards its own historic cultural treasures, which are not interpreted in a rigid, museological way, but freely embedded within contemporary life.

some years now, in fact, the approach has not been one of museological retrogressiveness but rather to draw parallels between the contemporary and the historic.

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Julius Deutschbauer and Norbert Kettner Photo: Yasmina Haddad

Julius Deutschbauer: … and that also makes it special. In other cities it would be much harder for me to be an artist. Which is what made the experiences that Klaus Pobitzer and I had during our “Habs-Burgerstand” project so striking and diverse. When we were in front of Schönbrunn Palace, for example, we encountered a group of tourists who thought we were a reception committee. At the Franz-Joseph railway station, on the other hand, we met some Polish migrants who knew a huge amount about history and told us what the Habsburg monarchy had done to their home country.

Manisha Jothady is a freelance art critic based in Vienna. Alongside essays for contemporary art catalogues, she has written numerous articles for “Wiener Zeitung,” “Eikon” and “Camera Austria,” among others.

To what extent do clichés play a role in advertising Vienna as a tourist destination? Norbert Kettner: As a way of initially catching the public’s attention, of course you use clichés. Studies have proved that this is what works best. But at the same time we need to deliver on our promise that Vienna has far more to offer than the conventional highlights. And this is really the case, because Vienna is a modern, lively, mature and sophisticated city. So a wry treatment of its past is a natural part of that. A serious and unserious approach to history in equal measure.

Serious-unserious … Mr. Deutschbauer, since 1997 you have run the “Library of Unread Books,” more recently also the “Video Library of Unseen Films.” Could you imagine taking on guided tours of “Vienna’s Unnoticed Sights”? If so, what would be included in your program? Julius Deutschbauer: I would of course ask Mr. Kettner for his suggestions first of all. But I could imagine taking people around my apartment, to my art depot, to my son’s apartment in the 2nd District, to my favorite wine stand on Keplerplatz in the 10th District and to the owner’s sister’s store next door, where you can buy grilled chicken to enjoy with your wine. Would WienTourismus support a tour of this kind? Norbert Kettner: We could certainly consider it. After all, Vienna offers an incredibly diverse range of tourist attractions.

1 In May and June 2015, Julius Deutschbauer and Klaus Pobitzer collaborated with KÖR – Kunst im öffentlichen Raum to present the “Habs-Burgerstand” project [habːsˈbøː g ːstand] at various locations in Vienna, also showing it in an exhibition at Galerie Steinek. A satirical work that included concerts, performances, readings, films, interviews and discussions, the roaming burger stand became a platform addressing the important question: “How do we digest a monarchy?” 93

Interview

“We don’t think much of pigeonholes” mischer'traxler in conversation Interview by Michael Hausenblas

The duo mischer'traxler is an international flagship for experimental design in Austria. Katharina Mischer and Thomas Traxler discuss the logic behind editions and the relationship between design and art.

Where do you prefer to see your objects: in an exclusive gallery or at Ikea? Thomas Traxler: That depends entirely on the object. Basically, our objects should be used by and be accessible to a lot of people. But some things are just difficult to produce in a series. You once said that the “limited edition hype” in design gets on your nerves. Why? Katharina Mischer: The thing that bothers us about it is this arbitrary batch numbering. Why issue ten pieces, or 100? In the case of our editions, the objects are almost always unique. What bugs us is this compulsive artificial limit. It is a response to the market, that’s all it is. But we also understand the gallerists, of course. What’s the difference between a limited edition in design and an edition in art? Thomas Traxler: Editions are a kind of playground in the design world. They give designers an opportunity to try things that, for various reasons, would make no sense for industrial production. Does the idea of editions show an overlap between design and art? 94

Katharina Mischer: In a way, yes. On the other hand, limitation belongs to the nature of art. Art doesn’t usually involve any kind of mass production. You responded to this issue with your wall lamp “Limited Moths,” among other things, where nature determined the number of lamps produced. There were 950 moths of a certain endangered species, so you displayed four lamps in which the luminants were surrounded by 240 copper moths. Katharina Mischer: Exactly, and the Wildlife Protection Society donated four euros per copper moth from the sale price to a tree conservation project – money that ultimately goes to benefit the moths. Meaning that, theoretically, there will be more moths in the future and you would have to increase the number of pieces in the edition. Which would annoy the collector. Thomas Traxler: Yes, if he sees the object as an investment. But this discrepancy is exactly what we like about it. Maybe the collector would also be happy because there are more moths. You also produced a series of baskets with exactly 138 pieces. Why 138? Katharina Mischer: Because the ink markers used to produce the baskets come in 138 colors. You see it there as well: every piece is unique. We like this certain logic when it comes to series.

Your approach is often very artistic, and at the same time you resist pigeonholing yourself as either artists or designers. Why do people need these categories? Katharina Mischer: We never think about whether our projects are art or design. We don’t think much of pigeonholes. It’s about viewing and reflection. Maybe a lot of people need categories so they can organize works in their minds – as a kind of support, you could say. Do the younger generations have less use for labels? Thomas Traxler: I have the feeling that objects are scrutinized more intensely and independently these days, that viewers have gotten mature and are emboldened to openly express their opinion about a project. You studied in Eindhoven, among other places. Would you say they dealt with this issue differently there than they do here, in Austria? Thomas Traxler: Definitely. The Austrian concept of design is still very disconcerting. Design here is a vacuum cleaner by Dyson or a sugar bowl by Alessi. In the Netherlands and in the UK, art, design, architecture, fashion, etc. engage with one another much more than they do here. This box-system has been breaking open for some time there, even within the individual disciplines. In Holland, for example, people understand that design is a form of applied thinking, not just surface design. Design is a wonderful mediator, be it the car connecting the road and the driver or the breathing apparatus between patient and doctor. Katharina Mischer and Thomas Traxler

Photo: Yasmina Haddad

Michael Hausenblas has been on staff at the daily newspaper “Der Standard” since 1999 and works first and foremost as an editor in the area of design.

als expert, etc. The designer is always between positions. This probably used to be more the case in art as well, in the days when artists were still painting portraits in royal courts or doing frescos for churches. So there again, you see similarities. Just look at public art: it also calls for a specific set of tasks and requirements to be fulfilled. Katharina once said, “Art and design are siblings that eventually set off in their own, different ways.” Katharina Mischer: Really, I said that? Thomas Traxler: Yes, but you said it in English. Considering the art-guise people often attribute to your work, do you find it more difficult to get pure product or industrial design jobs? Thomas Traxler: I think the briefings we get are often more liberal than those given to other designers, that’s true. So when it comes to the final result, we have more freedom than they do. In other words, classic product design clients have a hard time understanding your conceptual approach? Thomas Traxler: Not necessarily. As our portfolio grows, potential customers are coming to see that we might also tease much more out of a specific design task. So you wouldn’t mind designing a coffee maker or vacuum cleaner? Katharina Mischer: Of course not. But it would definitely look different than most.

But art can do that, too. Katharina Mischer: Sure, that’s why the two fields are more similar than one might think.

Your favorite artwork? Katharina Mischer: “Machine with Concrete” by Arthur Ganson has been our favorite for some years now. We think the aspect of time in that work is very beautiful, and it is kinetic without moving too much.

What about the image? One gets the feeling – especially in this country – that artists look down on the work of designers. Katharina Mischer: True, we get that feeling as well. I don’t know why that is. Art is at the top of the hierarchy, then you have the architect, then there’s nothing for a while, and then eventually you have design and fashion, which are often dismissed as a styling thing.

What is your favorite piece of design and why? Thomas Traxler: We have several. One piece is definitely the “Parentesi” lamp Achille Castiglioni and Pio Manzù designed for Flos. It is so simple and raw and immediately communicates what it is for. Almost the opposite of our stuff. (laughs)

The newspaper “Süddeutsche Zeitung” wrote after this year’s furniture show in Milan: “The Milan Furniture Fair goes to show that design is shaking free of practical specifications more and more, and casting itself as art.” Would you agree with that assessment? Katharina Mischer: No, that’s a superficial approach. If you really look at and study things, you realize these are mostly design projects. People who insist on labeling these objects as art don’t quite know what to do with them. Maybe a bad design object becomes art. (laughs) Thomas Traxler: In design, you always have a counterpart, be it the producer, the user, the scientist, the materi-

Katharina Mischer and Thomas Traxler are the studio mischer'traxler. Balancing between craft and technology, they design objects, alternative production processes, interactive installations and more. The duo’s main focus lies in creating experimental and conceptual work that takes the context into account. Works by mischer'traxler have already been featured in a number of international exhibitions and various design or media art festivals, and can be found, among other places, in the permanent collections of the MAK Vienna, the Vitra Design Museum and the Art Institute of Chicago. In 2011, mischer'traxler were named “Designer of the Future” by Design Miami/Basel. They were also the 2014 recipients of the “BE OPEN Young Talent Award.” www.mischertraxler.com 95

Interview

More Art, More Boldness! What drives art collectors in Vienna? Interview by Werner Rodlauer

Volkmar Käppl and Jack C. Wagner, art collectors in Vienna, are prototypical examples of two concepts of collecting. They talk about their dealings with galleries and artists.

What is the philosophy behind your art collection? Volkmar Käppl: I collect Austrian post-1945 art and attempt to cover as wide a spectrum as possible. I don’t make any distinction in terms of age or medium. I also like to have as much documentation as possible and the possibility of reading about the artist. My library currently contains around 12,000 exhibition catalogues. Jack C. Wagner: The basis for my collection is my interest in Vienna Actionism. I concentrate on photography and have much fewer paintings. I like pictures of people that are aesthetically moving. I don’t confine myself to Actionism in the narrow sense. I started my collection, for example, with a work by Markus Schinwald.

Werner Rodlauer,born 1963, studied culture management at ICCM Salzburg, organized activities in the independent culture sector, worked with Galerie Theuretzbacher, Vienna, from 1990 to 1993, was secretary general of the Association of Austrian Galleries of Modern Art from 1993 to 1997, has been managing director of w.hoch.2wei Cultural Project Management since 1998, and publisher and editor-inchief of artmagazine.cc since 2000. 96

Your collections focus on Austria and Vienna. What do you appreciate particularly about the local scene? Jack C. Wagner: There is a need for good galleries that are interested not only in selling but also in giving advice, and we have them here. But I also buy from other collectors and from estates. Volkmar Käppl: It is only possible to acquire a complete collection by concentrating on a local scene. I am repeatedly amazed at the number of older artists I meet every day whose works I don’t have in my collection. I visit lots of galleries, studios, and art colleges. Direct contact with the artists – be it in exhibitions or in their studios – is very important for me.

Jack C. Wagner: Communication with other collectors is also vital. I like to visit studios and often take part in guided tours because they encourage group discussion. These initiatives are useful for communicating art to the masses. People don’t mind spending lots of money on cars, but they hesitate to spend 1,000 euros on a work of art. Austria lacks a large middle class that buys art. A lot of artist-run spaces popped up in Vienna in the last few years. What significance do they have for you? Jack C. Wagner: I find this development very exciting, but I unfortunately don’t have the time to look into it in detail. I have to accept the fact that I don’t encounter artists until later in a gallery and then probably pay more for their works. Volkmar Käppl: As I seek direct contact with artists, I also use this facility when time allows. As a matter of fact I go to openings practically every evening. Do you have special wishes or demands of the art scene? Volkmar Käppl: It would be nice if young artists had more possibilities for exhibiting, simply because I would then have more opportunity to see and buy their works. Jack C. Wagner: Politicians should provide institutions, museums, and art galleries with a proper budget and not make them beg. In general, more boldness is required in dealing with and of course in buying art.

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Jack C. Wagner and Volkmar K채ppl Photo: Yasmina Haddad

Design

Interface Between Art and Capital The role of the creative industries Interview by Norbert Philipp

Elisabeth Noever-Ginthör Photo: Yasmina Haddad

Art and business meet at a highly sensitive interface, says Elisabeth Noever-Ginthör, head of departure, the creative center of the Vienna Business Agency.

A good business location and a good art location: to what extent do they depend on each other? Elisabeth Noever-Ginthör: The art and creative economy has long been part of the classic economy. In Vienna the creative economy accounts for almost one fifth of the overall economy. Vienna has the particular advantage of a long tradition as an art and culture venue combined with a growing young art scene.

Norbert Philipp has been editor of the “Schaufenster” section in the newspaper “Die Presse” since 2008. He specializes in design, architecture, urban development, and the creative industries. 98

Businesses and artists often enter into partnerships of convenience. The former gain image benefits and the latter financial support. How useful are such partnerships? Elisabeth Noever-Ginthör: The creative economy has a special role to play here. It works at the highly sensitive interface of creativity and business. It develops dynamically and in transdisciplinary fashion. The various disciplines merge with one another, and there is greater emphasis on cooperative aspects. The idea is that creativity is not just window-dressing but a strategic element of business management. We also have to abandon the idea that artists are exploited by businesses. This concept is out-of-date.

The Vienna Business Agency and its creative center departure are part of a new constellation. What consequences does this have for its future work and sponsorship? Elisabeth Noever-Ginthör: Within the Vienna Business Agency, departure is the interface between the creative and classic economies. Artists now have far more options for putting their ideas into practice and can avail themselves of 20 different subsidy programs within the Agency. How is the art market in Vienna doing? Does it have distinctive features compared with other cities of its size? Elisabeth Noever-Ginthör: In terms of contemporary art, Vienna can compete with Berlin, Paris, or Amsterdam. There are high-quality galleries of an international standard, lots of museums, and the interplay between major art institutions, universities, and galleries is unique. And yet Vienna is not perceived as the contemporary metropolis that it has long become. This is because of the big names in our art and architectural heritage – Klimt, Schiele, Hoffmann, Wagner … We should be much bolder in dealing with this heritage. There are not many cities in which contemporary art is so vibrant and yet so little talked about.

Design

View Through a Youthful Lens WIEN PRODUCTS Collection Text by Teresa Schaur-Wünsch

Photo: Yasmina Haddad

From the Schnitt-O-Mat to Lobmeyr’s analog photo filter: venerable companies and contemporary designers present the tenth WIEN PRODUCTS Collection.

It is a bit like an Instagram filter, though not a digital one, but a kind of finely cut crystal chandelier glass that you hold up in front your camera to produce colorful and kaleidoscopic effects. This is probably one of the most exciting examples of what can happen when creative professionals work with long-established businesses. In this case, Talia Radford, a Vienna-based artist with Mallorcan and British roots, is working with glass manufacturer J. & L. Lobmeyr. 20 years have passed since a few select Viennese companies came together at the urging of the Vienna Chamber of Commerce and established WIEN PRODUCTS. For ten years, the collaboration between venerable companies and young (and not so young) wild things has produced its own collection of beautiful objects. It began in 2006, with a porcelain sphere paperweight by Maria Katharina Wiala for Augarten, a headdress by Danijel Radic for Mühlbauer Headwear, and Philipp Bruni’s Schnitt-O-Mat for Manner wafers. The latter is a dispenser which is still available at the Manner flagship store on Stephansplatz and online. Another successful model was Josephine, a water carafe created by the Polka design studio for Lobmeyr.

Teresa Schaur-Wünsch graduated in English studies and in the combined studies “Stage, Film and other Media” in Graz. She is editor with the daily newspaper “Die Presse” in Vienna.

Lobmeyr, one of the co-founders of the WIEN PRODUCTS Collection, is one of two businesses that have taken part in every round. Quite a few products have turned into top sellers, says Leonid Rath, who manages the manufacture with his two cousins, the sixth generation in the family to do so. They include Tino Valentinitsch’s “Wiener Stutzen” beer glass, and “Grip,” a decanter designed by Marco Dessi, which spawned an entire drinking set. Other works have gone down in company history as experiments. But, as Rath points out, that is what the WIEN

PRODUCTS Collection is about: experiments. “It is a good way to nudge us to experiment once a year, to open up new directions from which other things can develop.” Finally, says Rath, the WIEN PRODUCTS Collection is also a way to show the people of Vienna that the company is more than just a historic business on Kärntner Strasse. A.E. Köchert, too, owns a historic salesroom, designed by Theophil Hansen. The jeweler at Neuer Markt is the other business that has been part of the WIEN PRODUCTS Collection from the beginning. Köchert also bears the title of Purveyor to the Imperial and Royal Court, and has also worked with artists (such as Hansen) at all times. “It is in keeping with our tradition to deal with the contemporary design scene in our city,” says Christoph Köchert. “And we can tell that this cooperation has an effect on our business, that we are adopting certain approaches and ways of thinking.” This year, the business is working with Dottings to make a stone sphere (made from rose quartz, for example), which is combined with a gold plate to represent the craft. You can wear the piece of jewelry as an earring, or as a pendant on a bracelet or necklace. Like Lobmeyr’s analog photo filter, this object could well make it to series production.

WIEN PRODUCTS Collection 2015: businesses and designers R. Horn’s Wien – Patrick Wollner Jarosinski & Vaugoin – Die Silberschmiede – Sebastian Menschhorn A.E. Köchert – Dottings J. & L. Lobmeyr – Talia Radford Mühlbauer Hutmanufaktur – LucyD Schullin Wien – Lisa Grabner, Efa Höflinger, Michaela Koller Werkstätte Chlada – Chmara.Rosinke 99

Cultural Policy

“Creating Common Good” in Austria’s Cultural Foreign Policy

Sebastian Kurz

The press release issued by VIENNA ART WEEK, held this year under the motto of “Creating Common Good,” rightly points out that art has never been more visible, present and influential than today. Never before has it been so integral to social processes. I believe this means that Austria must continue with its active and responsible cultural foreign policy. Such a policy creates opportunities for international collaboration and opens channels for respectful dialog. Our International Cultural Policy, part of the Federal Ministry for Europe, Integration and Foreign Affairs (BMEIA), is a network that currently includes 31 Austrian culture fora and cooperative offices, 88 embassies and consulates-general, 64 Austrian libraries, eight Austria institutes and two science and technology offices. They are the nerve centers and handling points for cultural project work outside Austria and control more than 6,100 projects based around recommendation and sponsorship programs administrated by specialist juries. Examples include “The New Austrian Sound of Music,” “schreibART AUSTRIA” and “INTPA – International Net for Dance and Performance Austria.” An intentional focus on filmmaking is expressed through cooperation with the “Tricky Women” festival, which celebrates animated movies, the Ars Electronica, and the Academy of Austrian Film, all of which were established in the past three years. Austria’s foreign cultural policy has decades of experience in intercultural and interreligious dialog, experience that is developing constantly. The BMEIA set up its “Dialogue of Cultures and Religions” task force in 2007 as a

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conceptual and implementation tool. One of the projects developed by the task force is the Intercultural Achievement Award (IAA) launched in 2014. This global prize is awarded to projects by institutions and persons from civil society that contribute considerably to successful communal life in a pluralistic society. The award has several aims: • It is intended to motivate institutions and private persons to engage in intercultural dialog. • Innovative concepts and solutions to deal with the challenges of intercultural coexistence are developed in a competent review process – and then serve as inspiration for subsequent projects. • It allows a national, regional and international network of dialog initiatives to be set up. • Successful intercultural projects are more likely to be emulated if they receive more publicity. “Creating Common Good” can be described as a motto of Austrian cultural foreign policy that is not explicitly stated but nevertheless embraced and implemented every day. Sebastian Kurz Federal Minister for Europe, Integration and Foreign Affairs

Interview

A Game of Values Hofstätter Projekte: a new project space in Vienna Interview by Angela Stief

Tobias Rehberger and Sophie Tappeiner Photo: Yasmina Haddad

Project spaces are often dedicated to contemporary art, but Hofstätter Projekte is unusual: artists are invited to examine the Hofstätter collection in a dialog between old and new. A conversation with Sophie Tappeiner, who runs the project space, and artist Tobias Rehberger, who is planning a game of hide and seek.

Angela Stief is a Viennabased curator and journalist. She was a curator at Kunsthalle Wien from 2002 to 2013, where she realized group exhibitions such as “Dream & Trauma,” “POWER UP – Female Pop Art,” and solo exhibitions with artists including Yüksel Arslan, Leigh Bowery, Urs Fischer, Nathalie Djurberg, and Gert & Uwe Tobias. Since 2003, she has lectured at various universities both in Austria and abroad and regularly edits and publishes texts on contemporary art. Together with Lorenz Estermann, she founded the Temporäre Halle für Kunst in Linz, with exhibitions including “Bildbaumeister” and “Serendipität. Kunst zwischen Programm und Zufall.” In spring 2015 she published a comprehensive Leigh Bowery monograph with Piet Meyer Verlag.

How was Hofstätter Projekte established? Sophie Tappeiner: Anton Hofstätter set up the project space in 2014 in his father’s first salesroom. His father was the late art dealer and collector Reinhold Hofstätter. While the art business has remained unchanged in its basic structure, Anton Hofstätter has dedicated this space to contemporary art. What is the project space about, and how do you intend to establish yourself on the local art scene? Sophie Tappeiner: The idea is to invite artists to examine the Hofstätter collection. What is key is the dialog between old and new. We want to bring people together who usually concentrate only on historic or contemporary art. With his neon light lettering “All Art Has Been Contemporary” Maurizio Nannucci, whose works made up the opening exhibition, articulated our topic perfectly. You engage artists and then give them a task – a procedure that was particularly common in the arts before the modern age. Is there a production budget? Sophie Tappeiner: Yes, and it differs in size for each project. Klaus Mosettig, the second artist to exhibit his work here, showed drawings based on historic works of art. It is important to me that the work produced is not commissioned work. That is why the connection between old

and new, and between applied and fine arts, should already be part of the work of the artists we invite. You describe this as a project space, but collecting and exhibiting are in fact the jobs of a museum, aren’t they? Sophie Tappeiner: We are a commercial business. We may develop a long-term collaboration with an artist in the future, like a gallery would. But we are very different from a museum, because artists can intervene in existing works. Constantin Luser, whose works are on show in September and October, chose badly conserved pieces from the collection to integrate them in his sculptures. Mr. Rehberger, what are you planning? Tobias Rehberger: I have gathered a small catalogue of works from the Hofstätter collection that I will package as sculptures. I like to make other people’s work part of my own. My objects will be like the wrapping on a present that you can remove and destroy or simply leave as it is. You can destroy one to see the other, or the old piece can remain hidden by the new one and simply exist because it is known to exist. It is a game of values. Which pieces did you choose? Tobias Rehberger: I tend towards the whimsical. This collection goes back to the 14th century and contains some pretty strange things. I didn’t just choose famous and valuable objects. Many objects have a dual purpose, like the skull you can use as an ashtray. That’s the kind of thing I like.

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Program

Panta Rhei – Everything’s in Flux Zaha Hadid and the Wiener Silber Manufactur Interview by Anneliese Ringhofer Zaha Hadid

Photo: Yasmina Haddad

The Wiener Silber Manufactur can look back on a tradition of silversmith work that extends over a period of more than 130 years. Today the manufactory works together with eminent designers and artists, most recently with Zaha Hadid. Georg Stradiot, the owner of the Wiener Silber Manufactur, talks about Zaha Hadid’s demands for the highest quality, the sensual aspect of silver, and about his passion for the third dimension in art.

The vases “Loa” and “Vesu” by Zaha Hadid, which are being presented for the first time in Austria at VIENNA ART WEEK, are among the highlights of the contemporary collection of the Wiener Silber Manufactur. What makes them so special? Georg Stradiot: In the most wonderful way Zaha Hadid here expresses her formal concept “everything is in flux” in two different versions, creating the illusion that the flowing movement comes from within and spreads across the surface. The patterns, which are influenced by geology, symbolize the constantly changing Earth with its layers and inner strength – like with a volcano, hence the names. The designs are poetically beautiful, which of course also has to do with the material: silver exudes a warm, sensual quality. What convinced Zaha Hadid to work together with you? Georg Stradiot: Zaha Hadid attaches great importance to quality. And she appreciates businesses that give traditional handcraft a contemporary face, which is precisely what we do.

Anneliese Ringhofer moves between the beautiful things of life: art, architecture, fashion and design. For many years she worked as a journalist for a number of Viennese editorial offices, such as those of “H.O.M.E.” or “Diva.” She currently works as a freelance journalist and writes for several Austrian and German design, fashion and lifestyle magazines. 102

How long did it take to produce the vases and what was the special challenge involved? Georg Stradiot: Two silversmiths worked for three months on one vase. Each piece is unique and bears the individual signature of the particular silversmith. All of our products, including of course these vases, are determined by eye and made exclusively by hand. One of the particular challenges presented by the vases was to allow the movement to flow outwards from inside the vessels, that is to beat the relief as deeply into the inside as the distance required for the hammer blow allows. The two

silversmiths have succeeded brilliantly in doing this. They have a complete command of the old Viennese silversmith’s craft that they acquired from master silversmiths now in retirement. Internationally, there are hardly any other manufactories with a similar tradition of handcraft. Today, silver products are generally made by machine in low-wage countries. Where do art and design meet in these vases? Georg Stradiot: Vases are what are called hollow-wares and are determined by their three-dimensional form – much like a sculpture. Works by sculptors such as Constantin Brancusi or Fritz Wotruba, whom I had the privilege of getting to know personally, fascinate me. In art nowadays the third dimension is much neglected. Sculpture has given way to object art. Consequently, we see the chance to continue this three-dimensional aspect of art – using the high-quality material silver – as a highly attractive opportunity. Does that make the vases collectors’ items? Georg Stradiot: Our products are collectors’ items with a specific function. They are intended to be used. We work with a very special alloy that has a silver content of 94 per cent. That produces a finer sheen and makes our products suitable for everyday use. The quality is also recognizable from the weight. Each vase consists of 3.5 kilograms of silver.

The Wiener Silber Manufactur Founded in 1882, the business experienced its first heyday during the time of the Wiener Werkstätte. Designs by Josef Hoffmann and Kolo Moser are still produced today according to the original drawings. The contemporary collection unites a veritable “Who’s who” of international design.

Program

A Shower of Color in the CeMM Martin Walde’s “Time Capsule”

Martin Walde

Photo: Yasmina Haddad

Text by Sabine B. Vogel

The CeMM adopts an unconventional approach to the reconciliation of science and art. Martin Walde has once again been invited to take an emotive look at the world of scientists. His “Time Capsule” is a neutral refuge for hidden ideas.

Someone buys a notebook and jots something down in it. Before it is full, he starts the next one. Over the years, hundreds of half-filled notebooks are accumulated, and he can barely remember what is in them. This experience was the starting point for the “Time Capsule,” says Martin Walde. Another inspiration was the discussions with Giulio Superti-Furga, scientific director of the CeMM Research Center for Molecular Medicine in the Austrian Academy of Sciences, which conducts research on cancer, inflammation, and the human genome in a prominent high-rise between Vienna General Hospital and the Medical University. Three years ago, Superti-Furga commissioned the designers Walking Chair to create a brainstorming room, the “Brain Lounge.” He spoke with Martin Walde about a further project, a neutral refuge. Walde developed his room for “hidden and anonymous ideas.” The shelves forming a 16-square-meter oval space contain 13,000 notebooks in 20 colors with 1.6 million blank pages. Sabine B. Vogel, born in Essen, Germany, has lived in Austria since 1995. She has a degree in art history from the University of Bochum and works as a freelance art critic and curator. She wrote her doctoral thesis for the University of Applied Art on “Biennials – Art on a Global Scale.” Since 2003 she has been a lecturer at the University of Applied Arts Vienna, and since 2009 president of AICA AUSTRIA (Association Internationale des Critiques d’Art).

Walde speaks of a “collective ideas room, free of impatience, zeal, or sophisticated systems.” And, above all, free of control. Although he spent a month thinking about the color scheme, the arrangement is not fixed. The idea is that the room should radiate an “inviting atmosphere”: “Colors have a strong cultural component, recall advertising, brands – and can be unbearable.” In his “shower of color,” for example, the bright red notebooks are at the bottom, so that the room does not appear too dark or loud. But now everything is open. Every visitor can take a notebook, write something down, and return it to a random place. The uncontrolled removal, jotting, and adding is subject to one

single rule: everyone should enter themselves in a logbook, as later it could be “historically interesting to see who was here,” says Superti-Furga. The location of the “Time Capsule” in the CeMM makes for an interesting analogy: the 20 colors recall amino acids and the chemical diversity of proteins. As such, the capsule also reflects biological complexity: it would take all of the notebooks here to record the entire human genome. When a notebook is taken from the shelf and replaced somewhere else, it is like a genetic mutation. A pattern is changed, which has an effect on the entire system. Everything is connected far beyond the direct environment. “Network effects,” says Superti-Furga to describe the central paradigm of genome regulation. Unlike the human genome, modifications to the “Time Capsule” do not cause diseases. On the contrary, the colors influence thoughts, and the combinations reflect the visitors’ obsessions and preferences.

CONVERSATION

Stefan Rothleitner, curator and art consultant in the “CeMM Time Capsule,” in a conversation with artist Martin Walde* Tue., 17 Nov. 2015 5:00 pm Meeting point: CeMM Research Center for Molecular Medicine of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, Lazarettgasse 14, AKH BT 25.3, 1090 Vienna In German * Registration is required: E eschweng@cemm.at, T +43 1 401 60 70051 103

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Designed Utopias Croatia in the Vienna Insurance Group’s focus Text by Stephan Hilpold

of work by Arnulf Rainer in 2014, this year’s commission went to Croatian artist Tanja Deman, whose thinking largely revolves around formal languages in architecture and whose work “Summer Pleasures” has transformed the Ringturm architectural monument into a truly paradisiacal place, if only for a few months.

Barbara Grötschnig

Built in 1955 – this year marks the structure’s 60-year anniversary – the Ringturm was the first office tower in Vienna; today it is considered one of the city’s topographically symbolic landmarks. Standing like a pillar, it borders the northeast corner of downtown and simultaneously acts as a gateway to the Danube Canal and Vienna’s 2nd District. Deman’s 4,000-square-meter artwork also tackles this play with perspective, closeness and distance. This year’s commissioned work is the first to be composed using new media rather than drawing on the work of a painter, as it has in the past.

Photo: Yasmina Haddad

The annual wrapping of the Ringturm is a conspicuous symbol of the Vienna Insurance Association’s and the Vienna Insurance Group’s commitment to arts and culture. This year’s 4,000-square-meter artwork was designed by Croatian artist Tanja Deman and is accompanied by an exhibition featuring the architecture of Croatia’s many islands.

The tower is under water. A few swimmers swim their laps; children leap from the pool’s edge. Framed by skyscrapers, the swimming pool with which Croatian artist Tanja Deman covered the Vienna Ringturm early this summer is much larger than the surrounding buildings. The image has “a utopian dimension,” says Barbara Grötschnig, head of sponsorship activities for the Vienna Insurance Group and Vienna Insurance Association: water from the pool gleams in a light blue, like the light blue of the sky stretching overhead.

Stephan Hilpold is head of the lifestyle supplement “Rondo” in the daily newspaper “Der Standard.” 104

The annual wrapping of the Ringturm goes far beyond the city of Vienna. Since the year 2012 the project has been realized in cooperation with artists from Austria’s eastern and southeastern neighboring countries. The first was Hungarian artist László Fehér, followed by Slovakian artist Dorota Sadovská in 2013. After an interlude

Just as this summer’s Ringturm façade is cloaked in a fictional architectural landscape, the building’s exhibition space (a converted cashier’s hall) is resplendent with real buildings. “The close relationship to Croatian architecture was obvious,” says Grötschnig. Since 1998, the Ringturm has held regular architecture exhibitions as part of its “Architecture in the Ringturm” series. A show coordinated with the University of Rijeka over the past months spotlights architecture on Croatia’s total 1,200 coastal islands. “With the Habsburg monarchy, Austria and Croatia share a historical connection that spans several centuries,” Grötschnig explains. Several islands served as popular winter destinations for aristocrats and the upper middle classes, and a number of impressive buildings date from that period. And yet the exhibition also highlights more recent structures and iconic buildings of Croatian modernism, including the Grand Hotel and Villa Vesna on Lopud, built by Nikola Dobrovic´, and the summer residence of former President Tito on the island of Brijuni, designed by Jozˇ e Plecˇ nik. “Our aim is to make connections visible,” says Grötschnig. She is referring to ties between the past and present, but also to the connection between architecture and everyday life.

Interview

From Jack Ink to Svenskt Tenn Where art meets the world of banking

Gerald Fleischmann and Wolfgang Schauer Photo: Yasmina Haddad

For many years now, Volksbank Wien-Baden has had a special commitment to art. An interview with director general Gerald Fleischmann and chairman of the board Wolfgang Schauer on cooperation, a dedicated art zone, and ongoing exhibitions.

What is Volksbank Wien-Baden’s connection with art? Gerald Fleischmann: Art radiates energy, it is fascinating and thought-provoking. Discussions with artists gave us the idea in 2010 of creating a dedicated art zone in the refurbished branch next to the Opera in Vienna. We also cooperate, for example, with mumok to subsidize a children’s workshop, or with seedingart, a platform for promoting joint creative activities by artists and children. You enable children to work with artists? Gerald Fleischmann: Yes, we are particularly interested in communicating art to children. Together with mumok we have now designed several children’s folders for exhibitions, most recently “Lilli macht Pop” for the exhibition “Ludwig Goes Pop.” The folder was very well received, not only by children but also by adults. There is also a special children’s day once a year on which children can peek behind the scenes and become artists themselves.

businesses or charity pop-up stores as well as established and new artists. From the various inquiries we receive, we devise our exhibition year. Apart from pictures, sculptures, and photos, we also show cars, furniture, and handicrafts in our exhibition area. We presented Jack Ink’s glass sculpture “The Venus Comb Shell,” which took seven years to complete together with J. & L. Lobmeyr and used a series of new glass techniques, special glass kilns, and more than 500 ceramic and plaster molds. The work consists of 125 glass parts hand-blown and cast by Jack Ink and 1,500 metal components. We also had a Ferrari show, the exhibition “supercharged” by airbrush artist Knud Tiroch, the imaginative abstract paintings of Maximilian Klebl, and the evocative sculptures by Michl Herberstein, who creates living objects from industrial materials. What is currently on show at Operngasse 8? Wolfgang Schauer: From 25 November we will be showing the Swedish furniture and design company Svenskt Tenn, whose products include furniture, lighting objects, and textiles designed by Josef Frank. Some of these articles can also be purchased at the exhibition. EXHIBITION

You have also designed one branch of the bank as an art zone. How does that work? Gerald Fleischmann: Our branch at Operngasse 8 in Vienna is not only a classic bank but also a flagship store that gives artists space to present their works and themselves. This creates a multifaceted atmosphere unusual for a bank. What kind of artists do you present in your exhibitions? Wolfgang Schauer: We make our premises available to

Svenskt Tenn 25 Nov. 2015–13 Feb. 2016 Volksbank branch at Operngasse 8, 1010 Vienna Opening hours: Mon.–Wed., Fri. 8:00 am–12:30 pm & 1:30–3:00 pm, Thu. 8:00 am–12:30 pm & 1:30–5:30 pm, Sat. 10:00 am–3:00 pm 105

Interview

Young Americans Alex Ito about real and virtual spaces and their backgrounds Interview by Cornelis van Almsick

Alex Ito in his studio

Courtesy of the artist, 2015

The exhibition “Young Americans” at FRANZ JOSEFS KAI 3 features works by the emerging artist Alex Ito. Cornelis van Almsick met him in May 2015 in his New York studio.

Alex Ito, born in Los Angeles, studied at Pratt Institute, Brooklyn, and works in Brooklyn, New York. Selected recent solo exhibitions include “After Gruen” at Sade Gallery, Los Angeles (2015), and “The Home of Tao Hsiao” at Art in General, New York (2014). Recent group shows include the Museum Dhondt-Dhaenens in Belgium (2015) and the Zabludowicz Collection in London (2014). Cornelis van Almsick is an independent curator of contemporary art, an accredited architect and co-founder of COMA Studios. As a curator, his area of expertise comprises installation, video, conceptual photography and painting. Rarely showing in the same space or location, the interplay between exhibition space and artwork became his focal point. Irene Gludowacz graduated from the fine arts academies in Vienna (AfBK) and Berlin (UdK) and went on to work as a fashion/textile and product designer. She lived in New York, Paris and Munich but has meanwhile moved back to Vienna and now works as an author, curator and communications expert for foundations, museums and enterprises in the international arena. 106

As an architect I am impressed by the precision of your work and the sensitivity with which you arrange your installations in space. What is your connection to architecture? Alex Ito: The viewer is in and out of the physical, mental and social space that encompasses the exhibition. Images and objects are treated equally as elements of this architecture. I wouldn’t say my work is similar to a building because the treatment is a lot more minimal. I am more interested in the subtle gestures and relationships between these objects than in a monumental statement or everlasting permanence. Your work has been exhibited in Great Britain, Belgium and Italy. What are your views on Europe’s art scene? What are you thoughts on Vienna? Alex Ito: Europe’s art scene is amazing and I have gotten a lot of support! I’ve seen many artists receiving a lot of critical reviews surrounding their work. Exhibitions seem critically and theoretically driven as opposed to putting pretty things on the wall. Some of my favorite shows and exhibition spaces are in Europe. There are also plenty of strong conversations happening in the States, but there is definitely something very special about Europe that I have been able to see through other artists’ practices and presentations outside the US. As for Vienna, I have to say that I am not very familiar with what is going on. I am familiar with Rachel Whiteread’s Holocaust Memorial, which I find deeply sensitive in itself and thoughtful of its context. As a young artist, are there any established artists who influence your work? Alex Ito: I have always appreciated the subtleties of Carol Bove’s work and how she chooses to bring life to her objects. Elad Lassry is another artist who gets me thinking. Both artists do not simply think of the object as a

solidified body but see the space of relationships as a frame for the work. This framing is fluid as it challenges the context and language of our familiarity. What really captures me is the “being” of each object – something quiet and subtle; alien but familiar. As a digital native, what are your thoughts on the term ‘post-internet’? Alex Ito: I believe in the future we’re going to be laughing that we even used the term. It’s a fact that there are children now who can code like professionals. I am curious to see what artists born after 2000 will be doing. Things are moving so rapidly in so many different directions all at once. This movement is exciting because we view it as progress. However, I think it is naïve to hastily glorify Internetbased work or new media as a future. New media is a first-world luxury and is made possible through exploitation and hardship. Coltan mining in Africa is one example. [Note: the metal obtained from the raw material is used in electronic products like cell phones.] So as much as I am interested to see what future generations are going to be doing with new technologies, I am also curious to see how we recognize our position towards it and not fail to remember that there is a complex reality behind it. We should not forget that possibilities also entail consequences, and that digital spaces are not exempt from material concerns. EXHIBITION

“Young Americans” 17 Nov.–2 Dec. 2015 FRANZ JOSEFS KAI 3 Artists: Petra Cortright, Luis Gispert, Alex Ito, Carter Mull, Ken Okiishi, Timur Si-Qin, Ryan Trecartin, Kaari Upson Curator: Cornelis van Almsick Organizer: Irene Gludowacz For details on the exhibition, see page 111

Austrian Federal Chancellery’s Residency Program

“Best time ever” 30 years of the Austrian Federal Chancellery’s artist residency program Text by Ruth Horak

Judith Huemer, Balcony Session, 2007

Yogyakarta, Tokyo, New York, London – just a few finesounding names of cities to which the Austrian govern ment sends over 50 artists from the fields of visual art, photography and media art every year. Those lucky enough to receive these international studio grants know what a privilege this time-off is for artistic work.

Ruth Horak, born in 1972, is an art critic, curator and editor of contemporary art and photography, with a focus on conceptual strategies and media reflexivity. She has published widely in exhibition catalogues, readers and magazines (especially “EIKON”) and curated a series of exhibitions of the Austrian federal collection of photography, which toured Graz, Leipzig and Vancouver.

“Inspiration and leisure are the food of art.” That sentence would make a fine motto for the Austrian Federal Chancellery’s artist residency program, which is aimed at giving artists a free space devoted exclusively to their artistic development. In 1985, when the program’s first studios were established in Rome and Paris, no one guessed the consequences it would have for what was then known as the Austrian Federal Ministry of Education, Arts and Sport: since then, some 1,000 artists have been privileged with a place in one of many studios in cities around the world – currently around twelve locations altogether. The Austrian Federal Chancellery, which finances the studio, stipends and travel, tries to acclimatize destinations to global developments in art, or to programmatically expand locations that are key to the art scene. The majority of these studios are housed in buildings typical to the host country – whether on the 20th floor with a view of the Empire State Building or in a tatami room – which also lends itself to an authentic living situation. Basically, the program offers a range of studios equipped to meet different needs. On the one hand, there are retreats for artists who have a clear goal in mind and would like to focus on realizing a specific project (like the Banff Centre in Alberta, Canada, for example, which

offers sound and film production studios for media artists), while a residency in an art hub like New York or Shanghai is primarily for inspiration and networking. Some destinations offer exhibition opportunities, open studio days and arranged visits from art critics. Artists who take full advantage of the circumstances come back euphoric: “Best time ever!” or “The superlatives of an artist residency!” were two such enthusiastic responses. Many return to the country afterwards – paying their own way – to follow up on projects from the time of the residency, while others publish or exhibit them in Europe. Some studios even end up on the cover of a book, as recently seen with Matthias Herrmann. The output of artworks made on site is accordingly profound, whether on the occasion of extraordinary events – Hurricane Sandy in New York (Corinne Rusch), for example – concerning local topics, or based on the specific formal and social characteristics of the cities: in Krumlov on the industrial history of Bohemia and its communist architecture (Elisabeth Czihak), for instance, or on windowless walls in London, which are so common because property tax is calculated based on the number of windows (Hubert Blanz). The New York studio, in particular, often makes its way into the picture, as we see in projects by Martin Osterider and Michael Strasser. Judith Huemer even “framed” the view from the studio’s balcony.

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special projects

Vienna as an art city owes its enormous diversity not only to the large exhibition halls, museums and art universities, but also and especially to the many small and until now little-known initiatives. The unswerving commitment of Vienna’s many creative artists and those running independent art spaces makes the city a strong creative hub with its finger on the pulse of the times. The following program invites you to discover the many hidden but interesting parts of Vienna as a city of art. A must-see … choose and enjoy the city’s creative diversity!

Kacper Kowalski, Efekty uboczne

Luis Casanova Sorolla, Soma, 2014

AnzenbergerGallery

bäckerstrasse wien–berlin

CONVERSATION

OPEN STUDIO

Brunch and artist talk with Kacper Kowalski as part of the exhibition “Side Effects”

Luis Casanova Sorolla

Leica Gallery Warszawa

Sat., 21 Nov. 2015 11:00 am In English

“Side Effects” is an exhibition of photographs by Polish artist Kacper Kowalski. His aerial photographs have made him one of the best-known photographers in this field. His perfectly composed images are reminiscent of paintings: surfaces and lines create abstract structures in rich colors or clear white, and his strict adherence to a birds-eye view offers an entirely new look at the world. Kacper Kowalski has won the World Press Photo Award several times. His book “Side Effects” (2014) is available at the AnzenbergerGallery bookshop. The artist talk will be led by Regina Maria Anzenberger. * Registration is required: ines.gam@anzenberger.com AnzenbergerGallery Absberggasse 27 1100 Vienna T +43 1 587 82 51 F +43 1 587 90 07 E gallery@anzenberger.com www.anzenbergergallery.com www.anzenbergergallery-bookshop.com Opening hours: Wed.–Sat. 12:00 noon–6:00 pm

Wed., 18 Nov. 2015 12:00 noon Kohlmarkt 9, 1010 Vienna Music, dance choreographies, films and performances have a linear nature; they run out when their running time is up. What remains apart from the memory, which is always fragmented? Luis Casanova Sorolla has developed a number of methods to capture the course of these sensations in such a way that they reactivate our experience. OPEN STUDIO

Thomas Gänszler Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 12:00 noon Simmeringer Hauptstrasse 121, 1100 Vienna Thomas Gänszler’s works emerge from between the poles of the pictorial tradition as a media industrial process and the form as a biographical note. The subjects and materials of his sculptures are often taken from everyday life. They are transformed through fragmentation and reworking, but still bear marks of their former function. bäckerstrasse-wien Bäckerstrasse 4 1010 Vienna M +43 664 412 40 34 F +43 1 369 15 55 E office@baeckerstrasse.com www.baeckerstrasse.com Opening hours: Tue.–Fri. 11:00 am–7:00 pm, Sat. 11:00 am–5:00 pm

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Hans Kotter, Superposition

Anyo Rorem, … come down into the deep water of silliness, 2015

Nestor Kovachev, from the series Bronenosets Potemkin, 2014

Kunstraum BERNSTEINER

Bildraum 07 in cooperation with Galerie Michaela Stock

Bulgarisches Kulturinstitut – Haus Wittgenstein

Galerie Heike Curtze und Petra Seiser

Presentation of the catalog accompanying the exhibition “The Artist’s Studio”

CONVERSATION | GUIDED TOUR

PANEL DISCUSSION

OPENING

Artist talk and tour of the exhibition “beyond light” with Hans Kotter

Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm

Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 6:00 pm Bildraum 07

“Current artistic and philosophical approaches to Wittgenstein’s thought”

Exhibition “40 + 1 (young generation). Forty years of Galerie Heike Curtze. One year of Galerie Heike Curtze und Petra Seiser”

Luis Gispert, 2014

PRESENTATION

EXHIBITION

Rita Nowak, “The Artist’s Studio” 23 Sep.–24 Nov. 2015

In German and English

EXHIBITION

Hans Kotter, “beyond light”

With her staged photographs, tableaux vivants and artist portraits, the Austrian photo artist Rita Novak, born in 1979, has long since made a name for herself in the art scene. Her current exhibition “The Artist’s Studio” focuses on the eponymous subject. Portraying the studios of international artist friends, Rita Novak presents the studio as a space of individuation, and the artist as initiator of space. Monumental works and sketches are hung side by side, as though jotted on the wall, amalgamating into a background for new works. The exhibition thus illustrates the process of origination and change.

10 Nov.–5 Dec. 2015

Kunstraum BERNSTEINER Schiffamtsgasse 11 1020 Vienna T +43 664 307 70 97  E mail@friendsandart.at www.friendsandart.at

In cooperation with Galerie Michaela Stock www.galerie-stock.net

Opening hours: Wed.–Fri. 4:00–7:00 pm

Tue., 17 Nov. 2015, 6:00 pm In English

Participants: Greddy Assa, Anyo Rorem, Rositza Stanisjewa, Maja Mattuschka, Rumjana Koneva, Valentina Vassileva Host: Hans Knoll, Knoll Galerie, Vienna EXHIBITION

Hans Kotter has made a name for himself internationally with his photographs, installations, conceptual and light art. Kotter deals with space, light and color and merges his findings in minimalist light objects. “In a unique way, Hans Kotter interprets the illusion that surrounds us every day; he accentuates the essences of this optical illusion and familiarizes us with the beauty of details and vision as such.” (Bettina Schulz, 2013) Bildraum 07 Burggasse 7–9 E office@bildrecht.at 1070 Vienna Opening hours: Mon.–Fri. 1:00–6:00 pm

Greddy Assa, “Restoration of feelings” 17–22 Nov. 2015 “Poet and philosopher – Wittgenstein – the artist of silence. Hold-up paintings from the last century. Images set in new frames. The child in me has thrown away the key …” EXHIBITION

Anyo Rorem, “Breakfast on the grass with Wittgenstein – my silent dialog with a young genius” 17–22 Nov. 2015 Anyo Rorem’s recent work deals with the religious experience that conditioned much of Wittgenstein’s early thought and is vital for interpreting some passages in the “Tractatus.”

Sat., 21 Nov. 2015 12:00 noon In a crossover exhibition curated by Lorand Hergyi, Heike Curtze and Petra Seiser are presenting its young program, including work by GIOM / Guillaume Bruère, Nina Kovacheva and Nestor Kovachev. Two generations, one passion: Petra Seiser joined the Heike Curtze gallery as a partner on its 40th anniversary. Like Heike Curtze, she has had a career heavily influenced by art. With a degree in art history and economics, Petra Seiser started working at the gallery she would join as a partner 20 years on. In between, she worked for DOROTHEUM, for the auction house im Kinsky, and for Barta and Partner art insurers. As director of the Heike Curtze gallery, she has had considerable influence on its program for several years. Galerie Heike Curtze und Petra Seiser Seilerstätte 15/16 1010 Vienna T +43 1 512 93 75 E wien@heikecurtze.com www.heikecurtze.com

Bulgarisches Kulturinstitut – Haus Wittgenstein Parkgasse 18 1030 Vienna www.haus-wittgenstein.at Opening hours: Mon.–Fri. 10:00 am–4:30 pm 109

special projects © Dieter Bornemann, Ich glaub an dich! Irgendwie …

première vue © Maren Jeleff

Peter Hauenschild, Der Berg, 2014

DESIGN & ART Galerie

EIKON – International Magazine for Photography and Media Art HERR LEUTNER

ELISABETH ZEIGT

eSeL REZEPTION

EXHIBITION

SYMPOSIUM

Peter Hauenschild

“Mar Dixon’s museum camp”

EXHIBITION

Dieter Bornemann, “A few words” 19 Nov.–3 Dec. 2015 Opening: Thu., 19 Nov. 2015, 7:00 pm With his camera, Dieter Bornemann seeks out words in public spaces. He gathers impressions on the streets of large cities, defamiliarizes them artistically and places them in a new context. Most motifs vanish from the streets as quickly as they came. Bornemann extends the life of these compelling exclamations, from political theories to declarations of love, and turns them into an important reflection of the urban population. Viewers see a familiar environment from a new perspective, as the cityscape is redefined. In combination with objects from the DESIGN & ART gallery, his work demonstrates how familiar environments and interiors can be extended artistically to create new sensory impressions. DESIGN & ART Galerie Westbahnstrasse 16 1070 Vienna M +43 1 664 426 91 09 E info@designandart.at www.designandart.at Opening hours: Tue., Wed., Fri. 12:00 noon–7:00 pm, Thu. 12:00 noon–8:00 pm, Sat. 10:00 am–6:00 pm

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EXHIBITION

“première vue” 19 Nov.–16 Dec. 2015 level_41 Opening: Wed., 18 Nov. 2015, 7:00 pm Production sites – photo labs and frame workshops – have always been the first port of call for young photographers, long before their works are presented to the public. In order to find young talented artists and promote them early on, EIKON and HERR LEUTNER have joined forces for a premiere. This allowed works by promising young artists to be exhibited – and a patron has even taken over production costs. Everyone interested in the future of photography should not miss out on this show at Hotel Altstadt Vienna. EIKON, in cooperation with HERR LEUTNER EIKON – International Magazine for Photography and Media Art Q21 / MuseumsQuartier E office@eikon.at www.eikon.at HERR LEUTNER Westbahnstrasse 27–29 1070 Vienna www.herrleutner.at level_41 at Hotel Altstadt Vienna Kirchengasse 41 1070 Vienna

20 Nov.–11 Dec. 2015 Opening: Thu., 19 Nov. 2015, 7:00 pm “Lunchtime, on the way home from where I have been sketching, Sainte-Victoire flat and white like a canvas, behind them, Vauvenargues.” Peter Hauenschild has been drawing extensively at the foot of Montagne Sainte-Victoire in Provence for many years. “Sometimes my charcoal pencil runs away with me. Mountain and pencil speak to each other. I can only listen in amazement.” Some of the drawings he created in Provence were collected in a book with texts by Christian Dumon, Peter Hauenschild, Alexandra Pitz, Stella Rollig and Gerhard Willert. The book and drawings are presented at the ELISABETH ZEIGT gallery. ELISABETH ZEIGT Lobkowitzplatz 3 1010 Vienna M +43 664 42 46 414 E elisabeth.melichar@icloud.at www.elisabethzeigt.at Opening hours: Tue.–Fri. 2:00–6:00 pm, Sat. 12:00 noon–2:00 pm, or by appointment

Sun., 22 Nov. 2015 1:00–7:00 pm MuseumsQuartier, Room D, Electric Avenue “Museum camp” is a participatory museum conference. The audience can join in and have fun, with lectures, discussions and workshops picked on site. You decide where to listen and where to discuss your vision for museums in the 21st century. Only one thing is certain: there will be cake. Mar Dixon, who launched the #AskACurator initiative on Twitter, is bringing her lively conference format to MuseumsQuartier Wien for the first time. She will demonstrate once again that new technology can make people talk about museums. At the end of her artist residency at eSeL REZEPTION, audiences are invited to join her on Twitter for a lively exchange under her Twitter handle @MarDixon. http://museumcamp.org, http://esel.at/museumcamp Part of the Make-It-Yourself Festival (see p. 26) at Electric Avenue eSeL REZEPTION Electric Avenue, quartier21/ MuseumsQuartier Wien Museumsplatz 1 1070 Vienna E rezeption@esel.at http://esel.at

special projects

Timur Si-Qin, Premier Machinic Funerary: Prologue, 2014 (Detail)

Mona Kuhn, Maya, 2012

Photo: Hana Usui

Courtesy: the artist and Société, Berlin

Marcello Farabegoli & Dominik Nostitz

flux23

FRANZ JOSEFS KAI 3

Galerie Ernst Hilger

EXHIBITION

CONVERSATION

EXHIBITION | PERFORMANCE | CONCERT

“Reasons to Relate”

“Young Americans”

“Garages”

18–28 Nov. 2015 Opening: Wed., 18 Nov. 2015, 6:00 pm

17 Nov.– 2 Dec. 2015 Opening: Mon., 16 Nov. 2015, 5:00 pm

Mona Kuhn, “Private” – artist talk and catalog presentation

Rohullah Kazimi, Andreas Pasqualini, Laura Popplow, Raumfaltung, Kevin Rausch, Christoph Schwarz, Natasˇ a Siencˇnik, Andrea Vilhena, i. a.

Inspired by the relentless change or our times and influenced by the Internet and new media, the group show “Young Americans” (see also p. 106) features the work of eight USAmerican artists in their firstever presentation in Vienna. Replete with references to postpop and post-minimalism, the exhibition sheds light on the perception and reception of a new generation of emerging artists, their use of virtual technology and its translation into their individual artistic languages. The exhibition includes works in the media of installation, photography and video. Participats: Petra Cortright (*1986), Luis Gispert (*1972), Alex Ito (*1991), Ken Okiishi (*1978), Timur Si-Qin (*1984), Carter Mull (*1977), Ryan Trecartin (*1981), and Kaari Upson (*1972). Curator: Cornelis van Almsick Organizer: Irene Gludowacz

16 Nov. 2015–16 Jan. 2016 Kick-off: Mon., 16 Nov. 2015, 6:00 pm, Garage – KUNST HAUS WIEN The project is dedicated to the garage as a potential birthplace, domain and laboratory of inventions and campaigns that can change our everyday lives or even the entire world. Examples include garage rock or a particular garage in Palo Alto that is regarded as the birthplace of Silicon Valley. Curators and cultural producers Marcello Farabegoli & Dominik Nostitz deal with this subject in a range of exhibitions, installations, interventions, performances and concerts by selected artists in a number of garages in Vienna. The first event will examine current ecological issues. Next, there will be an event in the garages on Operngasse 4, 1010 Vienna, held on Tuesday, 17 November, in cooperation with Ken Mapayo / project FOUR. For sites, opening hours and more information, go to www.marcello-farabegoli.net or www.verein08.at

PROGRAM (Full program: www.flux23.net)

Wed., 18 Nov. 2015 6:30 pm: Opening tour 7:30 pm: Romantic Slivo strikes up Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm: “Migration of Desires” with Andreas Pasqualini & Integrationshaus Fri., 20 Nov. 2015 12:00 noon: Curators’ tour Sat., 21 Nov. 2015 Studio visits 3:00 pm: Natasˇ a Siencˇnik and others at abor 5:00 pm: Suse Krawagna, meeting point: abor 6:30 pm: Stefan Kreuzer, meeting point: Praterstrasse 32/ studio Sun., 22 Nov. 2015 2:30 pm: Guided tours for children & painting with Rohullah Kazimi & Iris Kopera

CONVERSATION

Artist talk with Timur Si-Qin

flux23 visits abor Taborstrasse 51 1020 Vienna M +43 650 319 55 91 E lena.freimueller@flux23.net www.flux23.net

Tue., 17 Nov. 2015 5:00 pm

Opening hours: Thu., Fri. 11:00 am–2:00 pm, Sat., Sun. 2:00–6:00 pm or by appointment

FRANZ JOSEFS KAI 3 Franz-Josefs-Kai 3 1010 Vienna www.franzjosefskai3.com

Tue., 17 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm In English

EXHIBITION

Mona Kuhn, “Private” 20 Oct.–22 Nov. 2015 “I photographed through a glass door that separates a public salesroom from a private area. So I was standing exactly where unauthorized persons aren’t normally admitted.” This motif is typical of the work of Mona Kuhn, who aims to invade private space. Kuhn is best known for her large-scale nude photographs. She says she was greatly influenced by photographers like Nan Goldin, whose subjects are “mostly people she established a close relationship with.” For her independent photo series, Kuhn, too, works with people she knows, people who don’t mind giving her access to their intimacy. “But after all, intimacy is relative,” adds Kuhn. Galerie Ernst Hilger Dorotheergasse 5 1010 Vienna T +43 1 512 53 15 E ernst.hilger@hilger.at www.hilger.at Opening hours: Tue.–Fri. 11:00 am–6:00 pm, Sat. 11:00 am–4:00 pm

Opening hours: Mon.–Fri. 11:00 am–8:00 pm, Sat., Sun. 12:00 noon–6:00 pm

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special projects Tobias Rehberger, Version J (Maserati Quatroporte III), 2001/2003 Photo: Roman Mensing, © Tobias Rehberger

Marcel Duchamp, 1959

Hofstätter Projekte

Galerie Hummel

IM ERSTEN

Institut Français d’Autriche

EXHIBITION

CONcERT

EXHIBITION

PRESENTATION

Tobias Rehberger

“Le Violon d’Ingres”

Markus Krottendorfer

“Pouvoir – pour voir”

18 Nov. 2015–30 Jan. 2016 Opening: Tue., 17 Nov. 2015, 7:00 pm

Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 8:00 pm

19–27 Nov. 2015 Opening: Wed., 18 Nov. 2015, 7:00 pm

Wed., 18 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm Salon Rouge & Salon Beige

Tobias Rehberger (b. 1966) is one of the most influential German artists of his generation. He often transforms pre-fabricated objects, questioning their given functions – or the functions that we consider to be given. In case of “Maserati Quattroporte,” a large metal box, it is left to our imagination whether or not it actually contains a luxury car. We are thus invited to reflect on the relevance of perception for the existence of an artwork, and on how expectation defines an object. For Hofstätter Projekte, Rehberger gets to work on objects of the Kunsthandel Reinhold Hofstätter and the eponymous private collection, putting them in a new context and thereby redefining them (see also p. 101). Hofstätter Projekte Dorotheergasse 14 1010 Vienna T +43 1 890 18 68 E office@hofstaetter-projekte.com www.hofstaetter-projekte.com Opening hours: Tue.–Fri. 11:00 am–6:00 pm, Sat. 10:00 am–1:00 pm

Freddie Jelinek and Clementine Gasser perform an improvisation for cornet and cello to accompany the exhibition “Nature and Form.” EXHIBITION

“Nature and Form” 18 Sep.–19 Dec. 2015 “Art is what makes life more interesting than art.” Robert Filliou The human spirit thrives when it looks at nature. A collection of objects demonstrates how nature can nurture art. Works by: Joseph Beuys, Günter Brus, John Cage, Marcel Duchamp, Heinz Frank, Franz Graf, Heidi Harsieber, Wassily Kandinsky, Otto Muehl, Man Ray, Bruce Nauman, Hermann Nitsch, Nam June Paik, Thomas Redl, Rudolf Schwarzkogler, Shozo Shimamoto, Chiyu Uemae, Franz West, Heimo Zobernig Galerie Hummel Bäckerstrasse 14 1010 Vienna T +43 1 512 12 96 E office@galeriehummel.com www.galeriehummel.com Opening hours: Tue.–Fri. 3:00–6:00 pm, Sat. 10:00 am–1:00 pm

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In German and French

Markus Krottendorfer’s works range from the classic documentary approach to an installation-based approach to film and photography and their types and techniques. He experiments with old photographic techniques and explores the possibilities in their forms of presentation, confronting the viewer with newly created image spaces. Krottendorfer’s interest in the complexity of social structures and constellations takes him to places that can be seen in his works. In the exhibition space IM ERSTEN, the artist shows a series of black-and-white photographs taken at the British Museum in a space-specific installation. IM ERSTEN Sonnenfelsgasse 3 1010 Vienna  E office@imersten.com www.imersten.com Opening hours: 19–21 Nov. 2015: 11:00 am–5:00 pm, 24–27 Nov. 2015: 11:00 am–3:00 pm

Power and its manifestation staged as a social construct, as a ritual existence and symbolic communication, as an item on loan or a corporately coded mechanism. Three different video art objects examine power structures under the title “Pouvoir – pour voir”: “Once in the XX century” (2004) by Deimantas Narkevicˇ ius inverts pictures taken of the dismantling of a Lenin memorial; “Vacuum” (2007) by Raeda Sa’adeh is a symbolic representation of the relationship between the ruler and the ruled; “La Chambre d’Ortolan,” created in 2015 by Anna Mitterer and Marcuse Hafner at the Palais Clam-Gallas, describes how even the smallest action is ritualized in the representation of power. Institut Français Vienne Palais Clam-Gallas Währinger Strasse 30 1090 Vienna T +43 1 50 27 53 00 E culturel@institutfr.at http://institut-francais.at

special projects

Jonathan Meese, “IM MEER SPIELT DIE GOLDENE SPIELMUSIK,” 2015

Rafael Rozendaal, www.slowempty.com, 2013, website, unique © Rafael Rozendaal & Collection Famille Servais, 2013

Larissa Leverenz, Heimat II

Galerie Krinzinger

Krinzinger Projekte

Kro Art Contemporary

PRESENTATION

EXHIBITION

Installation “VALIE EXPORT intervenes”

“Jonathan Meese. DR. NO-SPORTARZATOOTH (EVOLUTION STEP DE FIT)”

“CCC#4”

Larissa Leverenz, “Iron Girl and Goose Stove”

Photo: Hertha Hurnaus

Jewish Museum Vienna

Tue., 17 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm VALIE EXPORT intervenes in the Visible Storage and Archive of the Jewish Museum Vienna. As a temporary curator, she uses three-dimensional objects and paper documents from the museum’s collections to create an installation in the room that best exemplifies remembrance and collecting: the Visible Storage gives an insight into the museum’s comprehensive collections and the histories of their origins. The exhibits illustrate the past and present Jewish life in Vienna, but also the museum’s own history. VALIE EXPORT’s intervention enters a dialogue with the permanent exhibition and gives a new perspective of the exhibits and their histories. Jewish Museum Vienna Dorotheergasse 11 1010 Vienna T +43 1 535 04 31 F +43 1 535 04 24 E info@jmw.at www.jmw.at Opening hours: Sun.–Fri. 10:00 am–6:00 pm

13 Nov. 2015–16 Jan. 2016 In its fifth solo exhibition of German artist Jonathan Meese, born 1970 in Tokio, Galerie Krinzinger presents his recent paintings, sculptures and drawings. ART SPORTSARTSPORTINGCODE: ART LOVES EVOLUTIONARY SPORT by Jonathan Meese ART IS A GAME. ART IS NOT AN ORGANIZED SPORT OF IDEOLOG(IE)S. ART IS A GAMESPORT. ART IS NOT A SPORTSCULTURE. ART IS THE LOVE OF GAMESPORT. MEESE’S FAVORITE SPORTS: GAMES, EVOLVING, BALLETLES, SLEEPING … MEESE’S FAVORITE SPORT LOVERS: HUMPTY DUMPTY, LOLITA, MR. SPOCK, MUMINS, EVOLUTION, AN MAL BABIES, ALEX DE LARGE … (ART GAME SPORTS)

GUIDED TOUR

Guided tour with Thomas Trummer Sat., 21 Nov. 2015 Meeting point: 1:00 pm, Galerie nächst St. Stephan, Grünangergasse 1, 1010 Vienna Further stops: Galerie Emanuel Layr and Galerie Krinzinger

5 Nov. 2015–18 Dec. 2015 CCC (Curators Collectors Collaborations) is a network of contemporary art collectors and curators. It allows exhibitions to be designed on the basis of existing collections and reflects current thinking about collection policies. The fourth and last part of the project is curated by Belgian curator Alain Servais and art collector Hampus Lindwall. It is dedicated to digital art, a recent phenomenon in the world of art collecting, and addresses new questions for a collection policy that has so far focused on objects. With works by: Ian Cheng, Siebren Versteeg, Manfred Mohr, Adham Faramawy, Rafael Rozendaal, and others CONVERSATION

Artist Sofie Mathoi in conversation Date & time: TBA Krinzinger Projekte Schottenfeldgasse 45 1070 Vienna T +43 1 512 81 42 E krinzingerprojekte@gmx.at www.galerie-krinzinger.at/projekte

Photo: Bastian Schwind

22 Nov. 2015–9 Jan. 2016 Opening: Sat., 21 Nov. 2015, 5:00 pm Social networks like Facebook or Instagram show how important “selfies” have become. There seem to be no limits in terms of embarrassment and narcissism when it comes to attracting other people’s attention. This “vanity fair” illustrates the basic need of humans for importance, without which life would be void. The issue of excessive self-referentiality is a major subject in the Grimms’ fairy tales “The Iron Oven” and “The Goose Girl.” In fairytale-like manner, Larissa Leverenz addresses the insatiable desire for attention and the current phenomenon of preferring virtual “social” contacts to personal ones. Kro Art Contemporary Getreidemarkt 15 1060 Vienna M +43 1 676 503 05 32 E office@kroart.at www.kroart.at Opening hours: Tue.–Fri. 2:00–7:00 pm, Sat. 12:00 noon–5:00 pm

Opening hours: Wed.–Fri. 3:00–7:00 pm, Sat. 11:00 am–2:00 pm

Galerie Krinzinger Seilerstätte 16 1010 Vienna T +43 1 513 30 06 E galeriekrinzinger@chello.at www.galerie-krinzinger.at Opening hours: Tue.–Fri. 12:00 noon–6:00 pm, Sat. 11:00 am–4:00 pm

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special projects Design by Seth Weiner

Kunsthalle Exnergasse

KunstQuartier

Kunstraum Niederoesterreich

CONVERSATION | WORKSHOP

OPEN STUDIO

EXHIBITION

PANEL DISCUSSION

“A Proposal to Call?”

Sat., 21 Nov. 2015 12:00 noon–6:00 pm

“Social Glitch. Radical aesthetics and the consequences of extreme events”

“Tracing Information Society – A Technopolitics Timeline”

Tue., 17 Nov. 2015, 7:00 pm In German

Calls for proposal are very common in the art and culture business. They can kick off processes, but are also symptomatic of a system that increases competition, shrinks budgets and makes labor more flexible. The exhibition “A Proposal To Call” focuses on the social significance and specific potential of calls for proposal. The discussion and workshop will revolve around the economic, social and material conditions of calls for proposal as well as their potential. Participants: Anne Faucherte, Kunsthalle Wien; Alexandra Grausam, das weisse haus, Vienna; Julia Wieger, VBKÖ, Vienna; Katja Stecher, cultural producer, Vienna; Barbara Mahlknecht, curator of “A Proposal to Call” Kunsthalle Exnergasse WUK Werkstätten- und Kulturhaus Währinger Strasse 59 1090 Vienna T +43 1 401 21 1570 E kunsthalle.exnergasse@wuk.at http://kunsthalleexnergasse.wuk.at

Approximately 80 artists use the KunstQuartier as a studio. 36 of them will open their ateliers to the public, showing paintings, drawings, illustrations, photographs, printed media, fashion, and films. Participants: E.-M. Biribauer, B. Bödenauer, Carissimo Letterpress, J. Chanton, C. Frank, O. Georgieva, A. Giannotti, M. Gross Meinhart, Z. Gurova, J. Jimenez, H. Kienzl, L. Knilli, N. Kovachev, H. Kröncke, I. Langer, A. Leikauf, I. Mauthner, S. Mouratidou, K. Carmignani, M. Odlozil, N. Paine, T. Phelan, C. Sänger, E. Semen, M. Simek-Kohl, U. Spät, G. Steinböck, G. Straub, B. Susˇ a, A. Suttner, Teer, G. Tellechea, R. van de Vondervoort, B. Volen, T. Waldeck, Wiener Konfektion Program

“Painting and Sausages,” E. Semen, I. Mauthner Documentary film “washing,” G. Steinböck Printing with “Maria Addolorata,” Carissimo Letterpress 3:00 pm: Artist talk “Landscape painting,” N. Paine 4:00 pm: Fashion show “Fiber art,” S. Mouratidou 5:00 pm: Light–sound performance “Stringwork 1,” B. Bödenauer 6:00 pm: Projections “Framer,” G. Tellechea KunstQuartier Aichholzgasse 51–53 1120 Vienna

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25 Sep.–5 Dec. 2015 Curators: Sylvia Eckermann, Gerald Nestler and Maximilian Thoman, TIM.theoriesinmind e. V., www.theoriesinmind.net/ socialglitch WORKSHOP

Heath Bunting, “Urban Survival Techniques for the Common Good”* Wed., 18 Nov. 2015 2:00 pm In English

British artist Heath Bunting is renowned for his socio-political interventions, which include unauthorized border crossings, fictitious identities and postdemocratic survival techniques. Bunting is co-founder of the “net.art” and “sport-art” movements and was banned for life from entering the USA for his anti-genetic and border-crossing work. In the workshop accompanying the exhibition “Social Glitch,” Bunting and the participants will develop efficient strategies, methods and tactics against organized crime networks. www.irational.org/heath * Limited number of participants. Registration is required: E office@kunstraum.net

Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm In English

Tracing the evolution of information society can help to better understand the changes addressed in the exhibition “Social Glitch.” The research group Technopolitics has invited experts to participate in a discussion on the complexity and structure of the current transition. Their transdisciplinary “Timeline” project illustrates multiple interdependencies on the political and cultural levels. Technopolitics focuses on paradigm shifts in art, technology and society. “Tracing Information Society” is a project by Fatih Aydogdu, Sylvia Eckermann, Armin Medosch, Gerald Nestler, Felix Stalder, Axel Stockburger and Ina Zwerger. www.thenextlayer.org/technopolitics Kunstraum Niederoesterreich Herrengasse 13 1014 Vienna T +43 1 90 42 111 F +43 1 90 42 112 E office@kunstraum.net www.kunstraum.net

special projects

Jakob Kirchmayr, Three Nymphs, 2014

Photo: Ani Çelik Arevyan

HERR LEUTNER

LOCOMOT

Loft 8

Mekân 68

EXHIBITION

CONVERSATION

EXHIBITION

Robert Niederl, “Simply Beautiful”

The Moving Gallery

An afternoon with Jakob Kirchmayr as part of the exhibition “It’s so human”

Ani Çelik Arevyan, “Traces of This World”

Robert Niederl, Simply Beautiful

18 Nov.–15 Dec. 2015 Baxter Home Opening: Tue., 17 Nov., 7:00 pm Robert Niederl discovered his passion for photography through travel, but now concentrates increasingly on fashion and beauty photography. Niederl’s work wins viewers over with its profundity. It differs from fashion photography in that its imagery is stripped down and its focus is on the human being in the picture. Niederl and Christina Urschler, a young graphic designer, agency owner and collector, agree that the style and approach should be sensual and intense, reduced and expressive. Together they will exhibit some of his work with the aim of building bridges between networks and creating a shared platform for visual idealists. HERR LEUTNER Westbahnstrasse 27–29 1070 Vienna www.herrleutner.at Baxter Home Salzgriess 11–13 1010 Vienna M +43 1 664 919 34 48 E office@baxterhome.at www.baxterhome.at Opening hours: Tue.–Fri. 10:00 am–6:00 pm, Sat. 11:00 am–4:00 pm

16–22 Nov. 2015 Place & time: TBA Opening: Tue., 17 Nov. 2015 LOCOMOT are nomads of art. One gallery, though never the same. Always on show, though never in the same place: hospitals, greenhouses, basements, attics or gyms … there – or anywhere – LOCOMOT curates the most diverse of solo and group exhibitions of all kinds of artistic expression. SALON

Salon LOCOMOT In German and English

For more than 400 years, salons have been meeting places for the eagerly interested, discussion forums for artists, intellectuals and political actors. Their initial intention – to bring together people who have something to say and are willing to listen – has survived the centuries. The dialogue took center stage. Now LOCOMOT, too, engages in conversation: there will be pop-up shows and panel discussions in a “salonesque” atmosphere. LOCOMOT www.locomot.at

Sat., 21 Nov. 2015 3:00 pm “At first glance, Jakob Kirchmayr’s drawings appear portrait-like, because they show people. But what manifests here in faces, bodies, or blurred figures is the study of society as a whole, rather than the realistic or caricatured representation of people or their individual qualities,” writes Erwin Uhrmann in “Schemen der Wirklichkeit.” Kirchmayr’s figures look disturbing, because they turn the interior outward and thus appear anatomical. “Yet what seems so destructive about Kirchmayr is actually a compression of inner and outer conditions and social and individual sensitivities into a synthesis, portrait, or blurred image of the supposed reality.” EXHIBITION

Jakob Kirchmayr, “It’s so human” 30 Oct.–26 Nov. 2015 Loft 8 Absberggasse 29/3 1100 Vienna T +43 1 802 27 79 E office@loft8.at www.loft8.at

6 Nov.–19 Dec. 2015 Arevyan’s iteration of dreamlike figures varying in size and orientation gives an idea of dissensus, defined by Rancière as difference within the same. Like falling bodies in space, the figures appear to be gyrating in a vortex. The resulting vertigo effect can only be explained in terms of the existence of time. Arevyan positions photography as an esthetic medium, leaving room to reconsider the ways in which dissensus prevails in the lost relation to physical reality and imagination. MUSICAL EVENING

“MekânMorgen” Mon., 16 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm Spiritual humanization has musical roots in the sense of togetherness. Curated by Angelika Hagen and Andreas Schrei ber, “MekânMorgen” is a performance, concert and meeting place for kindred spirits, united in their love of the Orient. Mekân 68 Neustiftgasse 68/1 1070 Vienna E info@mekan68.com www.mekan68.com Opening hours during VIENNA ART WEEK: Mon.–Sat. 3:00–6:30 pm

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Jonathan Houlding, Rain, thunder, lightning and a big handful of magic dust, 2014

Nitsch Foundation

on site

pendantpendant

Photon Gallery

EVENT

EXHIBITION

PRESENTATION

Hermann Nitsch, “On the Trails of Sigmund Freud”*

Jonathan Houlding, “Know-mans Land”

“Butt und Flunder”

Markus Guschelbauer, “Arcardia”

Sun., 22 Nov. 2015 2:00–5:00 pm Participants are invited to scrabble, touch, crush, squeeze, stir, smear, soak, rub and splatter available materials like blood, paint, fruits and vegetables under the guidance of Hermann Nitsch, who will be present. “sigmund freud believed that the smearing of infants’ excrements was the source of all culture … i am delighted to have unlocked the smearing of excrements as the source of painting.” Hermann Nitsch, 2014 (excerpt) *

Limited number of participants. Registration is required: E office@nitsch-foundation.com, T +43 1 513 55 30

Nitsch Foundation Hegelgasse 5 1010 Vienna T +43 1 513 55 30 E office@nitsch-foundation.com www.nitsch-foundation.com Admission is free.

17– 24 Nov. 2015 For details on the venue, visit www.onsite-artprojects.com Opening: Tue., 17 Nov. 2015, 7:00 pm Phallic dancing mushrooms decorate fabric draped over a mound of earth, a body bag stands in for a smiling … this is the world Jonathan Houlding creates through installations of finely rendered drawings, animations, murals and paintings. Houlding’s concerns are with the human condition and how we think, the substance of which consumes our everyday lives, out of which we form our own individual understanding of the world. The artist describes his works as depictions of a “know”-man’s land, a charting of the territory between thought and word. CONVERSATION

19–22 Nov. 2015 Wohnzimmer der Gebietsbetreuung 3 Opening: Thu., 19 Nov. 2015, 7:30 pm The transition from a cultural service society to a leisure and event management society has been noticeable for quite some time now, including in artistic practices. The event series “Butt und Flunder” analyzes artistic contributions to examine to what extent this development has led to a visible economic determination of works, which, in many cases, even applies to the conception and brainstorming phases. The results of this examination will be presented during a tour of the exhibition where the works serve as study subjects illustrating the material character of art objects in the collective process. Concept: Maria Hanl, Edith Payer

Artist talk with Jonathan Houlding

BRUNCH

Tue., 17 Nov. 2015 6:00 pm For details on the venue, visit www.onsite-artprojects.com

Sun., 22 Nov. 2015 11:00 am

In English on site E office@onsite-artprojects.com www.onsite-artprojects.com

“Food Performance”

pendantpendant E maria.hanl@gmx.at https://pendantpendant.wordpress.com Wohnzimmer der Gebietsbetreuung 3 Fiakerplatz 1 1030 Vienna Opening hours during VIENNA ART WEEK: Fri.–Sat. 5:00–8:00 pm

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Sat., 21 Nov. 2015 5:00 pm In November, the Photon Gallery will be showing works by Markus Guschelbauer, whose recent photographs and objects examine the relationship between artificiality and naturalness. Large, analog photographs showing extensive artistic interventions in natural areas are juxtaposed with objects that are both artificial and suitable for daily use. During VIENNA ART WEEK the artist will also be showing video footage from the same subject and is planning to relocate a familiar motif from landscape architecture into the gallery: the baroque garden, an extreme example of manmade form language, will be inaugurated by consumption. Nature that was once made into art is now made into art that can be sprinkled on a slice of bread. Guschlbauer thus adds one semantic level to a variant of nature that appears utterly unnatural. Photon Gallery Absberggasse 27/9/10 1100 Vienna T +43 1 954 35 88 E info@photongallery.at www.photongallery.at Opening hours: Wed.–Sat. 12:00 noon–6:00 pm

Porcelain Museum at Augarten

Sammlung Friedrichshof

LENIKUS COLLECTION

SAMMLUNG VERBUND

PRESENTATION | CONVERSATION

EXHIBITION

GUIDED TOUR

PRESENTATION

Sebastian Menschhorn, “Form Follows Light”

Bjarne Melgaard, “Daddies Like You Don’t Grow On Palm Trees”

Emilie Kiefhaber, director of the collection, gives a tour of the exhibition

Collection director Gabriele Schor presents “Yellow Fog” by Olafur Eliasson*

Tue., 17 Nov. 2015 5:00 pm STUDIOS

Wed., 18 Nov. 2015 4:30 pm

In German and English

Olafur Eliasson’s intervention “Yellow Fog” is an impressive piece of art in public space, installed at the headquarters of electricity provider VERBUND in 2008. Every day at dusk, the façade of the building is immersed in yellow fog. With its play of light, fog and wind, the intervention turns the historic Am Hof square into a stage in the heart of the city. Focused on international contemporary art after 1970, the VERBUND collection’s principle is to favor depth over breadth, with an emphasis on “Feminist Avant-garde” and “Spaces / Places.” Recent publications include the standard work “Feminist Avant-Garde. Art from the 1970s in the Sammlung Verbund Collection, Vienna.”

Tue., 17 Nov. 2015 4:00 pm In German

In this artistic intervention, Sebastian Menschhorn exposes three unpainted figurines of flower sellers, made by the newly established Augarten porcelain manufactury in 1925 and based on a model from the 18th century, to different lighting situations. He traces the resulting shadows with paint and thereby accentuates the shapes of the bodies. “Form Follows Light” by designer and artist Sebastian Mensch horn continues the collaboration with contemporary artists that the porcelain manufactory has operated from the beginning. Sebastian Menschhorn, curator Dr. Claudia Lehner-Jobst and museum director Marina Yolbulur-Nissim introduce the project in a conversation with the artist and invite the public to visit the Augarten Porcelain Museum. Porcelain Museum at Augarten Palais Augarten Obere Augartenstrasse 1 1020 Vienna T +43 1 211 24 200 E museum@augarten.at www.augarten.at

16 May–30 Nov. 2015 Bjarne Melgaard, shooting star and enfant terrible of the international art scene: he expanded his inflammatory painting style to include a vibrant field of comprehensive mediality. For the Friedrichshof Collection, which contextualizes Vienna Actionism with contemporary positions, Melgaard created a special design and fashion line, among other things. His intervention in the collection’s holdings signifies a clash of two radical positions, which merge into a stunning synthesis. PROGRAM

Book presentation and curator talk* Sun., 22 Nov. 2015 3:00 pm In English

Presentation of a publication accompanying the exhibition, and a conversation between Lars Toft-Eriksen, curator of the Munch Museum in Oslo, and Hubert Klocker, head of the Friedrichshof Collection.

Containing over 500 works of art, the LENIKUS COLLECTION of the LENIKUS consortium is an important patron of contemporary art in Vienna. Since its inception more than a decade ago, 100 artists from Austria and beyond have been given access to studios and apartments in central Vienna as part of the LENIKUS COLLECTION’s artist-in-residence program. The exhibition features a selection of works from the LENIKUS COLLECTION with a focus on last year’s acquisitions. STUDIOS der SAMMLUNG LENIKUS Passage Bauernmarkt 9 / Wildpretmarkt 6 1010 Vienna T +43 1 516 31 0 E sammlung@sammlunglenikus.at www.sammlunglenikus.at Opening hours: Wed.–Fri. 3:00–7:00 pm, or by appointment: E sammlung@sammlunglenikus.at

In German

* Registration is required: E sammlung@verbund.com, T +43 (0)5 03 13 50044 Verbund headquarters Am Hof 6a 1010 Vienna www.verbund.com/sammlung

* Free shuttle service Vienna–Zurndorf– Vienna. To book a seat, visit: goscinski@friedrichshof.at Sammlung Friedrichshof Römerstrasse 7 2424 Zurndorf www.sammlungfriedrichshof.at

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special projects

Olafur Eliasson, Yellow Fog, 1998/2008 Installation view: VERBUND headquarters, Am Hof, Vienna

special projects Hubert Schmalix, “Trouble,” 2015

Wilhelm Smolka

From a distance

Stable Gallery im Palais Brambilla

GUIDED TOUR

“Framing the Presence” Tue., 17 Nov., & Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 4:30 pm on both days In German

Framing contemporary art is a particular challenge. While many works cry out for formal completion, for borders that simultaneously transition into the work’s surroundings, other works fiercely resist the process. Such pictures are often best served by unconventional solutions. One of Hubert Schmalix’s works, for example, can be placed in a simple black frame with subtle gold plating and patination at the top, while another is better suited to an elaborately carved and gilded Italian plate frame. In a constant profusion of visual impressions, the right frame draws the eye to contemporary art works and keeps it there without distracting from the essential part, the picture itself. Wilhelm Smolka Frames, art-dealing, gallery Spiegelgasse 25 1010 Vienna www.smolka.at

EXHIBITION

Hannes Simmerl Burgis, “From a Distance. Phoenix 98°F” 19 Nov.–24 Jan. 2016 Opening: Wed., 18 Nov. 2015, 7:00 pm In “From a Distance. Phoenix 98°F” Hannes Simmerl Burgis picks out an object from a restlessly assembled composition of objects, exposes it and views it from a distance. Proximity and density, distance and exposition generate a fraught milieu seeking a connection between city and desert. Two very different points of reference hint at different social contexts. These are projections of our relation to increasingly synthetic environments, in search of the real constructional conditions of Burgis’s installation and the world his concept is based on. Stable Gallery im Palais Brambilla Dr. Markus Swittalek Franz Josefs-Kai 43 1010 Vienna T +43 1 533 97 16 E office@moment-home.com www.moment-home.com Opening hours: viewing by appointment

Steinbrener/Dempf & Huber

Gerald Straub

EXHIBITION

PERFORMATIVE INSTALLATION

“Otto and Maria”

“The Common Sense Store”

17 Nov.– 4 Dec. 2015 Eichinger Offices Opening: Tue., 17 Nov. 2015, 7:00 pm Steinbrener/Dempf & Huber are showing a new series of sculptures and graphic works in Gregor Eichinger’s showroom. The first items were created in the context of “Capricorn Two,” which included mounting an ibex on the head of the Bismarck statue in Hamburg. Next, a series of corresponding Bismarck table busts was developed. The group of artists is now combining appliqués with the busts of other historical personalities. They challenge fixed historical views and turn them upside down with artistic means. Maria Theresia has been of great interest to Steinbrener/Dempf & Huber for a long time, partly because her monument is in such a prominent location, namely between the Naturhistorisches Museum and the Kunst historisches Museum. The exhibition contains some radical suggestions for its redesign. Steinbrener/Dempf & Huber www.steinbrener-dempf.com Eichinger Offices Praterstrasse 33 1020 Vienna Opening hours: every day around the clock

16–20 Nov. 2015 5:00–8:00 pm on all days Gerald Straub’s interactive spatial intervention traces the fault line between art and service. Where do (in-)formal knowledge production, innovation and the common good stand in relation to marketable know-how in postFordist information society? To get to the bottom of this question, experts from various fields are offering free counseling service during VIENNA ART WEEK. They will address visitors’ personal concerns and share their knowledge in the fields of finance, health, the labor market, politics and personal issues. A project by Gerald Straub in cooperation with Raumteiler

PANEL DISCUSSION

“Capitalist Realism – Creating Common Good?” Fri., 20 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm In German and English

“The Common Sense Store” will conclude with a summary of and discussion on the present and future under increasingly precarious working conditions. Raumteiler Ungargasse 1 1030 Vienna

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special projects

Austrian Association of Women Artists (VBKÖ)

Austrian Museum of Folk Life and Folk Art

EXHIBITION

CONVERSATION

“X-ing SOUTH AFRICA”

“Theaters of rest. Speaking of the past into the future” – a conversation about processual exhibition making

29 Oct.–1 Nov. 2015 The idea of the exhibition is for artists based in Vienna, Kimberley and Johannesburg to swap places, as well as their queerfeminist art practices. The show will start at the Market Photo Workshop in Johannesburg and will then relocate to the VBKÖ in Vienna. Austrian artists such as Maren Grimm, Sunanda Mesquita, Thomas Heise and Angelika Schnell meet South Africa’s own Sabelo Mlangeni, Neo Muyanga, Ntone Edjabe, and the “Chimurenga” art magazine. Concept: Ruby Sircar

Fri., 20 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm In German

Special guided tours of the installations, photographic works and open studios of Catharina Bond, Veronika Dirnhofer, Hilde Fuchs and Julia Gaisbacher.

In a special exhibition the Austrian Museum of Folk Life and Folk Art is showing the product range in the ironmongery and household shop of Herr Klimesch. After it closed, the museum bought “the shop that sold everything,” including the shop furniture. Theme of the exhibition is the relationship of people to things in daily life, as well as the question of how consumerism, production and trade regulate human relationships. The exhibition is a work-inprogress project with an open and informal mode of communication. Together with the visitors we want to empathize and play with the things that reveal themselves to us – to revel on the planet of curiosity. The exhibition does not have a fixed setup but changes permanently through the participants’ intervention.

VBKÖ – Vereinigung Bildender Künstlerinnen Österreichs Maysedergasse 2/28 1010 Vienna E info@vbkoe.org www.vbkoe.org

Volkskundemuseum Wien Laudongasse 15–19 1080 Vienna T +43 1 406 89 05 E office@volkskundemuseum.at www.volkskundemuseum.at

GUIDED TOUR | OPEN STUDIO

Special program as part of “X-ing SOUTH AFRICA” Sat., 21 Nov. 2015 2:00–7:00 pm

das weisse haus

ZOOM Children’s Museum

EVENT

WORKSHOP

Poetry Slam

Art workshop for children aged six to ten*

Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 6:00 pm In German

This year, as part of VIENNA ART WEEK, das weisse haus is holding its first poetry slam, a literary competition where the audience is the jury. Contestants at this poetry slam, which will be moderated by Diana Köhle, will enter two of their own texts dealing with a specific aspect of art. They can then supplement those texts with elements of performance and dramatization to gain favor with the audience. Everyone is welcome to witness history in the making as art, text and poetry take center stage in a creative competition. Moderated by Diana Köhle In cooperation with Slam B das weisse haus Hegelgasse 14 1010 Vienna www.dasweissehaus.at www.slamb.at

Sat., 21 Nov. 2015 11:00 am In German and English

“Hands on, minds on, hearts on!” In the ZOOM Studio, children get in touch with art using all senses. They experiment freely to become aware of their own abilities and means of expression and discover their own creative potential. In the Art Studio, which is directed by the artists Cäcilia Brown and Stephen Mathewson, children can try out various artistic techniques and materials. Whether they want to paint, think, draw, plan, chat, build or play is entirely up to them. The workshop ends with a real, joint exhibition which all parents and friends are welcome to come and see. * Limited number of participants. Registration is required: T +43 1 524 79 08 ZOOM Kindermuseum MuseumsQuartier Museumsplatz 1 1070 Vienna T +43 1 524 79 08 F +43 1 524 79 08 1818 E office@kindermuseum.at

Opening hours during VIENNA ART WEEK: Thu.–Sat. 2:00–7:00 pm

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alternative SPACES raumen | 100 Black Squares

Jonas Feferle, 0.315m2 space, material and form, 2014

ausstellungsraum.at

BILDETAGE

favorites in FAVORITEN

flat1

EXHIBITION

CONVERSATION

EXHIBITION

Astrid Edlinger, “Black Square Sweatshop”

“Orpheus ’15”: Jonas Feferle

“Is there such a thing as male art?”

“ERROR – 1.6.1.8. object already exists”

18 Nov.–12 Dec. 2015 Opening: Tue., 17 Nov. 2015

21 Nov.–6 Dec. 2015 Opening: Fri., 20 Nov. 2015, 6:00 pm

Tue., 17 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm

17–22 Nov. 2015 Opening: Tue., 17 Nov. 2015, 7:00 pm

As part of “Orpheus ’15” Jonas Feferle, whose art focuses on the fields of sculpture and installation, will be presenting his work at BILDETAGE. “ORPHEUS ’15” is the attempt to subvert the current tendency of predetermined art production: since art is produced more and more frequently within the framework of open calls, theme-related funding or group shows, the creative process is either foreseeable or missing altogether. This situation often results in the production of concepts which then find no space, time or money to be realized. In order to challenge these structures, BILDETAGE continues the “ORPHEUS” project: Jonas Feferle was invited to use the BILDETAGE space as a studio and showroom, with no artistic requirements.

This question will be addressed in an artist talk and discussion that concludes the “7 Guys” exhibition. Eva Hradil used men as her muses when painting two of her series. Now she is their host. In her studio, which she converts into an artist-run exhibition space once or twice a year, Eva Hradil is showing work by seven colleagues. Five of them live and work in Berlin: Berthold Bock, Jan Gottschalk, Marc Gröszer, Torsten Prothmann and Marcus Wittmers. They were chosen after an exchange project with Milchhof Berlin. Eva Hradil also invited Christian Eisenberger and Stephan Hafner. “Men definitely make good art,” she says, and that is exactly what she is trying to demonstrate, both seriously and with a wink.

100 years after Kazimir Male vich first presented that “Black Square” in St. Petersburg and freed art from the weight of the representational, Astrid Edlinger has brought her black squares into the field of public action and squarely back to the representational. The artist demonstrates the creation process in her installation, a backdrop containing black LCD screens, speakers, black-lacquered object surfaces and a workshop dedicated to Urushi, a Japanese lacquerpainting technique. Layer by layer she combines in her installation the habitats of creation, craftsmanship and industrial product in order to confront us with Hannah Arendt’s question, “What do we do when we are active?” – a question examining work, production and action, and the way we explore the world. ausstellungsraum.at Gumpendorfer Strasse 23 1060 Vienna M +43 699 192 090 00 E office@ausstellungsraum.at www.ausstellungsraum.at Opening hours: Mon.–Fri. 10:00 am–5:00 pm Sat. 11:00 am–2:00 pm

BILDETAGE Association for Contemporary Art Barichgasse 6/1 1030 Vienna M +43 676 356 38 63 E info@bildetage.com www.bildetage.com Opening hours: Thu.–Sat. 5:00–8:00 pm

7 Guys

In German

The exhibition is part of “Subversion,” an annual program by Karin M. Pfeifer and Sula Zimmerberger: fine arts as a habitat from which authorities are questioned and classification systems are redefined. Subversion is directed against the pressure to function, against absolutism at work and in the family, and against that of the super-ego. Small stumbling blocks cause operations to stall – until the “Error” occurs. Subversion throws you off, breaks the rhythm of the system. But it also uncovers weak points. That is something one could use. WORKSHOP

Workshop for children* Sat., 21 Nov. 2015, 3:30 pm * Restricted number of participants. Registration is required.

EXHIBITION

“7 GUYS” 15–17 Nov. 2015

PERFORMANCE

Sat., 21 Nov. 2015, 5:00 pm CONVERSATION

Favorites in Favoriten Leebgasse 30–32 1100 Vienna M +43 699 1 777 65 65 E eva_hradil@hotmail.com favoritesinfavoriten.jimdo.com

Artist talk Sun., 22 Nov. 2015, 5:00 pm flat1 U-Bahn Bogen 6–7 (U6 subway station Gumpendorfer Strasse) 1060 Vienna M +43 699 120 10 203 E flat1@gmx.at www.flat1.at Opening hours during VIENNA ART WEEK: Thu. 4:00–7:00 pm, Sat., Sun. 3:00–6:00 pm

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alternative SPACES

Untitled

Vooria Aria, Dependent on, 2012

Fluc

Friday Exit

Hinterland

KUNSTSALON

EXHIBITION

“In the Cabinet’s Cubage: Marina Faust invites Rita Vitorelli”

“No Walls. EXHIBITION No 1”

“BEING KURDISH”

Wed., 18 Nov. 2015 9:00 pm “Tanz die Utopie!” (published by Falter Verlag), a book about Fluc art projects, won an award as most beautiful book in 2014. Ursula Maria Probst and Martin Wagner have invited Marina Faust to the “Cabinet’s Cubage.” “There is a scene in Melville’s ‘Moby Dick’ where Queequeg’s tattoo blends miraculously into the motif of the blanket on which the two protagonists lie. That was the starting point for the project I suggested to Rita Vitorelli for the exhibition. We would combine two things that are completely unconnected, find a reason to make that connection, and plaster the results onto the outside walls of the Fluc. Vitorelli’s automatic computer drawings are stimulating and exciting. I suggested we could ‘parasite’ each other, place her drawings over my portraits to ‘tattoo’ the photographed subjects with her drawings, which are perverted into motifs in the process. Finding a field between drawing, collage and photography. Experimenting.” Fluc Praterstern 5 1020 Vienna E martin.wagner@fluc.at www.fluc.at

3 Nov.–12 Dec. 2015

30 Oct.–12 Dec. 2015 Friday Exit is a platform that gives young artists an opportunity to realize projects and present them to the public. It is an open collective of artists and curators associated with the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna and aiming to pick up on subjects of contemporary art production through the exchange of young artists, curators and scientists. “EXHIBITION No 2” of the twopart series “No Walls” starts on 29 January 2016. CONVERSATION

Artist talk accompanying the exhibition “No Walls. EXHIBITION No 1” Fri., 20 Nov. 2015 6:00 pm In German FRIDAY EXIT is part of xperiment, a cooperation of the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, the conwert group, and an open collective. Technical equipment is provided by Ton&Bild Medientechnik. Friday Exit Döblergasse 2 1070 Vienna E fridayexit@akbild.ac.at www.fridayexit.at www.facebook.com/FridayExit Opening hours: Thu., Fri. 5:00–8:00 pm, Sat. 11:00 am–3:00 pm

Performance

Mehtap Baydu Wed., 18 Nov. 2015, 7:00 pm Hinterland | Spektakel “We are all born as Kurds, but it is our choices that make us Kurdish.” Hero Karimi There is no better word to describe this project than “identity.” It is straightforward, strong, and simplifies a way in which all human beings are connected. Yet at the same time identity is the most complicated and unique thing that makes us individuals. The exhibition “Being Kurdish” creates a microcosm of Kurdish identity. Artists deconstruct, analyze and interpret their Kurdistan connection. There is no political agenda, only artists finding their own way to the Kurdistan that exists inside every one of them. Guided by artistic values as a way of seeing and understanding the world, this project represents a first approach to Kurdish identity and culture.

Susi Jirkuff: Magic Room #1_ The Rat, 2013

k48 – Offensive for Contemporary Perception INSTALLATION

Susi Jirkuff: “Magic Room #2” Tue., 17 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm In “Magic Room #2,” line drawings, animated drawings and space are linked with each other. Transitions are fluent, as the context and spatial conditions become part of the work. Old methods like trompe l’oeil and classic cinematic techniques like matte painting become fields of reference for a temporary expansion or displacement of the exhibition space. Other fundamental aspects include spatial illusion, experimenting with perspective, and inclusion of the viewer. The project takes its cue from “Magic Room #1_The Rat,” a three-channel video projection that revives a notorious Boston punk club from the 1980s and uses a minimal image and time span – Entrance / Restroom / Exit – to bring back the feeling of adolescence in an ironic way. Curator: Oliver Hangl k48 – Offensive for Contemporary Perception Projektraum Oliver Hangl Kirchengasse 48/Lokal 2 1070 Vienna  www.olliwood.com/k48.html

Hinterland Krongasse 20 1050 Vienna http://art.hinterland.ag Spektakel Hamburger Strasse 14 1050 Vienna www.spektakel.wien

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Alexander Felch, Remis, 2006

MAUVE

mo.ë

Neuer Kunstverein Wien

New Jörg

OPENING

EXHIBITION

Drop City

“Not for sale”

Fri., 20 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm

18–22 Nov. 2015 Opening: Tue., 17 Nov. 2015, 7:00 pm

“Last Loosening: Dogs, Hammocks, Ideologies, Words, and Silk Stockings”

Søren Engsted, “Sculpture – a Dispositif”

Drop City is a gallery in Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, established in fall 2014. Through an inclusive collaborative structure, Drop City aims to build an exhibition context that is driven by our engagement and dialogue with other artists. Single works, solo and collaborative exhibitions and live activities all feature, as well as publications and international co-operations. Drop City represents and supports contemporary artists and is committed to the production, presentation, mediation, and support of their work, promoting workable exchanges between UK-based and international artists and art organizations. During VIENNA ART WEEK 2015, Drop City is a guest of MAUVE. MAUVE Löwengasse 18 1030 Vienna E office@mauve-vienna.com www.mauve-vienna.com

“Not for sale” examines the relationship between an artist and his work. When an artist decides not to sell his own work, that work is taken out of the system. The value of works is no longer defined by price, but by the emotional connection between the artist and his art piece. Additional value is created, and the usual assessment criteria no longer play a role. Artists: Maria Anwander, Atzgerei, Sonja Bendel, Matthias Buch, Mikhael A Crest, Sophie Dvorˇák, Alexander Felch, Udo Fon, Peter Fritzenwallner, Stefan Glettler, Christoph Höschele, Earl Jesse, Katharina Karner, Stefan Kreuzer, Abbé Libansky, Anna Mitterer, Jaysha Obispo, Maria Pavlova, Carlos Perez, Kevin A. Rausch, Christoph Schwarz, Lena Wicke-Aengenheyster, Nives Widauer, Barbara Zeidler Curators: Alexander Felch, Maria Pavlova mo.ë Thelemangasse 4 1170 Vienna E contact@moe-vienna.org www.moe-vienna.org

11 Nov.–16 Dec. 2015 Seven Austrian photo artists were invited to enter a dialogue with Walter Serner’s Dada manifesto “Last Loosening,” in which the world is turned upside down: ideologies are word mixtures, dogs are hammocks, and silk stockings are priceless. Written in 1918, the manifesto is a “brilliant analysis of the age of complete nihilism.” Gerd Hasler, Markus Krottendorfer, Paul Albert Leitner, Rita Nowak, Agnes Prammer, Hanna Putz and Anita Schmid embark on a poetically photographical journey through Serner’s anarchic universe. Curator: Gerald Matt GUIDED TOUR | CONVERSATION

Guided tour of the exhibition “Last Loosening” and artist talk Thu., 19 Nov. 2015 6:30 pm In German Neuer Kunstverein Wien Hochhaus, Herrengasse 6–8 1010 Vienna M +43 664 916 70 16 E office@neuer-kunstverein-wien.at www.neuer-kunstverein-wien.at Opening hours: Tue.–Fri. 5:00–7:00 pm

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13–27 Nov. 2015 “Meanwhile, we the observers demand the oscillation of meanings and voids, and ask how perception and habits are undermined, how unmediated directness confronts us, seductive and uncomfortable, so that it seems impossible to withdraw from these negative behavioural commands for a provocative refusal amounting to a participation in an idiosyncratic field of spatially manifested obstinacy.”

Peter Pakesch

Program

“ø” – with Søren Engsted Fri., 20 Nov. 2015, 7:00 pm New Jörg Jägerstrasse 56 1200 Vienna E info@newjoerg.at www.newjoerg.at Opening hours: by appointment

alternative SPACES

untitled (GFV), 16mm film, 2015

O.T.

One Work Gallery

Pinacoteca

Schneiderei

EXHIBITION

FILM SCREENING

Albert Allgaier, “Two or three things I learned this year”

Philipp Fleischmann, “untitled (Generali Foundation Vienna)”

Golden Pixel Coopera tive, “Frozen Frame / Turning Frame”

Jakub Vrba/Lukas Marxt, “In a beautiful and quiet location”

18 Nov.–12 Dec. 2015 Opening 24-hour window display: Wed., 18 Nov. 2015, 7:00 pm

11 Nov.–20 Dec. 2015 Opening: Tue., 10 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm Artist talk: Tue., 17 Nov. 2015, 7:00 pm

18–22 Nov. 2015 Opening: Tue., 17 Nov. 2015, 7:00 pm

Fri., 20 Nov. 2015 7:00 pm

The world’s oldest greater flamingo reached an age of at least 83 years, having arrived at the Adelaide Zoo from either Cairo or Hamburg (records are unclear) in either 1933, 1930, 1925, or 1919 (the dates of the last four importations of greater flamingos to the Adelaide Zoo), at which point it was already a full-grown adult. “Greater’s” sex was never determined. On 29 October 2008, Greater was attacked and beaten by four teenagers. The bird was badly injured, but soon recovered. Its assailants were arrested and charged with ill-treatment of an animal. In April 2013, zoo personnel noticed that Greater was beginning to show signs of arthritis, which they attempted to treat with medication. However, in late January of 2014, Greater’s health deteriorated even further, and the decision was made to euthanize the bird. At the time of its death, Greater was the only greater flamingo in captivity in Australia. O.T. Kleine Sperlgasse 1a 1020 Vienna

Philipp Fleischmann develops special cameras designed to formulate specific relations between the material of the footage (16 or 35 mm film) and the object of the recording. For instance, in his 2013 project “Main Hall,” he deconstructs the main exhibition hall of the Viennese Secession, filming the exhibition architecture with 19 individual cameras and thus creating images that show the view of the exhibition space onto itself. The One Work Gallery presents Fleischmann’s recent work, “untitled (Generali Foundation Vienna).” This project identifies the film camera as a spacial object-form by itself. Correlating with the history of artistic interventions on site, the object is placed in the former exhibition space of the Generali Foundation at Wiedner Hauptstrasse 15, Vienna, and provided with a cinematographic view.

Moving images often condense in memory into a few memorable moments that stick in the mind as key images. In the form of frozen frames, they are very forceful and presently fix themselves on the recipient’s mind. They also have the potential to convert the moving narrative and development of filmic reality into something new. The exhibition will start off a series of events entitled “Let’s be realistic. An experiment,” which the GOLDEN PIXEL COOPERATIVE has planned for launch in 2016. Artists: Iris Blauensteiner, Nathalie Koger, Lydia Nsiah, Simona Obholzer, Katharina Swoboda, Christiana Perschon, Bernhard Staudinger, Marlies Poeschl Concept: Nathalie Koger Pinacoteca Grosse Neugasse 44 1040 Vienna E pinacoteca22@gmail.com pinacoteca22.blogspot.co.at Opening hours during the exhibition: 4:00–6:00 pm

Jakub Vrba and Lukas Marxt travel to North-West Bohemia. Jakub Vrba comes from the area, Lukas Marxt has never been there. While the artists explore the hinterland, which is rich in history, they try to write themselves into this landscape for a brief moment. They also discuss failure and the difficulties that occur during field research. Seemingly lost, as if travelling in a rudderless boat, Vrba and Marxt drift through endless spruce forests and recreational landscapes. EXHIBITION

Jakub Vrba/ Lukas Marxt 7–23 Nov. 2015 The two artists were invited to Schneiderei as part of a studio residence of several weeks. Schneiderei Krongasse 10/2–4 1050 Vienna E schneiderei@seeyounextthursday.com www.seeyounextthursday.com Opening hours: viewing by appointment

One Work Gallery Getreidemarkt 11 1060 Vienna M +43 676 462 72 42 E oneworkgallery@gmail.com instagram.com/oneworkgallery

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alternative SPACES Lisa Ruyter, 1990 (approximately)

school

SUPER

SWDZ – So Weit, die Zukunft

LECTURE

EXHIBITION

Performative Screenings #39, Lisa Ruyter, “Let Us Now Praise Famous Men”

“Model”

“The Alpha of Beta / The Beta of Alpha”

Fri., 20 Nov. 2015 8:00 pm Doors open at 7:00 pm Lisa Ruyter’s recent work turns to the archive as subject matter, abandoning the use of selfmade photographic source material in favor of appropriation of a self-indexed version of the Farm Security Administration and Office of War Information Collection, housed at the Library of Congress, which includes photographs taken from 1935 to 1944. There is a relationship between this new work and the drawing-driven works that Ruyter showed in NYC in the early 90’s. The presentation features both bodies of work, which are juxtaposed and discussed by Lisa Ruyter in a lecture. school Grüngasse 22 1050 Vienna E info@weloveschool.org www.weloveschool.org

16–22 Nov. 2015 Opening: Mon., 16 Nov. 2015, 7:00 pm In November, Kunstraum SUPER is hosting an exhibition entitled “Model,” a project by Kunstraum SUPER and Aldo Giannotti. The presentation involves a landscape that is two by two meters in size and combines interventions from 20 artists. Under the title of “Model,” the required elements are developed in two stages – the first part at Kunstraum SUPER in Vienna, and the second part in Hohenems, Vorarlberg, in cooperation with “on site.” An interim version is presented during VIENNA ART WEEK. Primarily the project focuses not on the model as a means of representation or surrogate of a putative reality, but on the reality of “modelness” as such. The duality of reproduction – in reference to that which has been perceived and rated essential – and productivity of the model itself form the starting point of the exhibition concept.

Opening hours: Fri., 7:00 pm–midnight SUPER Schönbrunner Strasse 10 1050 Vienna M +43 699 11 41 57 78 E info@supersuper.at www.supersuper.at Opening hours during the exhibition: 5:00–7:00 pm

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16–28 Nov. 2015 Private viewing: Wed., 18 Nov. 2015, 6:30–10:00 pm In his series of works “Alpha of Beta / Beta of Alpha,” which consists of installations, documents and collages, Andreas Pohancenik analyzes the nature of the next-best thing, of what constantly comes second. “Alpha-Beta pruning” is a mathematical term. This pruning process updates the two values alpha and beta, which describe the result that can be achieved with optimum play. With these values, it is possible to decide which parts of the search tree can be ignored because they cannot influence the solution result. The transition from Alpha-Beta pruning to the evaluation function is dynamic. Below minimum search depth, the evaluation function is applied only once an approximate constant is reached. SWDZ – So Weit, die Zukunft Gärtnergasse 14 1030 Vienna M +43 660 561 01 65 E projektraum@so-weit-die-zukunft.at www.so-weit-die-zukunft.at Opening hours: Mon.–Sat. 10:00 am–6:00 pm

Edited by Art Cluster Vienna, Spiegelgasse 16, 1010 Vienna Idea and concept Martin Böhm, President of Art Cluster Vienna; Robert Punkenhofer, Art & Idea Project management and editorial office Anja Hasenlechner, Christina Hein, Barbara Wünsch / hasenlechner—artconsult Press relations Susanne Haider / art:phalanx, kunst- und kommunikationsagentur Translations and copyediting scriptophil. die textagentur Graphic design Josef Perndl, Aleksandra Gustin / Perndl+Co Printed by Druckerei Gerin For further information, please get in touch with hasenlechner—artconsult: T +43 1 402 25 24, F +43 1 402 54 86, E info@viennaartweek.at, www.viennaartweek.at © Art Cluster Vienna, 2015

Program Overview VIENNA ART WEEK 2015 MON, 16 Nov. 10:00 am–6:00 pm GUIDED TOUR DOROTHEUM 1., Dorotheergasse 17

Preview of the auctions “Modern Art” and “Contemporary Art” 1:00–8:00 pm PARTICIPATORY INSTALLATION Q21/MuseumsQuartier Wien 7., Museumsplatz 1

“Oneiric Hotel” 4:00 pm GUIDED TOUR Leopold Museum 7., Museumsplatz 1

Curator’s tour of the exhibition “A Rush of Color” 4:30 pm GUIDED TOUR Belvedere 3., Rennweg 6

Curator’s tour of the exhibition “The Women of Klimt, Schiele and Kokoschka” 5:00 pm OPENING Special Project / FRANZ JOSEFS KAI 3 1., Franz-Josefs-Kai 3

Exhibition “Young Americans” 5:00–8:00 pm PERFORMATIVE INSTALLATION Special Project / Gerald Straub 3., Raumteiler / Ungargasse 1

“The Common Sense Store” 6:00 pm OPENING KUNST HAUS WIEN 3., Untere Weissgerberstrasse 13

Exhibition “Creating Common Good” as part of VIENNA ART WEEK 2015 OPENING Special Project / Marcello Farabegoli & Dominik Nostitz 3., Untere Weissgerberstrasse 13 / KUNST HAUS WIEN

Project “Garages”

7:00 pm

5:00 pm

CONVERSATION Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien 1., Maria-Theresien-Platz

GUIDED TOUR Wien Museum 4., Karlsplatz 8

Roberta Smith and Jerry Saltz in conversation with Jasper Sharp

Peter Pakesch gives a tour of the exhibition “Ballgasse 6”

MUSICAL EVENING Special Project / Mekân 68 7., Neustiftgasse 68/1

“MekânMorgen” OPENING Alternative Space / SUPER 5., Schönbrunner Strasse 10

Exhibition “Model”

TUE, 17 Nov. OPENING Special Project / LOCOMOT Place & time: visit locomot.at

The Moving Gallery 10:00 am–6:00 pm GUIDED TOUR DOROTHEUM 1., Dorotheergasse 17

Preview of the auctions “Modern Art” and “Contemporary Art” 1:00–8:00 pm PARTICIPATORY INSTALLATION Q21/MuseumsQuartier Wien 7., Museumsplatz 1

“Oneiric Hotel” 3:00 pm

CONVERSATION CeMM 9., Lazarettgasse 14

CONVERSATION Special Project / FRANZ JOSEFS KAI 3 1., Franz-Josefs-Kai 3

LECTURE Austrian Frederick and Lillian Kiesler Private Foundation 6., Mariahilfer Strasse 1b

Artist Timur Si-Qin in conversation

Matthew Ritchie and Hani Rashid, “Art in – Space in Art”

GUIDED TOUR Special Project / Lenikus Collection 1., Passage Bauernmarkt 9 / Wildpretmarkt 6

Director of the collection Emilie Kiefhaber gives a tour of the exhibition 5:00–8:00 pm PERFORMATIVE INSTALLATION Special Project / Gerald Straub 3., Raumteiler / Ungargasse 1

“The Common Sense Store” 6:00 pm CONVERSATION Künstlerhaus 1., Karlsplatz 5

Live-streaming talk “LOOP – Concepts of Exchange and ‘Shared Communication’”

Curator’s tour of the exhibition “Hans Hollein. Early Visions”

“Current artistic and philosophical approaches to Wittgenstein’s thought”

Sebastian Menschhorn, “Form Follows Light” 4:30 pm GUIDED TOUR Special Project / Wilhelm Smolka 1., Spiegelgasse 25

“Framing the Presence”

OPENING Belvedere 3., Prinz-Eugen-Strasse 27

Exhibition “Masterpieces in Focus: Gerhart Frankl – Restless”

PANEL DISCUSSION Special Project / Bulgarisches Kulturinstitut – Haus Wittgenstein 3., Parkgasse 18

PRESENTATION | CONVERSATION Special Project / Porcelain Museum at Augarten 2., Palais Augarten / Obere Augartenstrasse 1

“Study and Commoning”

Stefan Rothleitner in conversation with artist Martin Walde

GUIDED TOUR Austrian Frederick and Lillian Kiesler Private Foundation 6., Mariahilfer Strasse 1b

4:00 pm

7:00 pm PANEL DISCUSSION Academy of Fine Arts Vienna 3., Packhaus, Marxergasse 24

PANEL DISCUSSION MAK 1., Stubenring 5

“MAK NITE Symposium: Can Art Change the World for the Better? Perspectives on the VIENNA BIENNALE 2017” OPENING | PERFORMANCE MUSA 1., Felderstrasse 6–8

Exhibition “Margot Pilz – Milestones” | Performance “DELPHI DIGITAL enters the Piratebox” SCREENING | PANEL DISCUSSION Sigmund Freud Museum 9., Berggasse 19

“Picture Messages: Self- and External Perception in Animated Films” OPENING Special Project / Hofstätter Projekte 1., Dorotheergasse 14

Exhibition Tobias Rehberger

CONVERSATION Special Project / on site visit onsite-artprojects.com

PRESENTATION Special Project / Jewish Museum Vienna 1., Dorotheergasse 11

Conversation with artist Jonathan Houlding

Installation “VALIE EXPORT intervenes”

6:30 pm CONVERSATION Wien Museum 4., Karlsplatz 8

Max Hetzler in a conversation with Wolfgang Kos

CONVERSATION | WORKSHOP Special Project / Kunsthalle Exnergasse 9., WUK, Währinger Strasse 59

“A Proposal to Call?” OPENING Special Project / HERR LEUTNER 1., Baxter Home, Salzgries 11–13

Exhibition Robert Niederl, “Simply Beautiful” 125

Program Overview VIENNA ART WEEK 2015 OPENING Special Project / on site visit onsite-artprojects.com

Exhibition Jonathan Houlding, “Know-mans Land” CONVERSATION Special Project / Galerie Ernst Hilger 1., Dorotheergasse 5

Mona Kuhn “Private” – artist talk and catalogue presentation OPENING Special Project / Steinbrener/Dempf & Huber 2., Eichinger Offices, Praterstrasse 33

Exhibition “Otto and Maria” OPENING Alternative Space / favorites in FAVORITEN 10., Leebgasse 30–32

“Is there such a thing as male art?” OPENING Alternative Space / flat1 6., U-Bahn Bogen 6–7

Exhibition “ERROR – 1.6.1.8. object already exists” INSTALLATION Alternative Space / k48 – Offensive for Contemporary Perception 7., Projektraum Oliver Hangl,  Kirchengasse 48/Lokal 2

Susi Jirkuff, “Magic Room #2” OPENING Alternative Space / mo.ë 17., Thelemangasse 4

Exhibition “Not for sale” CONVERSATION Alternative Space / One Work Gallery 6., Getreidemarkt 11

Conversation with artist Philipp Fleischmann OPENING Alternative Space / Pinacoteca 4., Grosse Neugasse 44

Exhibition Golden Pixel Cooperative, “Frozen Frame / Turning Frame” 8:00 pm OPENING Alternative Space / ausstellungsraum.at 6., Gumpendorfer Strasse 23

Exhibition Astrid Edlinger, “Black Square Sweatshop”

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WED, 18 Nov. 10:00 am–6:00 pm GUIDED TOUR DOROTHEUM 1., Dorotheergasse 17

Preview of the auctions “Modern Art” and “Contemporary Art” 12:00 noon OPEN STUDIO Special Project / bäckerstrasse wien–berlin 1., Kohlmarkt

Luis Casanova Sorolla 9 1:00 pm OPENING Künstlerhaus 1., Karlsplatz 5

Project “ARTmART” 1:00–8:00 pm PARTICIPATORY INSTALLATION Q21/MuseumsQuartier Wien 7., Museumsplatz 1

“Oneiric Hotel” 2:00 pm WORKSHOP Special Project / Kunstraum Niederoesterreich 1., Herrengasse 13

Heath Bunting, “Urban Survival Techniques for the Common Good” 4:30 pm PRESENTATION Special Project / SAMMLUNG VERBUND 1., Am Hof 6a

Olafur Eliasson, “Yellow Fog” 5:00–8:00 pm PERFORMATIVE INSTALLATION Special Project / Gerald Straub 3., Raumteiler / Ungargasse 1

“The Common Sense Store” 6:00 pm GUIDED TOUR | LECTURE Belvedere 3., Rennweg 6

LECTURE Kunsthalle Wien 4., Treitlstrasse 2

Dieter Lesage, “On Art & Populism” OPENING | FILM SCREENING mumok 7., Museumsplatz 1, MQ

Festival “We Are a Parasite on the Institution of Cinema, an Institution of Parasites” and world premiere of “Single” OPENING Special Project / flux23 2., Taborstrasse 51

Exhibition “Reasons to Relate” 6:30 pm CONVERSATION Albertina 1., Albertinaplatz 1 / Hall of the Muses

Klaus Albrecht Schröder in conversation with Robert Menasse 6:30–10:00 pm PRIVATE VIEW Alternative Space / SWDZ – So Weit, die Zukunft 3., Gärtnergasse 14

Exhibition “The Alpha of Beta / The Beta of Alpha” 7:00 pm PANEL DISCUSSION 21er Haus 3., Schweizergarten, Arsenalstrasse 1 / Blickle Kino

“The Public Museum vs. the Museum and its Publics” OPENING Alternative Space / O.T. 2., Kleine Sperlgasse 1a

24-hour window display BOOK SHOW 21er Haus 3., Schweizergarten, Arsenalstrasse 1 / Salon für Kunstbuch

Bernhard Cella, “Museum, the Public, and the Public Museum in a Book”

Curator’s tour of the exhibition “Hans Bischoffshausen”

LECTURE Architekturzentrum Wien 7., Museumsplatz 1

PERFORMANCE / FILM & VIDEO SCREENING Künstlerhaus 1., Karlsplatz 5

Niklas Maak, “One Billion Units of Housing. The Collective House and the Future of Living”

“What is left?”

OPENING Special Project / EIKON | HERR LEUTNER 7., level_41, Kirchengasse 41

Exhibition “première vue” PRESENTATION Special Project / Institut Français d’Autriche 9., Palais Clam-Gallas, Währinger Strasse 30

“Pouvoir – pour voir” OPENING Special Project / IM ERSTEN 1., Sonnenfelsgasse 3

Exhibition Markus Krottendorfer OPENING Special Project / Stable Gallery im Palais Brambilla 1., Franz-Josefs-Kai 43

Exhibition Hannes Simmerl Burgis, “From a Distance. Phoenix 98°F” Performance Alternative Space / Hinterland 5., Krongasse 20

Performance by Mehtap Baydu 7:30 pm CONCERT Special Project / flux23 2., Taborstrasse 51

Romantic Slivo strikes up 9:00 pm KUNSTSALON Alternative Space / Fluc 2., Praterstern 5

“In the Cabinet’s Cubage: Marina Faust invites Rita Vitorelli”

THU, 19 Nov. 10:00 am–6:00 pm GUIDED TOUR DOROTHEUM 1., Dorotheergasse 17

Preview of the auctions “Modern Art” and “Contemporary Art” 10:00 am–11:00 pm PERFORMANCE | PRESENTATION mumok 7., MuseumsQuartier, Museumsplatz 1

Performance by Studio for Propositional Cinema, installation by Sarah Kürten, presentation by Keren Cytter

10:00 am GUIDED TOUR Belvedere 3., Prinz-Eugen-Strasse 27

Curator’s tour of the exhibition “Masterpieces in Focus: Gerhart Frankl – Restless” 12:00 noon OPEN STUDIO Special Project / bäckerstrasse wien–berlin 10., Simmeringer Hauptstrasse 121

Thomas Gänszler 1:00–8:00 pm PARTICIPATORY INSTALLATION Q21/MuseumsQuartier Wien 7., Museumsplatz 1

“Oneiric Hotel” 4:00 pm GUIDED TOUR Albertina 1., Albertinaplatz 1

Curator’s tour of the exhibition “Lyonel Feininger and Alfred Kubin” 4:30 pm GUIDED TOUR Special Project / Wilhelm Smolka 1., Spiegelgasse 25

“Framing the Presence” 5:00 pm

GUIDED TOUR University of Applied Arts Vienna 1., Oskar-Kokoschka-Platz 2

Curator’s tour of the exhibition “Donations Oberhuber Donations” CONVERSATION | GUIDED TOUR Special Project / Bildraum 07 | Galerie Michaela Stock 7., Burggasse 7–9

EVENT Special Project / das weisse haus 1., Hegelgasse 14

PANEL DISCUSSION Special Project / Kunstraum Niederoesterreich 1., Herrengasse 13

Poetry Slam 6:30 pm PRESENTATION MUSA 1., Felderstrasse 6–8 / Startgalerie

“Titania Seidl / Melanie Ebenhoch – yet, other events go on and on”

“The Common Sense Store” 6:00 pm PANEL DISCUSSION VIENNA ART WEEK 1., Schillerplatz 3

“From Art to Creating Common Good. Eight International Curators in Dialog” CONVERSATION Künstlerhaus 1., Karlsplatz 5

The 4 Graces, “Markieren”

7:30 pm OPENING Special Project / pendantpendant 3., Fiakerplatz 1 / Wohnzimmer der Gebietsbetreuung 3

Exhibition “Butt und Flunder” CONVERSATION Kunsthalle Wien 4., Treitlstrasse 2

Artist talk and tour of the exhibition “Last Loosening”

Nicolaus Schafhausen in conversation with Philippe Pirotte

7:00 pm

“Eyes Aghast: Transmannerist Reactions”

5:00–8:00 pm

“Tracing Information Society – a Technopolitics Timeline”

GUIDED TOUR | CONVERSATION Alternative Space / Neuer Kunstverein Wien 1., Herrengasse 6–8/stairway 1/ Top 79

“ARTmART” panel

PERFORMATIVE INSTALLATION Special Project / Gerald Straub 3., Raumteiler / Ungargasse 1

EVENT Special Project / flux23 For details, visit flux23.net

“Migration of Desires” with Andreas Pasqualini & Integrationshaus

OPENING Academy of Fine Arts Vienna 1., Schillerplatz 3 / xhibit

Guided tour with curator Angela Stief

Presentation of the catalog accompanying the exhibition “The Artist’s Studio”

Artist talk and tour of the exhibition Hans Kotter, “beyond light”

PANEL DISCUSSION Künstlerhaus 1., Karlsplatz 5

GUIDED GALLERY TOUR Die Galerien Meeting Point: Galerie Elisabeth und Klaus Thoman, 1., Seilerstätte 7

PRESENTATION Special Project / Kunstraum BERNSTEINER 2., Schiffamtsgasse 11

GUIDED TOUR Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien 1., Maria-Theresien-Platz

“Diversity, Exchange, Integration” OPENING Secession 1., Friedrichstrasse 12

Exhibitions Vija Celmins / Julia Haller OPENING Special Project / DESIGN & ART Galerie 7., Westbahnstrasse 16

Exhibition Dieter Bornemann, “A few words” OPENING Special Project / ELISABETH ZEIGT 1., Lobkowitzplatz 3

Exhibition Peter Hauenschild

8:00 pm

CONCERT Special Project / Galerie Hummel 1., Bäckerstrasse 14

Freddie Jelinek and Clementine Gasser, “Le Violon d’Ingres” 8:30 pm FILM SCREENING | CONVERSATION Austrian Film Museum 1., Augustinerstrasse 1

“Clemens von Wedemeyer: in person” – Program 1 and open discussion with the filmmaker

FRI, 20 Nov. 10:00 am–6:00 pm GUIDED TOUR DOROTHEUM 1., Dorotheergasse 17

Preview of the auctions “Modern Art” and “Contemporary Art”

10:00 am–10:00 pm PRESENTATION mumok 7., MuseumsQuartier, Museumsplatz 1

Book presentation by A.P.E (art projects era), and project by Christopher Williams 1:00–8:00 pm PARTICIPATORY INSTALLATION Q21/MuseumsQuartier Wien 7., Museumsplatz 1

“Oneiric Hotel” 1:30 pm GUIDED GALLERY TOUR Die Galerien Meeting point: Galerie Kro Art, 6., Getreidemarkt 15

Guided tour with artist and art historian Andreas Müller 1:45–6:00 pm STUDIO VISITS Architekturzentrum Wien Meeting point: 7., Museumsplatz 1

Visits to selected architecture studios 3:00 pm STUDIO VISITS Federal government-sponsored studios – Prater studios Meeting point: 2., Meiereistrasse, across from Ernst Happel Stadium

Guided tour with Maria Christine Holter 4:00 pm PANEL DISCUSSION DOROTHEUM 1., Dorotheergasse 17

“Speaking of Art: Art Market and Art Criticism” GUIDED TOUR Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien 1., Maria-Theresien-Platz

Tour of the exhibition “Joseph Cornell: Wanderlust” and the Kunstkammer GUIDED TOUR Q21/MuseumsQuartier Wien 7., Museumsplatz 1

Curator’s tour of the exhibition “Levitate” 4:30 pm CONVERSATION Essl Museum 3400 Klosterneuburg / Vienna, An der Donau-Au 1

Günther Oberhollenzer in a conversation with Johanna Kandl 127

Program Overview VIENNA ART WEEK 2015 5:00–8:00 pm PERFORMATIVE INSTALLATION Special Project / Gerald Straub 3., Raumteiler / Ungargasse 1

“The Common Sense Store” 6:00 pm PANEL DISCUSSION DOROTHEUM 1., Dorotheergasse 17

“The Art of Temporary Use. Slogan or Strategy?” LECTURE VIENNA ART WEEK | KUNST HAUS WIEN 3., Untere Weissgerberstrasse 13

Saskia Sassen, “At the Systemic Edge: Where even the material becomes invisible” OPENING Alternative Space / BILDETAGE 3., Barichgasse 6/1

CONVERSATION Special Project / Austrian Museum of Folk Life and Folk Art 8., Laudongasse 15–19

“Theaters of rest. Speaking of the past into the future” OPENING Alternative Space / MAUVE 3., Löwengasse 18

Drop City PROGRAM Alternative Space / New Jörg 20., Jägerstrasse 56

“ø” – with Søren Engsted FILM SCREENING Alternative Space / Schneiderei 5., Krongasse 10/2–4

Jakub Vrba/Lukas Marxt, “In a beautiful and quiet location” 8:00 pm

Exhibition “Orpheus ’15”: Jonas Feferle

LECTURE Alternative Space / school 5., Grüngasse 22

CONVERSATION Alternative Space / Friday Exit 7., Döblergasse 2

Performative Screenings #39, Lisa Ruyter, “Let Us Now Praise Famous Men”

Artist talk accompanying the exhibition “No Walls. EXHIBITION No 1” GUIDED TOUR VIENNA ART WEEK Meeting point: U4 subway station Kettenbrückengasse, exit Kettenbrückengasse

Guerilla walk with Olli Hangl 6:30 pm FILM SCREENING Austrian Film Museum 1., Augustinerstrasse 1

“Clemens von Wedemeyer: in person” – Program 2 7:00 pm OPENING The Winter Palace of Prince Eugene of Savoy 1., Himmelpfortgasse 8

Exhibition “Olafur Eliasson – Baroque Baroque” PANEL DISCUSSION Special Project / Gerald Straub 3., Raumteiler / Ungargasse 1

“Capitalist Realism – Creating Common Good?”

8:30 pm FILM SCREENING | CONVERSATION Austrian Film Museum 1., Augustinerstrasse 1

“Clemens von Wedemeyer: in person” – Program 3 and open discussion with the filmmaker

SAT, 21 Nov. Open Studio Day Open Studio Day Tours For details, visit www.viennaartweek.at/open-studio

Ten renowned art connoisseurs and experts give tours of artist studios. 9:00 am–5:00 pm GUIDED TOUR DOROTHEUM 1., Dorotheergasse 17

Preview of the auctions “Modern Art” and “Contemporary Art” 10:00 am–6:00 pm FAMILY ART DAY Essl Museum An der Donau-Au 1, 3400 Klosterneuburg / Vienna

Open house at Essl Museum 128

10:00 am–10:00 pm WORKSHOP | PRESENTATION Q21/MuseumsQuartier Wien 7., Museumsplatz 1

Make-It-Yourself Festival Day 1: “Self Publishing Saturday” 11:00 am GUIDED GALLERY TOUR Die Galerien Meeting point: Hofstätter Projekte, 1., Dorotheergasse 14

Curator Claudia Slanar guides a tour CONVERSATION Special Project / AnzenbergerGallery 10., Absberggasse 27

Brunch and artist talk with Kacper Kowalski as part of the exhibition “Side Effects” WORKSHOP Special Project / ZOOM Children’s Museum 7., Museumsplatz 1, MQ

Art workshop for children 11:00 am–2:00 pm GUIDED TOUR departure, the creative center of the Vienna Business Agency Register for the meeting point

“Vienna Art Week 2015 – departure tour” 12:00 noon GUIDED GALLERY TOUR Die Galerien Meeting point: Galerie Steinek, 1., Eschenbachgasse 4

Guided tour with curator Hemma Schmutz OPENING Special Project / Galerie Heike Curtze 1., Seilerstätte 15/16

Exhibition “40 + 1 (young generation)” 12:00 noon–6:00 pm OPEN STUDIOS Special Project / KunstQuartier 12., Aichholzgasse 51–53

Artists of KunstQuartier open their studios 1:00–6:00 pm Open Studio Day & Artist Talks VIENNA ART WEEK

Some 70 artists open their studios to the public.

1:00 pm STUDIO VISITS VIENNA ART WEEK Meeting point: 7., Schottenfeldgasse 45

Studio visit: AiR program of Krinzinger Projekte with cultural journalist Alexandra Matzner GUIDED GALLERY TOUR Die Galerien Meeting point: Galerie Jünger, 4., Paniglgasse 17 a

Guided tour with art critic Manisha Jothady OPEN STUDIO DAY: OPEN TALK VIENNA ART WEEK 3., Apostelgasse 25–27

Curator Günther Oberhollenzer pays Michael Goldgruber a visit GUIDED TOUR The Winter Palace of Prince Eugene of Savoy 1., Himmelpfortgasse 8

Curator’s tour of the exhibition “Olafur Eliasson – Baroque Baroque” GUIDED TOUR Special Project / Galerie Krinzinger Meeting point: Galerie nächst St. Stephan, 1., Grünangergasse 1

Thomas Trummer guides a gallery tour 1:00–8:00 pm PARTICIPATORY INSTALLATION Q21/MuseumsQuartier Wien 7., Museumsplatz 1

“Oneiric Hotel” 2:00 pm STUDIO VISITS VIENNA ART WEEK Meeting point: 7., MQ Staatsratshof, Courtyard 7 (entrance across from Volkstheater)

Studio visit: AiR program of Q21 / MuseumsQuartier Wien with art and cultural mediator Wolfgang Brunner STUDIO VISITS Federal government-sponsored studios on Westbahnstrasse Meeting point: 7., Westbahnstrasse 27

Guided tour with Maria Christine Holter

2:00–7:00 pm GUIDED TOUR | OPEN STUDIO Special Project / Austrian Associa tion of Women Artists (VBKÖ) 1., Maysedergasse 2/28

Special program as part of “X-ing SOUTH AFRICA”

STUDIO VISITS Federal government-sponsored studios on Wattgasse Meeting point: 17., Wattgasse 56–60

Guided tour with curator Maria Christine Holter OPEN STUDIO Special Project / flux23 Meeting point: abor, 2., Taborstrasse 51

3:00 pm STUDIO VISITS VIENNA ART WEEK Meeting point: 1., Maysedergasse 2/4th floor

Suse Kravagna

Studio visit: AiR program of the VBKÖ with cultural journalist Alexandra Matzner OPEN STUDIO DAY: OPEN TALK VIENNA ART WEEK 5., Gartengasse 9–11/4/16

Curator Luisa Ziaja pays Seth Weiner a visit

OPENING Special Project / Kro Art Contemporary 6., Getreidemarkt 15

Exhibition Larissa Leverenz, “Iron Girl and Goose Stove” PRESENTATION Special Project / Photon Gallery 10., Absberggasse 27/9/10

GUIDED TOUR TBA21 2., Scherzergasse 1A

Markus Guschelbauer, “Arcardia”

Curator’s tour of the exhibition “Olafur Eliasson – Baroque Baroque”

PERFORMANCE Alternative Space / flat1 6., U-Bahn Bogen 6–7

OPEN STUDIO Special Project / flux23 2., Taborstrasse 51

Performance

Nataša Siencˇ nik i. a. at

6:00 pm abor

CONVERSATION Special Project / Loft 8 10., Absberggasse 29/3

An afternoon with Jakob Kirchmayr as part of the exhibition “It’s so human” 3:30 pm Workshop Alternative Space / flat1 6., U-Bahn Bogen 6–7

Workshop for children 4:00 pm STUDIO VISITS VIENNA ART WEEK Meeting point: 9., Währinger Strasse 59/stairway 2/1st floor

Studio visit: AiR program of Kunsthalle Exnergasse with art and cultural mediator Wolfgang Brunner 5:00 pm OPEN STUDIO DAY: OPEN TALK VIENNA ART WEEK 5., Schönbrunner Strasse 14A/13

Curator Manuela Ammer pays Barbara Kapusta a visit

SYMPOSIUM Q21/MuseumsQuartier Wien 7., Museumsplatz 1

Symposium “Levitate” 6:30 pm OPEN STUDIO Special Project / flux23 Meeting point: 2., Praterstrasse 32/studio

Stefan Kreuzer

SUN, 22 Nov. Family Art Day 10:00 am–6:00 pm FAMILY ART DAY Essl Museum An der Donau-Au 1, 3400 Klosterneuburg / Vienna

Open house at Essl Museum 10:30 am–12:30 pm

11:00 am

3:00 pm

BRUNCH Special Project / pendantpendant 3., Fiakerplatz 1 / Wohnzimmer der Gebietsbetreuung 3

FAMILY ART DAY 21er Haus 3., Schweizergarten, Arsenalstrasse 1

“Food Performance”

Art Book Printing – Children’s Workshop

11:00 am–10:00 pm WORKSHOP | PRESENTATION Q21/MuseumsQuartier Wien 7., Museumsplatz 1

FAMILY ART DAY Architekturzentrum Wien 7., Museumsplatz 1

Make-It-Yourself Festival Day 2: “Museum Camp”

Workshop “No Limits – Breaking Boundaries” for children aged six or older

1:00–7:00 pm SYMPOSIUM eSeL REZEPTION 7., Museumsplatz 1, MQ

Mar Dixon’s Museum Camp 1:00–8:00 pm PARTICIPATORY INSTALLATION Q21/MuseumsQuartier Wien 7., Museumsplatz 1

“Oneiric Hotel” 2:00 pm FAMILY ART DAY Albertina 1., Albertinaplatz 1

Children’s guided tour of the exhibition “Edvard Munch. Love, Death, and Loneliness” GUIDED TOUR KÖR – Kunst im öffentlichen Raum Meeting point: 12., U6 subway station Am Schöpfwerk (in front of drugstore)

Curator Gerald Straub gives a tour of “Kunstgastgeber Gemeindebau – Am Schöpfwerk” 2:00–5:00 pm GUIDED TOUR DOROTHEUM 1., Dorotheergasse 17

Preview of the auctions “Modern Art” and “Contemporary Art” EVENT Special Project / Nitsch Foundation 1., Hegelgasse 5

Hermann Nitsch, “On the Trails of Sigmund Freud” 2:30 pm

FAMILY ART DAY Belvedere 3., Rennweg 6

FAMILY ART DAY | WORKSHOP Special Project / flux23 2., Taborstrasse 51

“Look here! Let’s see what the forms and colors say”

Guided tours for children & painting

FAMILY ART DAY Austrian Frederick and Lillian Kiesler Private Foundation 6., Mariahilfer Strasse 1b

Children’s workshop “Build Your Own Endless House” FAMILY ART DAY Secession 1., Friedrichstrasse 12

Guided tour for families through the Vija Celmins and Julia Haller exhibitions PROGRAM Special Project / Sammlung Friedrichshof Römerstrasse 7, 2424 Zurndorf

Book presentation and curator talk as part of the exhibition Bjarne Melgaard, “Daddies Like You Don’t Grow On Palm Trees” 5:00 pm CONVERSATION Alternative Space / flat1 6., U-Bahn Bogen 6–7

Artist talk