EVENT LANGUAGE: GERMAN.

Vienna Actionism and Feminist Avantgarde in the Exhibition ON STAGE

The contemporary avant-garde emerged as a counterpoint to the conservatism in Austrian post-war society with its bigotry and collective repression of history. A reality people experienced as painful was countered by these artists with passionate dedication and artistic happenings many of which referenced the Passion of Jesus. Sacrificial rituals and martyrial gestures played a central role for Hermann Nitsch and Vienna Actionists Günter Brus, Otto Muehl, and Rudolf Schwarzkogler. Artists from the feminist scene, such as Marina Abramović, Gina Pane, and VALIE EXPORT, also used—and profaned—the Christian iconography of pain to combat patriarchal hierarchies.

Despite its forward-looking commitment and critical, provocative stance toward society at large, Vienna Actionism also contains painful facets. This aspect comes to the fore in the exhibition ON STAGE. For instance, the group MATHILDA addresses the authoritarian and criminal attitudes of Otto Muehl, who himself wanted to be known as fighter against authoritarianism.

Carola Dertnig gets a bead on the machismo of the Vienna Actionists, who often used women as models and objects only. Societal suffering can therefore also be expressed in a commitment against male-dominated art—in the form of works in which reason and passion don’t have to be at odds with each other.

Guided tour by Chief Curator Rainer Fuchs (mumok)

Registration required. FULLY BOOKED.