<ViennaArtWeek></2008>
5.000 GUESTS AT VIENNAARTWEEK RECEIVED INSIGHT INTO ART AND THE ART MARKETART&IDEA is pleased to announce that the fourth edition of viennaartweek, which ended at MuseumsQuartier Wien on Sunday. November 23, has been hailed as a huge success. During one week full of exhibitions and discussions, guided tours and studio visits, about 5.000 guests participated in the festival. viennaartweek’s organizer, Art Cluster Vienna, drew a positive balance. “Positioning the galleries as a central part of the program was a good idea. Thus, art can be fully experienced. Next year, we will put an accent on the opening up of viennaartweek for a broader public even more”, reveals Martin Böhm, the president of Art Cluster.
Panel discussions provided insight into the international art scene
Eight panel discussions brought 43 top class panellists to Vienna, thus providing valuable insight into different aspects of the art world. In spite of the current financial crisis, the panellists of “The Market of Design – Following or Leading the Art World?” – amongst them designer Alfredo Häberli and Paola Zini, Director of Torino 2008 World Design Capital – discussed that the design boom is not over yet. The crisis will only lead to a reassessment of the market.
The discussion titled “On and Beyond the Market: The Future of Criticism” made apparent that independent critics such as Jan Verwoert of frieze magazine or Hans-Jürgen Hafner, an independent art critic and curator from Berlin, can be pleased about their position autonomous from the guidelines of daily newspapers: They can write freely and about their personal preferences and likings. But: “The division of labour has changed”, said Georg Schöllhammer, editor of springerin magazine in Vienna: “nowadays, the artists themselves take over the critical function”.
Branislava Andjelkovic, Director of the Museum of Contemporary Art in Belgrade, was even more critical. In a discussion about ”The Museum of the Future” she disagreed with Sir Norman Rosenthal, former Exhibitions Secretary at the Royal Academy of Arts in London, and Barry Lord, who was just assigned to build the “Haus der Geschichte” in Vienna. Both men believed that the new branches of Louvre and Guggenheim Museum in the Arabic world would promote the artistic exchange between the East and the West. Andjelkovic claimed the museums should rather bethink themselves of their own, outstanding collections and core strenghts.
Museums displayed international art’s diversity
“All Vienna based art institutions contributed programme highlights to the viennaartweek that enabled access to the international diversity of artistic expression”, explains Robert Punkenhofer, artistic director of viennaartweek and director of ART&IDEA. At MUMOK, a performance, several artist talks, a panel discussion and a special tour took place. On Sunday, visitors could experience the Peter Kogler exhibition at MUMOK for free. MAK, Albertina, KHM and Belvedere offered insights into their collections and current exhibitions with special talks and guided tours.
viennaartbookaward for photography monograph
During viennaartweek, the viennaartbookaward was granted for the third time. The prize, doted with EUR 25.000, is the most prestigious art book distinction in the world and was given to “Foto: Modernity in Central Europe 1918–1945” by Matthew S. Witkovsky by DOROTHEUM, LIECHTENSTEIN MUSEUM, GALERIE SANCT LUCAS and LGT. The book was published in 2007 by the National Gallery of Art in Washington in collaboration with Thames & Hudson. The jury commented their decision as follows: “This book is not only scientifically relevant, but also exemplary in its composition as it develops a new mapping of Central Europe regarding the photographic history of modernity in an extraordinary manner. This book is a pleasure in every respect.” 56 National and international publishers participated in the competition. They have submitted 190 publications to be judged by the jury.
One of the absolute highlights of viennaartweek was a discussion about art and money with Robert Punkenhofer, Lucy Orta, Hans-Ulrich Obrist and Gerald Matt. During the discussion, a performance by Studio Orta was presented: A group of three naked models posed on different types of furniture at different heights and in quite acrobatic positions. At the same time, a group of house painters and decorators were invited to produce a series of canvasses and photographs in the style of the grand masters. The point of this performance was to put a spotlight on the fact that artists are always struggling against preconceived notions of art and public convention, and even more so faced with the market driven economy. Directly after the performance and the discussion, the Mexican artist Teresa Margolles presented her new work “Costura de una Linea sobre Tela ensangrendada”.