Published 5 NOV 2024

Opening – 16 NOV 2024, 4-7 pm
16 NOV until 1 FEB 2025

At Wilhelm Hallen

Opening – 16 NOV 2024, 4-7 pm
16 NOV until 1 FEB 2025

At Wilhelm Hallen

Gerwald Rockenschaub’s exhibition geomagnetic at Mehdi Chouakri Wilhelm Hallen invites visitors to step into the artist’s meticulously orchestrated spatial compositions, where geometric precision, bold color, and rhythmic interplay transform basic forms into an auratic experience.

Since the 1980s, Gerwald Rockenschaub (1952, Linz) has redefined the visual language of contemporary art by borrowing from the vernacular of logos, street signs, and pictograms. Inspired by the poet Rolf Dieter Brinkmann’s notion that “everything you see and deal with” can become poetry, Rockenschaub transforms the ordinary into an exploration of perception. His works, created digitally and realised through industrial processes, embody a forward-thinking ethos: minimal materials, no fixed studio, and seamless integration of art and technology.

In this exhibition, Rockenschaub explores a contemporary treatment of colours and chromatic ratios with shades like lime green, coral red, and sky blue. The use of colour is not just decorative but central to the composition, creating a dialogue that enhances the tension between the artwork and its surroundings. Rockenschaub’s interventions, including a black lines and lacquered MDF objects, are not merely artworks but visual scores interacting with the space. For example, the black line set at 152 cm high reflects his “micro-piggishness”—a precise, playful detail that creates tension and delay.

As with his renowned contribution to the Austrian Pavilion at the 1993 Venice Biennale, where visitors traversed a walkable scaffolding, Rockenschaub structures his exhibitions to guide movement and perception. In the almost-square room of the Wilhelm Hallen, the central pillar becomes a focal point for his architectural dramaturgy, with the surrounding space vibrating with ambivalence and hidden possibilities.

From his early days as a student in Vienna to running the nomadic techno club “the audioroom” in the late 1990s, Rockenschaub’s work has been shaped by cultural flux, rhythm, and the technologisation of art and music. His pieces—whether lacquered MDF, aluminum, or acrylic glass —are filed on a desktop yet resonate as walk-in sculptures, defying the conventional boundaries of painting and sculpture.

His works have been shown in solo exhibitions at Schlossmuseum Linz, Linz (2023), Belvedere, Vienna (2022), Kunstraum Weikendorf (2017), Neuer Berliner Kunstverein, Berlin (2016), Kunstmuseum St. Gallen (2016), Borusan Contemporary, Istanbul (2012), Berlinische Galerie, Berlin (2007), Kunsthalle Nuremberg (2005), MUMOK Museum moderner Kunst, Vienna (2004) and many others.

Opening – 8 NOV 2024, 5-8 pm
9 NOV until 21 DEC 2024

At Fasanenplatz

Saltimbanques! is a group exhibition showcasing the works of Saâdane Afif, Johanna Dumet, Lothar Hempel, and Claudia & Julia Müller, running at Mehdi Chouakri Fasanenplatz from November 9, 2024, to February 1, 2025. The title is drawn from the French word “saltimbanques,” originating from the Italian saltare in banco, meaning “to leap upon a bench,” and historically describing street performers—acrobats, jugglers, and entertainers. The figure of the saltimbanque has been a subject in art since the 17th century, often used by artists as a playful yet pointed way to critique or reflect on society.

Claudia & Julia Müller explore themes of identity and spectatorship in their work Komparse, a mirror portrait featuring pasted cut-out shapes and layered imagery. A mysterious figure in the background—part fox, part magician with a top hat and wand—captures attention, only to reveal itself as another costume. The viewer’s own reflection, partially masked by the mirror’s design, becomes part of the narrative, blurring distinctions between performer and audience, reality and artifice.

Saâdane Afif, known for his conceptual and performative works, contributes a poetic exploration of ephemerality and permanence. His project The Fairytale Recordings recalls a 2011 performance at Berlin’s Schinkel Pavillon, where a young opera singer recited lyrics written by the artist. The final notes of each song were symbolically “poured” into Nymphenburg porcelain vases, which were sealed to preserve the sound indefinitely. At the very top of each vase is the figure of the singer, while the piece presented in the exhibition resembles a tightrope walker in perfect balance.

Johanna Dumet’s work in this exhibition takes her signature blend of classical techniques with a bold and contemporary sensibility. The fool’s castle is a painted circus tent—essentially a canvas without its frame—resembling the form and texture of a traditional fabric tent. In front of this theatrical backdrop sits Dumet’s studio chair, transforming the installation into a stage. The chair serves as a surrogate for the artist, positioning her simultaneously as creator and performer. The title reflects on the figure of the clown, the fool, who stands as the only one unrestrained by censorship.

Lothar Hempel’s The Planet of the Living Dead merges imagery from a 1968 horror film with visuals from a vintage American magazine on contemporary dance. Part of a series of diamond-shaped works, the collage resists a fixed orientation, enhancing its sense of fluidity. The two dancers depicted evoke the grace and precariousness of tightrope walkers or acrobats, their forms seemingly floating in a state of weightlessness. This sculptural constellation of figures acts as an imaginative “poster” for a universe brimming with possibilities.

Together, the works in Saltimbanques! reflect the essence of their namesakes: performers who challenge boundaries, inspire wonder, and reimagine the world through their craft.