This is not a paywall You can keep reading for free! At Hyperallergic , we strive to make art more inclusive, so you’ll never hit a paywall when reading our articles. But, as an independent publication, we rely on readers like you to keep our high-quality coverage free and accessible. Please consider joining us as a member to support independent journalism.
Already a member? Sign in here. We rely on readers like you to fund our journalism. If you value our coverage and want to support more of it, consider supporting us as a member.
Join Us VIENNA — A few years ago, I encountered a stunning installation by Austrian artist Erwin Wurm at Kunsthaus Graz, a pink wall of knitted wool stretched to 130 by 1300 feet, dotted with sparse details scaled to human size: limply hanging sleeves, random buttonholes, and openings for the head. In a world that is feeling colder and colder, Wurm’s mammoth sweater seemed like a proposal for keeping warm — the idea of the body politic, of some kind of commonality, had suddenly taken on visual form. In Wurm’s current retrospective at the Albertina Modern, slapstick and absurdity emerge as potent strategies for socio-critical observation.
His One Minute Sculptures , for instance, are performative pieces that undermine the very notion of sculpture as a permanent art form and invite the viewer to use the props provided — household items such as plungers or plastic bottles — to enact an ephemeral work according to the artist’s instructi.
