THE MATERIAL SHOW
We build houses. We take them apart.
The exhibition brings together contemporary local and international artistic positions that explore the nature, history, and significance of architectural materials. The focus is on both content-related and formal approaches to materials such as concrete, steel, stone, glass, and wood—materials that shape, structure, and characterize our built environment.
With works by Lara Almarcegui, Hannes Böck, Cäcilia Brown, Werner Feiersinger, Andreas Fogarasi, Daria Koltsova, LITTLE WARSAW, Markéta Othová, Bianca Pedrina, Nick Relph, Iris Touliatou, Christoph Weber
The continuous cycle of construction and destruction, of usefulness and decay, has always been an integral part of building culture. Twelve national and international artists approach materials such as concrete, stone, wood, metal, and glass – materials that shape and structure our built environment—on a content and formal level. Based on the long-standing and in-depth research of artist and co-curator of the exhibition Andreas Fogarasi, the invited artists were selected on the basis of a shared interest. Through their artistic and research practices, they draw attention to those essential components of our environment that we often take for granted and pay little attention to, but which we often only consciously perceive when they are not functioning, are defective, or even ruined. At the same time, architecture, especially in an urban context, is changing at a rapid pace – as is the case in the immediate vicinity of the MQ Freiraum: a gigantic shell construction on Mariahilfer Straße, which was only recently built, has fallen victim to one of the largest corporate bankruptcies in Austrian history and is being demolished.
It is no coincidence that the exhibition is taking place on the 25th anniversary of the MuseumsQuartier, one of the largest cultural complexes in the world, whose architectural structure embodies more than 300 years of history full of change. With the planned construction of the new House of Austrian History and the greening of the inner courtyards, the MQ continues to undergo transformation. The exhibition spaces focus not only on the material foundations of architecture, but also on the social and ecological aspects inscribed in them. In a time of increasing crises and upheavals, the exhibition draws attention to what is necessary – both architecturally and socially – and should not be taken for granted. But it also invites visitors to discover beauty in the fundamental.
Curated by Andreas Fogarasi and Astrid Peterle.
MQ Freiraum
