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Going Viral

Christopher Klettermayer

Freestanding multi-panel photographic installation in MuseumsQuartier Vienna featuring fragmented black-and-white images of the human body with red spots on a light background.
© MuseumsQuartier Wien, Poto: Christopher Klettermayer

02.12.2023 - 31.01.2024

MQ Forecourt

Installation at the MQ Forecourt

Christopher Klettermayer was infected with HIV a few years ago. Thanks to continuous drug treatment, he never contracted AIDS. Today he is no longer infectious, but the diagnosis has changed his life dramatically. Issues such as intimacy, love, family and friendship have taken on a new meaning and significance. Since his diagnosis, Klettermayer has been dealing with the new reality of his life artistically. "What happens in your head, how do you perceive your body and how does your perception of yourself change? From feeling toxic and plagued by self-doubt and self-loathing to reflecting on my own behavior in the past, burdened by regret. I had to re-explore my self-image. Self-reflection is a constant process. By juxtaposing analogue photographs with their respective negatives, I visualize the stark contradictions that the diagnosis has confronted me with. In the captivity of the mind, my restlessness is a constant,"writes Christopher Klettermayer.

A specially compiled collage of photographs taken in recent years will be on display.

Christopher Klettermayer (*1982 in Austria) is an artist, photographer, author and lecturer based in Barcelona and Vienna. He began his career in photojournalism and fashion photography. After his HIV diagnosis, the focus of his work shifted to topics related to HIV and sexuality.

Back view of the installation showing large-scale, abstracted black-and-white body fragments across multiple panels in an outdoor setting with historic architecture.
© MuseumsQuartier Wien, Poto: Christopher Klettermayer
Multi-panel photographic installation in the snow in front of a historic building in Vienna, featuring black-and-white image fragments and red markings on freestanding panels.
© MuseumsQuartier Wien, Poto: Christopher Klettermayer

MQ Forecourt

Grayscale architectural site map of the MuseumsQuartier Wien. The map includes various labeled structures and surrounding roads.
© MuseumsQuartier Wien