In the exhibition “PHANTOMAK” in the Vienna University of Technology, sculptures by the artist Tomak are presented to the public for the first time. The sculpture series PHANTOMAK consists of eleven individual busts of the artist, produced in a complex technical procedure – Wood Jackson, Rotpeter, Height, Headquarters…

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„Thus my work completes itself by the sculpture.“ (TOMAK)
The sculpture series PHANTOMAK was produced in the course of the past one and a half years. The works were manufactured in close cooperation with the Vienna University of Technology (institute of art and design – spatial development and modelling), the German company Rampf Tooling and an Austrian foundation. CastYourArt is responsible for the organisation of the project. more »

The building of the Vienna Secession is regarded as the structural manifestation of the ideas of artist union around Gustav Klimt, Koloman Moser, Carl Moll and others who refused the conservative artistic spirit of the Vienna Künstlerhaus. A feature about this historical and contemporary venue of the arts.

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Today the Vienna Secession, the union of Austrian artists, is the oldest independent exhibition centre dedicated to contemporary art worldwide. The building designed by the architect Joseph Maria Olbrich is regarded as the structural manifestation of the ideas of this artist’s union around Gustav Klimt, Koloman Moser, Carl Moll, Josef Hoffmann, Olbrich and others, whose members refused the conservative approach to art of the Künstlerhaus association at the turn of the century.
To confront the fin de siècle with a holistic art whose vitality would have its effect down to the ordinary everyday life! By means of the Secession building, this claim would obtain an actual location, in order to present art in a space-oriented and comprehensive way, within a synthesis of architecture, painting, sculpture, graphic art and decoration. The artistic approach with the building as its symbol still draws attention and now as then, the usage of the building causes excitement.
On of the most celebrated exhibitions was dedicated to Ludwig van Beethoven in 1902, a main work of which being the Beethoven Frieze by Gustav Klimt. On this 34-meter mural painting, the artist focused on Beethoven’s 9th symphony. The painting addresses mankind’s pursuit of happiness in various stages. Because of its explicit eroticism, Klimt’s work provoked admiration as well as severe criticism. At the time the Beethoven Frieze was situated in the left side aisle of the Secession’s main hall and was eventually removed in 1903. Today it is back in the Secession and installed in a specifically created room in the basement floor of the building.
With its spatial arrangement, the architecture of the Vienna Secession has remained relevant in our time. Its functionality and aesthetic peculiarity therefore offer ideal conditions for contemporary arts and exhibition activities. Thus, in accordance with the phrase carved above its entrance, to every age its art and to art its freedom, today the Vienna Secession accomplishes an internationally oriented program, presenting current artistic forms of expression in single and thematic exhibitions.
CastYourArt has created a feature about this historical and contemporary venue of the arts, giving an insight into the building, its architecture and history as well as its activities in contemporary art. (wh)

He has no employees, no assistants, no website or E-mail address. Ever since Glenn Murcutt opened his own office in Sydney in 1969, he works alone. An exhibition on Glenn Murcutt’s work can be seen at the Architekturzentrum Wien in Vienna till 13.02.2011.

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He states that he wants to free himself from the pressure of being responsible for staff. If necessary he cooperates with other architects, like his wife Wendy Levin. In the last 40 years, more than 500 buildings have been constructed, all in Australia, almost exclusively residential buildings and besides a few exceptions, designed, planned and implemented under his supervision. more »

He has embraced tradition in order to „forget it again“: wood as a challenge and possibility of failure. An artist-portrait of the sculptor Aron Demetz. Works of the artist, who joined the Venice Biennale 2009 are on view at CastYourArt (Gumpendorfer Straße 55, 1060 Vienna) from November 18 2011 till February 3 2012 at the exhibition “La Natura Umana”.

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Aron Demetz eliminates the classical dichotomy of „original vs. effigy”, and instead addresses an interaction: man has a position in the natural space that surrounds him, is formed by it and in turn has an effect on it; this is not a static interaction but rather a continuous, living process. Man and his body become protagonist and theatre of the action at the same time, within the relationship between the single object and its location within space. Demetz’ examination of space demonstrates that the figures enter into a dialogue about the possibilities of the location with the viewer. more »

On the occasion of the “Botero” exhibition in the Bank Austria Kunstforum, curator Dr. Evelyn benesch will speak about the artist’s Abu Ghraib series.

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In the years 2004-2005, Columbian painter Fernando Botero worked on a series of paintings named Abu Ghraib. Ever since the photographs of the Abu Ghraib prison were published in 2004, this name came to symbolize a policy that endorses abuse and torture in the name of justice. The hypocrisies around the events in Abu Ghraib prompted the artist to paint this cycle. US museums simply disregarded these works during Botero exhibitions. When liberal Berkeley University finally showed this cycle, Botero donated the entire series to the university in gratitude. In the exhibition “Botero”, in Bank Austria Kunstforum, “Abu Ghraib”, the outraged artist’s cycle on human brutality, will be on display until January 15, 2012. (wh/ca)

On the occasion of his exhibition “İz” in Istanbul starting on 12 October 2011 6.30 pm at
Artgalerim Nişantaşı we replay from our archives the artist portrait of Cemal Gürsel Soyel.

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CastYourArt visited the Cyprus-born painter, Cemal Gürsel Soyel, in Vienna, and accompanied him on his way to his studio. The resulting podcast shows more than just the streets of Vienna. The walk we take with him leads us down the path of the artist to his painting – both in a literal and a pleasantly ironic sense. (wh/jn)

The media artist and composer Thomas Wagensommerer studied digital media technology, philosophy and transdisciplinary art. His compositional works are positioned at the interfaces between man and machine – a field of activity which is in rapid transformation, due to permanent technological change and the fundamental deepening of the relationship between man and technology.

Of Making Hear.

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As a media artist, Thomas Wagensommerer explores the sound faculty of electronic instruments (the existence of sounds produced by it) as well as the possibilities of sound design in the era of the Web 2.0. more »

Together with Maria Lassnig he is considered the originator of Informal Art in Austria. His works are on display in the key museums all over the world. An artist’s portrait of Arnulf Rainer. This podcast was realised with the kind support of UNIQUA ArtCercles.

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He visited André Breton, the writer and theoretical head of surrealism in Paris – this was the moment he turned away from surrealism. Together with Maria Lassnig, he is considered the originator of informal painting in Austria, his works are on display in the main museums on the entire globe. The road to success has at times been stony, tells Rainer, whose first solo exhibition took place in the St. Stephan gallery of Monsignore Otto Mauer in 1955. The beginning of his overpaintings for instance were not based upon any philosophical concepts, but were simply a consequence of his lack of money to buy new canvasses. Instead, the artist resorted to painted canvasses - pictures from the flea market. They were cheaper to buy. more »

Rather than expressing something directly, the force of artistic expressivity lies within manifesting the getting-to-talk within the work itself.

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„I will now reveal the secret: I am talking about an important artist“ (Christian Ludwig Attersee)

Random. Clean Cuts. The works of the new series by the artist Alexander Steinwendtner contain an essential and fascinating quality of human endeavour, referred to as making art: precise artistic expression arises stems from an artistic attunement, not quite definable and therefore not attainable in an exact manner.

In other words, the artist is able to specify what falls to him and that art is not simply mastered, but in fact created. Quality, says Alexander Steinwendtner, arises from a time that he is somewhat unable to define. Therefore the artistic agenda is to venture into the undefined, in order to reach the concept. more »

Polanszky shows that perceptions do not simply happen within us, but in fact are performed by us – producing reciprocal dynamics. Rudolf Polanszky is an artist of Gallery Konzett, Vienna.

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“The human being forgets that it was him who produced the images in order to use them to find his bearings. He is unable to decipher them anymore and from then on lives in function of his own images: imagination has turned into hallucination.” (Vilem Flusser)

Polanszky’s works resemble a language und avail themselves of a sequence or composition of signs and symbols, but without directly reverting to concepts and without giving a direction to the relationship between cause and effect, leaving open which one is cause and which one effect. Reality as a principle is replaced by the performance of reality, including our capacities and mechanisms of representation and interpretation. more »