AUSEINANDERSETZUNG

Eröffnung: 3. Juni 2026 Kunstuniversität Linz, Hauptplatz 8, 4020 Linz

Studierende der Abteilung Visuelle Kommunikation haben unter der Begleitung von Anna Artaker und starsky die Ausstellung AUSEINANDERSETZUNG kreiiert. 

AUSEINANDERSETZUNG (literally: setting things apart to examine them) consists of two anamorphoses: it’s only from the fourth-floor vantage points that the motifs come into view. Together, they highlight the continuity of Austrian modernism before and after the Nazi era and offer a counterpoint to the history of the building erected by the Nazis. Come to the fourth floor and take a look! ¹

AUSEINANDERSETZUNG features the greatly enlarged silhouettes of two chairs from the Spalt Collection at the University Library. Viewed from two vantage points on the fourth floor looking down to the ground floor, Josef Frank’s (1885–1967) Fauteuil (1929) and the Murauer Chair (1994) by Johannes Spalt (1920–2010) are placed on the wall and floor surfaces of the ground floor and first floor. Viewed from the right perspective from the fourth floor, the markings unfold their spatial effect, whereas from other angles they appear fragmented.

The selection of chairs draws on historical contexts. The Frank design in the front atrium represents the pre-Nazi era, while Spalt’s chair in the rear atrium symbolizes the efforts led by Johannes Spalt to build on the Austrian modernism of Adolf Loos and Josef Frank in the postwar period. The building at Hauptplatz 8 is part of Linz’s development into a “Führer City” during the Nazi era, when Josef Frank, as a Jewish architect, was forced to leave Austria. The juxtaposition of the two chairs reveals historical ruptures and continuities—the building, constructed as the seat of the “Reichsgau Oberdonau” financial presidium, housed the tax office until 2008. AUSEINANDERSETZUNG addresses the social and political dimensions of design. The anamorphoses invite viewers to shift their perspective and connect spatial perception with historical context.

A project by: Noël Barz, Nadezhda Ivanova, Katarzyna Kleist, Julian Köttstorfer, Alina Lang, Mira Maierhofer, Clara Müller, Moritz Purgstaller, Ani Shahrikyan, Edi Shefkiu, Lea Trathnigg, Zere Valeyeva und Franz Witzmann unter der Leitung von | supervised by Anna Artaker & starsky

Opening: 3. Juni 2026,  7.55 p.m.
Location: Abteilung Visuelle Kommunikation, Hauptplatz 8, 4. OG.

The opening will take place in conjunction with the exhibition SUMMARY ALONG THE LINE 3.0.

 ¹ „Schau’n Sie sich das an!” (“Just look at that!”) is a quote from the cabaret artist Karl Farkas (1893–1971), who, as a Jew, was forced to leave Austria in 1938 but returned to Vienna from exile in the United States in 1946 and continued to perform successfully as a cabaret artist until his death. From 1957 onward, he appeared regularly on ORF radio and television and was the first cabaret artist to be awarded the honorary title of professor.