Beyond Glaciation
Project team: Prof. Dr. Alexis Dworsky, Prof. Tina Frank, Simon Hochleitner, Nadja Reifer
Project partners: Dr. Elke Ludewig, Dr. Priv.-Doz. Birgit Sattler, Prof. Dr. Pamela C. Scorzin, Thomas Hoch, PhD, Klemens Weisleitner, PhD
Type of funding: FWF / PEEK
Project duration: July 2025 to July 2029
Institute: Institute for Art and Education, Institute for Media
The interdisciplinary art project “Beyond Glaciation” explores the Goldbergkees, a rapidly melting glacier in Austria. The goal is to preserve this glacier—not in a physical sense, which seems hardly possible in light of global warming, but through digital reconstruction and transformation.
Using drones and microscopes, 3D models, the visualization of measurement data, and artificial intelligence, a virtual representation of the glacier is created—one that goes far beyond its visible surface. Microorganisms, plastic particles, traces of human activity, and ancient stories are examined, artistically interpreted, and translated into an immersive simulation. The glacier is not portrayed as a lifeless mass of ice, but as a living, complex ecosystem that interweaves nature, culture, myth, and science.
“Beyond Glaciation” responds to the climate crisis by capturing the glacier’s layered present and extending it into speculative futures. The project explores both the potential and the contradictions of cutting-edge digital technologies within artistic processes.
A multimedia experience emerges that tells the story of what is currently disappearing—and of what might evolve in its place. It builds bridges between art and science, between past and future, between reality and imagination.
In this way, the glacier remains accessible even after it is gone—preserved as a virtual monument and a space of possibility. By creating new forms of seeing, feeling, and understanding, “Beyond Glaciation” invites us to fundamentally rethink our relationship with nature.
Contact persons: Prof. Dr. Alexis Dworsky, Prof. Tina Frank, Simon Hochleitner, Nadja Reifer
