FAUQUET, Hélène (ed.)
The Aesthetic Field

In the early 1990s, the Institute for Art History at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna hosted a series of lectures by international artists under the direction of Silvia Eiblmayr. Observations on these lectures were the catalyst for the public panel discussion “The Aesthetic Field.” The event was held during the summer semester of 1992 at the University of Applied Arts in Vienna, whose rector at the time, Oswald Oberhuber, was interested in promoting the institutionalization of new, innovative forms of discourse. The symposium took place within the larger context of curated by, a series of curated exhibitions which were to be held in the baroque Heiligenkreuzer Hof in 1993. Galerie Metropol was responsible for the conception and planning of this exhibition series, which aimed to reflect a broad spectrum of current curatorial approaches. It included six solo exhibitions at Heiligenkreuzer Hof, beginning with Bob Nickas, Jackie McAllister, Dan Cameron, Markus Brüderlin, Valerie Smith, and Andrea Fraser. The last two exhibitions could not be presented due to external intervention.

“The Aesthetic Field” was conceived by Christian Meyer and Ulf Wuggenig, its organization was overseen by Renate Kainer. The symposium served as a forum for lectures by eleven artists tasked with presenting their own position in the aesthetic field. The presentations followed a specific dramatic structure: Peter Weibel, Jeff Koons, Peter Fend, and Colin de Land on the first day; Jessica Stockholder, Gerwald Rockenschaub, John Miller, and Raymond Pettibon on the second; and Christian Philipp Müller, Renée Green, and Andrea Fraser on the third and final day. [publishers' note]

Published by Meyer Kainer, 2025
Artists' Writings / Art Theory / Art Criticism / Artists' Books