Viennese Artists’ Life During the Pandemic

When the pandemic hit the world, we were thinking about what we could do. We were always working with cultural institutions and artists, so it was soon decided that we wanted to organize a digital exhibition featuring up-and-coming artists from Vienna.

In this unusual year, a lot of people are struggling, numbers are rising again now, and the future is uncertain. Artists are for sure heavily affected by the pandemic – exhibitions and concerts have been canceled or postponed, and their work has often been precarious even without a pandemic. That’s why we decided to give the participants of our digital exhibition Vienna United a voice again and ask them how they experienced the last crazy months.

Daniel Helmer is a musician and filmmaker. When Austria was under lockdown in spring, he was publishing one track each day for a week straight – the name was “Keine Pläne in der Quarantäne” (No Plans in Quarantine). We just got to know that his quarantine music will be published soon – stay tuned!

Another musician, Andreas Hnat, released the single “Sunny Days” under his alias whtamess, and you should definitely also watch the video! The track can be found on Spotify, iTunes, Amazon Music, and Apple Music.

Anna Schmoll was showing her artworks in the exhibition Verspielte Zeit (Playful Time) at Galerie Augenblick in Kirchberg/Wagram. There’s currently a review of this exhibition at the Red Carpet Showroom Karlsplatz in Vienna, where you can see her Video „Spurensuche”. Moreover, she was recently featured in an interview in the Berlin art magazine Horst & Edeltraut.

Manon Pichon is a director of photography working closely together with dancers. She produced several videos this year: some dealt with topics like quarantine and self-isolation, e. g. her works “Quarantine Contact” or “Me, myself, and I” (in collaboration with Lisa Magnan and Bernhard Hollinger). Also, check out the project “The Dance We Made” – it’s a lot of fun.

Doris Bujatti’s artistic works are mainly about textiles – she recently did the pattern design for the Zauberflöte at the Volksoper Vienna. One of her textile sculptures is currently sold at the 14th Young Art Auction by artcare – her piece can be found under the number 56!

Sarah Braid continued painting and got a residency in Wels (Upper Austria). The exhibition CHANGES is showcasing her and other artists in residence at the Medien Kultur Haus Wels until the 14th of November. She produced a short animation film, “Irmas nächtliches Erlebnis” (Irma’s Nighttime Experience) – we just love Irma!

Pei han is still working on her colorful, magic paintings and is currently participating in another digital exhibition, Transformation 2020.

Florian Nitsch was taking part in the festival Parallel Vienna with his installation “Flo’s Medusa”, a self-proclaimed hybrid between art fair, exhibition platform, and artist studio, taking place annually in Vienna. You can also listen to the artist talk with him and Maryam Sehhat on the platform QUESTION ME & ANSWER, which is supporting Viennese artists.

These times call for alternative ways of displaying art. Julius Werner Chromecek’s works can be seen outdoors – the initiative Q202 brings art on the streets of Vienna’s second district! He was also one of the participants of the closing exhibition of the renowned Friedl Kubelka School for Photography.

You can also take a look at their work in our digital exhibition Vienna United, which we give away for free now! If you want to support them, do it directly: Follow them on social media, check out their websites, visit their exhibitions and concerts (if possible), and buy their works or merchandise!