At the exhibition space on Vienna’s Exhibit Eschenbachgasse, the artists take the audience on a tour of a collection of invisible artworks that begin to slowly take shape in listeners’ minds. Between fact and fiction, they propose visitors embody a sculpture, tune into a song or follow their own thoughts. Based on their research, Sööt/Zeyringer draw attention to notorious cases such as the controversy surrounding Elsa von Freytag-Loringhoven’s Fountain (misattributed to Marcel Duchamp for a long time) or Camille Claudel’s figurative sculptures (that were overshadowed by the work of her partner Auguste Rodin). Also featuring: Yoko Ono’s works (often eclipsed by John Lennon) and the groundbreaking abstract art of Hilma af Klint.
Amidst past and present stories about stolen or misinterpreted authorship, the two artists also relate personal experiences and ask how much stealing of ideas is okay. The Invisible Collection invites its visitors to think about the history of art and how individual stories and societal narratives tend to get intertwined. With their usual wit, warmth and acuiy eye for injustice, Sööt/Zeyringer encourage listeners to find out, step by step, how we ourselves want to shape history.
Concept & research Sööt/Zeyringer Text & voice performance Tiina Sööt, Dorothea Zeyringer Recording, editing & sound design Matthias Peyker Outside eye & voice consulting Nora Jacobs Visual artistic consulting & graphic design Daniela Grabosch Assistant dramaturgy Claudia Lomoschitz Production assistance Alisa Beck
A co-production by Sööt/Zeyringer with brut Wien and the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna
Funded by the City of Vienna’s Department of Cultural Affairs (MA 7) and by the Austrian Federal Ministry of Art, Culture, Civil Service and Sport