Jewan Goo
(b. 1994, KR)
Brigitte Kowanz: Remember the Future
Galerie Krinzinger, Vienna, AT
Galerie Krinzinger presents Remember the Future, the first posthumous exhibition in Vienna dedicated to the illustrious artist Brigitte Kowanz. Curated by Adrian Kowanz and organized in collaboration with the Estate Brigitte Kowanz, the exhibition is a comprehensive retrospective that spans from March 21 to May 18, 2024. It encapsulates Kowanz’s artistic development from her initial works to her final creations, some of which are being unveiled for the first time.
The exhibition revisits the same spaces of Galerie Krinzinger at Seilerstätte 16 in Vienna, Austria, where Kowanz had her debut solo exhibition in 1988. This significant return not only bridges her artistic beginnings with her concluding works but also showcases her lifelong engagement with light as a medium for communication and cognition. The exhibition features a series of spatial installations from various decades, reflecting a dialogue between the works and the transformation of the artist’s ideas over time.
Central to Kowanz’s work is her exploration of light as a vehicle for transmitting information, particularly language. Early pieces investigate light as a conduit of knowledge, while later works like Away (2020), Secret of Courage (2020), Motivation (2008), and Unspoken (2014) explore the interactive experience of art, inviting viewers to engage directly with coded messages and reflections. Her innovative use of LED tubes in ASAP (2020), OMG (2020), WYWH (2020), and FYI (2020) from the Acronyms series represents a continuous exploration of language’s evolution in the digital era, echoing themes from her earlier Discs series.
Kowanz’s work, especially in her later years, such as the tripod-mounted installations from 2021, challenged conventional perceptions of space and materiality, merging physical and virtual realities. The piece Delight (2021) serves as a thematic connector within the exhibition, linking diverse series through the shared motif of light and spatiality. Brigitte Kowanz, celebrated as one of the pivotal figures in contemporary art, utilized light not merely as a tool but as a lens through which to view our changing reality—questioning the constructs of language, perception, and our digital existence. Remember the Future is a testament to Kowanz’s visionary approach, highlighting her relevance in today’s rapidly converging real and digital worlds. This exhibition at Galerie Krinzinger not only pays homage to Kowanz’s remarkable career but also continues her dialogue with audiences through her enduring conceptual poetry.
For more information, please visit Galerie Krinzinger’s website here.
Last Updated on April 19, 2024
Maxime Foucquet
Maxim Foucquet is a curator, art critic, and contemporary artist residing and working in Belgium.
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