Freedom Was an Episode (tbc)

The exhibition Freedom was an Episode opened at the Austrian Cultural Forum in New York on March 5th, 2020. The show drew on striking artistic positions from Styria to examine subtle forms of surveillance and the erosion of freedom in Western capitalist societies through neo-liberalism and its digital psycho-politics. In new works created for the exhibition, the artists analysed the status quo and then envisaged a possible future.

The exhibition was on display for less than ten days, as cultural institutions closed first in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. Then, from March 20th, the whole of New York was in lockdown. The restrictions on freedom and open forms of surveillance and control that then took place worldwide in the name of security far exceeded all expectations; their subsequent impact on societies has been long-lasting.

The rifts have widened, two wars rage on the edge of Europe and the effects of climate change have posed extra challenges to national communities; the rise of nationalist ideologies and radical right-wing tendencies that fantasise about border fortifications, remigration and measures for disagreeable citizens threaten the foundations of democratic communities. Was freedom just an episode?

Five years after the show in New York, the exhibition sets out to take stock of the current socio-political situation.

Participating artists: Ovidiu Anton, Günter Brus, Maria Legat, Sara Lanner, Andreas Leikauf, Evamaria Schaller, Leander Schönweger, Esther Stocker, studio ASYNCHROME, Josef Wurm, zweintopf