Brigitte Kowanz

ISTR
OÖ Landes­-Kultur

The Messenger of Light

Light and space, media and information are key aspects of Brigitte Kowanz’s (b. Vienna, 1957; d. Vienna, 2022) multifaceted conceptual oeuvre. The artist was honored with the Grand Austrian State Prize in 2009 and presented her work in the Austrian pavilion at the 57th Venice Biennale in 2017. From 1997 until 2021, she was a professor at the University of Applied Arts Vienna. Kowanz worked on the installation ISTR with all her energy until shortly before her death, and the work has now been realized posthumously in accordance with her designs at Schlossmuseum Linz. The four pillars in the first room serve as a kind of introduction; executed in the artist’s hallmark neon, mirrors, and glass, each bears one of the letters of the title in Morse code: I S T R —I SEEM TO RECALL is an invitation to delve into Kowanz’s creative universe. Her art combines linguistic material—political statements and the transmission of messages—with a formal aesthetic, illustrating that light, far from being a mere neutral vehicle for information, is vital to shaping it.

The catalogue accompanying the exhibition features the new production as well as earlier series from the 1980s, in juxtaposition with the Flashbacks series. QR codes provide access to additional digital content. With essays by Adrian Kowanz, Gala Rebane, Sabine Schaschl, Angela Stief, and Alfred Weidinger.