Last month saw the launch of AM SCHWARZENBERGPLATZ, near to Vienna’s big tourist spot, the Schloss Belvedere lays the Palais Schwarzenberg next to Schwarzenbergplatz, here you can find the collaborative project organized by 3 international galleries KOW (Berlin), LambdaLambdaLambda (Prishtina), Simone Subal Gallery (New York). Not so dissimilar from Lambda’s previous collaboration in Brussels – La Maison de Rendezvous, which was active from 2019 – 2023.
Interestingly, KOW’s Nikolaus Oberhuber, Subal, and the founders of Lamba all come from (or previously lived in) Vienna — a similar story to Oliver Croy (of Croy Nielsen) and Eva Presenhuber opening galleries in Vienna as well…
The space itself is an impressive large room with red floors- a former summer palace from some aristocrat who doesn’t use it anymore. The upcoming second show entitled “CTRL V” features Julien Bismuth, CATPC, Tatjana Danneberg, Sam Eckwurtzel, Sophie Gogl, Simon Lehner, Katja Mater and Florian Meisenberg which combines a selection of artists from each of the 3 galleries.
The space itself feels quite domestic with a couch and TV, fireplace, and a garden. The first show entitled “Fremdkörper” (Foreign Body), contained a lot of smaller handmade works stuffed into bookshelves or positioned on the wall between two windows seemingly disappearing into the architecture instead of having a dialog with it… To be honest- the only work I specifically remember was an older work entitled “Extra” by Candice Bretiz which beautifully fit the group show’s title and concept. In the video, Breitz positions her own white body into a popular Black South African sitcom. “Extra”(2011), comprised of a single-channel video installation and a series of staged photographs taken during the filming of the Generations soap opera. The rest of the exhibition felt a bit decorative in the domestic space- while Breitz’s work felt at home.
During the filming of ‘Extra’ the actors were instructed to ignore Breitz‘s presence. She intervenes in real scenes of the soap but does not interact with the actors who ignore her. The images provoke reflections on the implications of whiteness in the new South Africa- a long-running theme in work- without offering easy solutions. Extra thus engages with whiteness from a post-apartheid perspective. Strangely this piece works better in its simplicity than her “Whiteface” series which was recently shown at Fotografiska in Berlin.
In other gallery news, Warsaw-based gallerist Dawid Radziszewski (https://dawidradziszewski.com/) announced he is also opening a dependance in Vienna this coming May. No details were given yet- but any hint of a location from his Instagram post- could possibly be on the Schleifmühlgasse- an established gallery location that has been struggling lately (since the passing of key local gallerists) to generate any new energy.
Finally São Paulo – Brussels
Galeria Jaqueline Martins (São Paulo/ Brussels) and Galeria Sé (São Paulo) have announced that they are merging, creating Martins&Montero, with spaces in São Paulo and Brussels.
Managed in São Paulo by partners Jaqueline Martins and Maria Montero and with operations in Brussels led by Yuri Oliveira, Martins&Montero will present a multicultural and interdisciplinary program, acting as a bridge between Brazil and the rest of the world. Martin’s has been a driving force in Brazilian galleries launching groundbreaking shows with critically acclaimed Brazilian artists and launching the Brussels space, while the internationally lesser known Galeria Sé– founded in 2014 by artist Maria Montero, is an art gallery that represents 16 Brazilian artists with solid institutional or academic trajectories- most of them started their dialogue with the market through Sé.
The new gallery will start with the opening exhibition by Jota Mombaça, the artist’s first solo show in Brazil. The exhibition takes place simultaneously at the gallery’s two headquarters, opening to the public on April 3 in São Paulo and April 13 in Brussels.