Eastern Styria

Cross-border midsummer of art

The KS Room in Riegersburg is showing works by Sophia Gatzkan and Julie Hayward

(Bild: Kilian Flitsch)

In Eastern Styria, neighboring Southern Burgenland and Gorna Radgona in Slovenia, HochSommer doesn't just mean heat, it also stands for contemporary art. Exhibitions, performances and concerts are on the program at 13 locations from 1 to 11 August.

This year marks the eighth HochSommer, which brings the region to life artistically. It grew out of the "Südseite" initiative, in which Karl Karner and Michaela Leutzendorff-Pakesch and others brought more to the region. There are now 13 locations, and not only is interest growing from year to year, but so is the quality. 

Leutzendorff-Pakesch is in charge of the organization for the second time this year, and some of the things that were already successful in 2023 will be expanded this year. These include the bus tours, which travel from venue to venue and talk about the presentations in between. This is how entertaining communication of sometimes unwieldy content works. "People love these tours," says the busy organizer, "places are now in short supply."

But there is also a lot on offer, and in addition to traditional venues such as the Gerberhaus, which is showing the first solo exhibition of renowned artist Sarah Bogner in Austria this year, the Kunsthalle Feldbach with a presentation by the duo zweintopf, the KS Room in Riegersburg with works by Julie Hayward and Sophia Gatzkan and the Pavelhaus, there are also newcomers such as the Spiegelgitterhaus in Gleisdorf with the Wolf Collection.

Sarah Bogner is developing her own presentation for the Gerberhaus in Weiz

(Bild: kunstdokumentation.com)

This time, Michael Strasser's "Bird Strike" awaits at the Kunstfenster Gnas, a concert with Patrick Dunst and Robert Unterköfler in the forest below Poppendorf Castle and a film evening at Weinhof Locknbauer in Pichla.

Michael Strasser's "Bird Strike" in the Gnas art window

(Bild: Michael Strasser)

There is also a lot going on beyond the state border: the Kugelmühle is showing Hermann Nitsch, the Kunsthalle Burgenland a performance with Lilly Hagg and Christoph Szalay, among others. Minus watercolors by Wilhelm Scherübl can be seen in the spectacular Tiefkühlhaus and Landart Eisenberg is also back on the scene.

Artists invite visitors to their studios
Finally, 9 August belongs entirely to the artists of the region, with a day of open studios on the program for the first time, where you can not only visit 16 workspaces, but also talk to the artists.

HochSommer will open on August 1 from 6 pm at Alfred Lenz' long-term project L201 in Studenzen with a talk with Elisabeth Fiedler and performances by Gischt/Ursula Winterauer, Kurt Strohmeier and Scarabaeusdream.