After exciting performance

Prestigious award for “Pudertanz” choreographer

The "Powder Dance" performance polarized the audience at the Capital of Culture opening.

(Bild: HELMUT FOHRINGER)

It was the "sensation" at the opening of the Salzkammergut Capital of Culture on 21 January in Bad Ischl: the "Pudertanz". Now choreographer Doris Uhlich is among the winners of the Austrian Art Award 2024.

In a dance performance, naked, disabled people made it clear that every body is beautiful, unique and dignified in its own right. The reactions to this "powder dance" were fierce - from indignant rejection to enthusiastic approval.

Choreographer Doris Uhlich, who herself comes from the Salzkammergut region, has now received a major endorsement of her work: she is among the winners of the Austrian Art Awards 2024. Uhlich does not see the award solely as recognition of her "Powder Dance", but above all as an award for her entire career.

Doris Uhlich (left) was awarded the Austrian Art Prize

(Bild: Katarina Soskic)

"The world has many bodies"
"Many of the award winners have done pioneering work in their respective disciplines and have courageously and persistently pursued their visions," said Andrea Mayer, State Secretary for Art and Culture. "The world has many bodies, and I have found a way to nudity that lies beyond ideologies and sexualization. Life is not a solo, but an ensemble work," says Uhlich, describing her guiding principles. She recently confirmed in an interview with Krone that she fully supports her polarizing work and would do "Pudertanz" again at any time. "Winning the art prize is a wonderful moment," she says.

Six other women among the prizewinners

In addition to Uhlich, this year's prize winners - selected by independent expert juries - include six other women, one man, a collective and an architectural duo. The artist Ingrid Wiener received the prize for her artistic tapestries. In the field of film art, documentary filmmaker Karin Berger was honored for her artistic reconstructions of memories of the Nazi era in Austria. Robert Schindel received the award for literature, while the grandiose violinist Patricia Kopatchinskaja was honored for music.

The other winners: Helga Bansch (Children's and Youth Literature), Marina Faust (Artistic Photography), Ursula Endlicher (Media Art) and ARGEkultur Salzburg (Cultural Initiatives) as well as the architect duo Heidi Pretterhofer/Michael Rieper (Hans Hollein Art Prize). The prize money was increased to 20,000 euros this year (previously it was 15,000 euros).