Exhibition in Linz

Lentos: “Man is not the crown of creation”

Tree occupation in the German Hambach Forest: film still from "The path is never the same" by Oliver Ressler

(Bild: Bildrecht, Wien, 2024)

Ignoring global warming is on the rise due to right-wing populism. Lentos, the art museum in Linz, is countering this with the controversial exhibition "Touch Nature". Art is finally crying out! Around 100 positions, including big names, make it clear how thin the air has become for humanity. But there is also hope and visions!

"We trample over everything without realizing that this has lasting consequences," says Sabine Fellner. The Viennese curated the major Lentos exhibition "Touch Nature". Around 100 positions deal with the ecological crisis in many facets and demonstrate the consequences. Conclusion: unfortunately, humans still believe that they are "the crown of creation". But he behaves like a zombie.

Three strands lead through the fantastic exhibition: "Works document what is happening. But there are also protests and visions for a better future," says Fellner.

Unique installations, new images
One of the highlights is the installation by Irish artist Claire Morgan. She has collected birds - all "accident victims" - and prepared them. The dead birds are now "buzzing" around a female figure. It is about species extinction caused by humans, about alienation from nature.

Lentos director Hemma Schmutz (left) and curator Sabine Fellner

(Bild: Einöder Horst/Horst Einöder/Flashpictures)

Marielis Seyler also conveys the destructive nature of human activity. She lets the audience trample over butterflies (paper posters). Mircea Suciu paints a picture of the panic that the young generation is experiencing in the face of climate collapse.

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Fotos

What colonialism does
And Ines Doujak's well-known series "Ghost Peoples" shows how (neo-)colonialism not only discriminates against indigenous peoples, but also drives epidemics and destroys ecosystems. Alongside Alois Mosbacher, Elisabeth von Samsonov, Thomas Feuerstein and Edgar Honetschläger, the Carinthian artist is one of the best-known artists in the show.

New understanding of nature needed
The positive visions are based on the assumption that mankind will come to its senses and reintegrate into the "network of nature". This is symbolized by humans running with a pack of wolves or connecting their bodies with trees, plants and other living creatures.

Art is not cowardly - and no longer looks away
"Touch Nature" (until 18 May) is an exhibition that is long overdue in Linz and Austria: it makes it clear that humans cannot stay out of the climate crisis and that art not only deals with the topic seriously, but also clearly addresses issues such as species extinction, climate protests, Fukushima and the aberrations of humanity. Very much worth seeing!