The animals, cast out of paradise, contaminated, destroyed, irreversibly changed: the protocol of becoming is erased, the synapses are burnt out, the updates missed, the paths vanished, no backup made. A story of psychedelic decay, a failed organization of values, unfavorable reciprocity, a misguided orientation, in an undefined nebula of lost childhood, a ruined adaptation, an unbearable emptiness. It is an ugly madness, an intrusive, resounding disturbance, a process of becoming that has lost its way. Wrongly turned and ultimately collapsed in on itself. Capitulated.
The works of the series consist of pieces from the Destroyed Animals series, which I specifically reinterpreted and adapted in a post-vandalistic style for the last exhibition at the Schauhaus. The Schauhaus was an exhibition series at Innrain 21, Innsbruck, the same building where I also had my studio last year. The building had been threatened with demolition for years but was made available by the owner for temporary use as a creative workspace and home to two Airbnb apartments.
Post-vandalism examines the relationship between public space and the act of destruction, both materially and conceptually. The term refers to artists who have been influenced by street art, urban renewal, and destruction. On a theoretical level, it concerns the power of destructive activities, with the need to express something being the main motivation for destructive art practices and antisocial behaviors. Scholars such as Adam Jastrzębski and artists like Maurcycy Gomulicki were pioneers of the term and advocated for this framework as a productive way to interpret "urban art." It is a relatively niche term, more popular in Eastern Europe than in other parts of the world, and offers a stark contrast to the usual style of playful or political commentary found in contemporary graffiti art.
November 2023