The Kunsthaus Graz, Grazer Kunsthaus, or Graz Art Museum was built as part of the European Capital of Culture celebrations in 2003 and has since become an architectural landmark in Graz,

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

. Its exhibition program specializes in

contemporary art Contemporary art is the art of today, produced in the second half of the 20th century or in the 21st century. Contemporary artists work in a globally influenced, culturally diverse, and technologically advancing world. Their art is a dynamic co ...

from the 1960s onwards.

Architecture

Kunsthaus Graz was designed by Colin Fournier and Sir

Peter Cook Peter Edward Cook (17 November 1937 – 9 January 1995) was an English actor, comedian, satirist, playwright and screenwriter. He was the leading figure of the British satire boom of the 1960s, and he was associated with the anti-establishme ...

. According to The Bartlett School of Architecture at

University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = ...

, the Kunsthaus' design sought to be deliberately provocative, innovate museum design by offering a less "institutional" approach to organising exhibition spaces and employs new materials and manufacturing techniques. The building is an example of blob architecture, and has a skin made of iridescent blue acrylic panels that also double as photovoltaic panels. Owing to its shape contrasting with its surroundings, it is known in local vernacular as the "Friendly Alien". or rather as the black tumor. The building incorporates the façade of the '' Eisernes Haus'', a iron-framed structure built in 1848.

Concept

Architecture, design, new media, internet art, film, and photography are united under one roof. Kunsthaus Graz was developed as an institution to stage international exhibitions of multidisciplinary, modern and contemporary art from the 1960s to the present day. It does not collect art, maintains no permanent exhibitions and does not have its own depot. Rather, its exclusive purpose is to present and procure contemporary art productions. As founding director, Peter Pakesch was responsible for the orientation and the program of the Kunsthaus between the administration in 2003 and the end of his directorship at the Universalmuseum Joanneum.

BIX Façade

The BIX Façade of the museum represents a singular fusion from architecture and

New Media New media describes communication technologies that enable or enhance interaction between users as well as interaction between users and content. In the middle of the 1990s, the phrase "new media" became widely used as part of a sales pitch for ...

and is based on a concept of the Berliner architects realities:united. BIX, a name which consists of the words "Big" and "pixels", is the acrylic glass skin of the eastern side of the building, which consists of 930 fluorescent lamps whose brightness can be individually adjusted. Variable at 20 frames per second, the facade can be used as a large screen for films and animations in what is referred to as a "communicative display skin". The BIX facade concept was entered into the permanent Architecture and Design Collection of the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, and is often identified as one of ...

(MoMA) in New York in 2011.

Other

On 1 May 2011, the Austrian Postal Service released a postage stamp commemorating the object as part of the Kunsthäuser permanent stamp series. To mark the tenth anniversary of the Kunsthaus, Ingo J. Biermann, Fiene Scharp and Kai Miedendorp made a short half-documentary film in and about the building. The film Astronaut's Ark was conceived for the Kultur:Stadt exhibition, which took place from March to June 2013 at the Akademie der Künste (Berlin) and from July to October 2013 at the Kunsthaus Graz.

Literature

* Cook, Peter & Fournier, Colin. ''A Friendly Alien: Ein Kunsthaus fur Graz''. Hatje Cantz Publishers. September 30, 2004.

References

External links

Kunsthaus Graz
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The geometry of the Kunsthaus Graz
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BIX Medienfassade
{{Authority control Art museums and galleries in Austria Buildings and structures completed in 2003 Architecture in Austria Postmodern architecture Expressionist architecture Buildings and structures in Graz Museums in Graz Art galleries established in 2003 2003 establishments in Austria Tourist attractions in Graz