Iron Curtain

The 29th installment of the exhibition series “Iron Curtain,” conceived by museum in progress and realized since 1998 in collaboration with the Vienna State Opera and the BundestheaterHolding, is being organized posthumously with a work by Herbert Brandl.

Herbert Brandl had already been commissioned about two years ago; he was very pleased with the invitation from museum in progress and had begun work on the project. The international jury—Daniel Birnbaum, Bice Curiger, and Hans-Ulrich Obrist —which was responsible for selecting the artist—decided, following the artist’s sudden death, together with museum in progress, the artist’s estate, and the Vienna State Opera to uphold its decision.

Herbert Brandl’s powerful works are characterized by striking color and atmospheric density and oscillate betweenabstraction and figuration. In 2007, he represented Austria at the Venice Biennale and had previously participated in documenta in 1992 and the São Paulo Biennial in 1989. His works are represented in numerous renowned museums worldwide, including the Albertina in Vienna, the Centre Pompidou in Paris, the Kunsthaus Zürich, the Museu Serralves in Porto, the Museo Reina Sofía in Madrid, and the Renaissance Society in Chicago. With his unique, intuitive visual language, Brandl occupies a central place in the Austrian and internationalart.

“Iron Curtain” is an exhibition series conceived by museum in progress and realized in collaboration with the Vienna State Opera and the Bundestheater-Holding. Since 1998, the project has been transforming the main stage’s iron curtain into an exhibition space for contemporary art. The 176 m² paintings are affixed to the fire-resistant wall with magnets and can be viewed by the audience before and after performances as well as intermissions.