Reaching Kiefer Quarry in Fürstenbrunn is not easy. The location is outside of the city, not exceptionally far, but really secluded and without a car it would be difficult to get there. That is why I arranged to ride with Johannes when he was going to deliver water to the sculptors and today was the day. An ordinary, (albeit loosely) pre-arranged visit to the sculpture class ended with me learning about the biggest local mystery in a rather mysterious way.

After an amusing ride through residential and industrial areas of Salzburg, we were welcomed by the silence of an empty quarry under the Untersberg mountain. Large blocks of stone were lying in order. Sculptures inside them asleep, waiting to be liberated, glistening under the unusually hot sun. Canopied working stations of the Academy students stand neatly organized along the forest line. It was odd to see them abandoned, just like it was strange to witness all the small signs of life - shoes, fruit, tools, water - without meeting a soul.

Despite not seeing Andreas Lolis or his students, I did not regret the visit, because the nature around Kiefer is breathtaking. Deep forest stretches up along the mountain, while the position of the quarry and sub-positioned glades allow for a wonderful view over the valley. Sculptures are lying all around, organized or stranded, different attempts in shaping the stone. Centennial quarry houses echo with silence, while the greenery infused the place with utter serenity. I was smitten by the place and instantly jealous of the sculptors, all the craftsmen, all the stone-chiseling artists.

Johannes suggested we wait a bit to see if the class will return and told me a story about the mountain. “You know, this is a special mountain, weird things happen here.” A sucker for a good mystery, I was instantly hooked and wanted to know more. What I did not know, is that Untersberg is one of the most legendary and mysterious mountains in the massif. Legend says that it is the home of the mythical mountain king who sleeps inside, waiting for his beard to grow around his round table three times, which would mark the end of the world. Numerous rulers and noblemen believed there is something about this place and camped in and about trying to discover the mountain’s secret. Untersberg is the place from which hundreds of people disappeared or where they had tragic accidents, but also the place of many UFO and supernatural creature sightings! Even Dalai Lama visits Untersberg on occasion claiming it is the “heart chakra” of Europe. Scholar Christian F. Uhlir wrote a book about the legends and superstitions surrounding this magical place, but he did not explain the phenomena.

As a firm believer in science, I am intrigued and compelled to tell the story, hoping that one day some physicist will endeavor to reveal the true secret of this place. Until then, I am just hoping to see Andreas Lolis again, his co-teacher and his entire class.

Hope the dwarves or wild women didn’t kidnap you!

See you soon,

Ana

New week, new people, new stories. Before I get into conversation with a new group of teachers, I would like to share a story. It's about Kokoschka. Or rather, kokoška. 

A while ago, nevermind when, I've decided to study art history. At that age, when somebody would ask me what I like, I would always include German Expressionism in the roster, right there between Baroque architecture, ancient sculpture and the Renaissance in Italy. So, I knew about Oskar Kokoschka and even had a chance to see his work at the then open National Museum of Art in Belgrade. Still, there was always something whimsical in saying his name, because Kokoschka in Serbian means kokoška - a hen. It's also used as a metaphor for a woman who talks a lot, or for a female airhead. Just to mention - we do have similar words for male figures, but this is not the topic now. Going through school, my taste and affinities changed a lot, but Expressionism always stayed up there with the favorites. So did Kokoschka, but to this day I would say his name with a chuckle, still unable to disassociate the meaning of the word from the painter.

Now, I'm a resident blogger at the art Academy founded by the famous artist. I cannot escape the mention of him (not that I want to) and I started thinking how funny and juvenile this idea is. Kokoschka and kokoška have nothing in common, it's by pure accident that the word is pronounced the same. And only in my language. Still, I endeavored to the now ended Tex Rubinowitz's class and talked to him and his student Antje Alber-Schwarzer about picturing this linguistic connection. Although I had little expectation and did not think they were as fascinated with the idea as I was, Antje did produce a Kokoschka/kokoška for me, which I am sharing now with you. I quite like the representational/symbolic quality of the image. It's warm, dancy, dreamy and expressive. But, I have to stress this, I would be more than happy to get more interpretations. Let's see how it goes!

So gack, gack, gack until tomorrow! (Or kokoda, for my fellow BHS speakers)

***

The Seeing tour is moved to tonight! And it's not raining! I should probably not be too happy so early in the week. Cheerio! 

Ana

Before I knew it, two working weeks have passed. Four courses are ending today with the Open Days exhibition and I’m genuinely curious what the artists are going to show. I am finally a little bit used to the architectural pastry chef's masterpiece of a city, and I’m even starting to make friends! Who knew!

From a perspective of a chronicler, this week has gone by faster than the previous one. Despite some long days and the relentless Schnürlregen, the week was fun. I spent it chatting with a lot of people, having a drink or two and staying out until the outrageous 11 pm. While on a hunt for a bike, I was offered a bike by Sebastian. Unfortunately, it was a really tall, male bike that I couldn’t ride. Regardless, I will get one in a week when Thomas’ extra bike becomes available.

Watching the students come into their own is exciting. Just like me, they seem more relaxed, open and chatty. Some of them have already produced interesting work and some were adding the finishing touches yesterday. It feels almost unfair that the end of their artistic adventure is here, but like always - this can be just a mark of another chapter for everyone.

Thursday ended with a cool exhibition opening at Periscope, where I could actually see some of the works from co-teachers’ practices. The show will change and rotate works, so more of these events are to come.

As for the writer, I have been observing a lot, asking a lot of (perhaps too many) questions, and contemplating on what I’ve seen. I even got a small drawing from Antje! Trying to make out my own view of art as a reflection of life, I’ve returned to this never ending, exhausting process, which at this time brings me to an inevitable question - what does it mean to ‘be’ an art blogger? Maybe next week I will find out.

Scroll down for bits and pieces of the atmosphere from the Festung. See you around! 

Ana

Summer Academy of Art in Salzburg would not exist without support. Every year, the school is visited by local officials responsible for culture in the region. On Wednesday, we had an official visit from Dr. Heinrich Schellhorn, Landesrat and I’ve had the chance to chat with him about his views on the Salzburger cultural scene and the future of the visual arts in the region.

Salzburg is very beautiful, very cultural, there’s a lot of music. Where would you say that the contemporary art stands in Salzburg today? Is it important and how much?

Yes, it is important! But first of all, Salzburg is a city of music. But, we try also to support visual arts more than in the past. Summer Academy is a very important part of these activities. But we extend our support to other institutions as well, to new galleries and also to artists. Further, I try to improve the cooperation between these institutions.

Where would you place the Summer Academy within this setting?

The Academy is very well positioned among the local cultural public, it has a positive image. Many people from Salzburg visit the classes as students. It’s a good place. They enjoy the chance for international encounters, to meet with teachers and students from all over the world. This international spirit is a very positive side of the Summer Academy.

Since Summer Academy is a contemporary art institution, how do you see its development in the future?

When it was founded, Summer Academy was one of the very, very few such institutions. It’s not easy talking about the future since now, there are many similar institutions around the world. So we have to work hard so that in the future, Summer Academy remains attractive for teachers and students all over the world. We also have to try to internationalize more, to open the Academy for teachers and students from developing countries, from Africa and Asia. This effort is always more difficult to finance because often students from these countries cannot afford the fees and we have to support this financially. So, one of the big tasks for the future is to secure this financial support.

You visit the Summer Academy every year. What is your favorite aspect of this school?

My most favorite aspect is to have teachers and students from all over the world, from different levels, different ages. There are so many positions from which both students and teachers come, and it’s the most important for me to see the creative richness.

How do you see the city’s cultural scene evolving until 2020 and after that? Will the visual arts be more important?

Well, they must be more important. Next year we will open the House of architecture that I hope will have an impact on the culture of building in Salzburg and even more importantly, in the rural areas. I also hope that the contemporary arts get more influence in the rural areas so that not everything is concentrated in the city.

I hope that Summer Academy will have a place in this future.

There will be no question about that! Summer Academy will exist for many, many more years.

***

While Wednesday was long, Thursday was a relaxed day, with some more rain, of course. Tonight is the exhibition at Periscope and tomorrow Open Days. Hanging out around art, that's how I roll now. :)

Ana

Curators are a special bunch. They are very involved in their own world, guided by Ruth Noack, a renowned curator and their teacher for the course. In a short conversation, I learned more about how she approaches the 2-week summer course.

When you were invited, how did you approach the idea of teaching a summer course in curating?

What was really interesting about the Salzburg program is the democratic policy behind it. So, anyone can apply, it’s not geared towards either professionals or the lay people, so there is a mix. The most important thing for me is that I didn’t choose students, I just accepted anyone who applied.

How did you devise the program for the course?

There’s only one basic principle that is relevant here, which is to think of works of art as having a meaning, trying to gather this meaning, further this meaning by conceiving of these works within an exhibition. It’s quite abstract and it can take different forms. I called it “thinking with works”, to really take the works of art as the basis of the curatorial approach.

And how do you transfer this idea to students, in what forms?

Well, I brought some original artworks, that’s how we started. My students were also asked to bring some, so they had them with them. We started looking at them, talking about them, ordering them into small groups of what might be a small exhibition.

You mentioned that your students come from different practices or no practice at all. Do you try to introduce some kind of coherence in your class?

The good thing is that I’m not working on my own, I have a co-teacher. She is very important for managing this discrepancy and diversity. Grace Samboh, she comes from Indonesia. Grace is very used to working in groups and in collectives, so she’s incredibly good in enabling a group to cohere while keeping their diversity. Some days are better than other days with this, of course sometimes different interests arise and that can become a conflict, but generally, I’ve made it clear that everyone’s to be taken seriously and everyone’s to be heard.

After this course, what are you hoping that the students will take with them?

If you’re asking what I hope to instill in them it’s kind of curatorial ethics. I don’t think curating can be taught in 2 weeks, I’m not even sure curating should be taught at all. I learned on my own and many of the curators that I really respect never went through curatorial courses, so I think that curatorial courses in universities are often a bit of a humbug. It’s a selling point, but not necessarily producing people who have something to say and just producing very obedient people within a system. That’s my personal view, and I might be the only one who thinks so and still teaches curating.

So, what I’m hoping to instill at least within these two weeks is people who understand that they really need to want to do what they’re doing and they need to also maybe not make compromises in that. Basically, each of us only has one lifetime and one shouldn’t waste one’s time.

***

Tonight, Ruth's co-teacher, Grace Samboh will be giving a lecture. And I have a meeting with a very important man.

Read about it tomorrow!

Till then,

Ana

Photos by Mira Turba