Ain't No Mountain High Enough - curated by Mari Otberg: Dec 15, 2021 - Feb 19, 2022

This group exhibition featured the work of 33 international contemporary artists who were asked to present a work of theirs that dealt with an idea of “Mountain.” The idea was to offer a fresh perspective on a topic that is so often filled with cliched approaches. 

Original work of art
Maja Vukoje 1 Kölner (2015) Acryl, Zucker, Kaffee auf Jutesack 85 x 60 cm
Art Work
Iris Andraschek, Passion of the Real #10, (1994) 45 x 30 cm Auflage 3 +2 e.a. (copyright artist)

The idea of Mountains represents a paradox for humans and is deeply loaded with symbolic meaning. Mountains represent a seeming permanence, as if they have always been there. But, geology tells us that mountains are actually distortions in the fabric of the land, formed at the intersection of tectonic plates. As such rather than being permanent, they are actually geological relics of change.

Original drawing and writing on paper
Jonathan Meese Manifest "Ain't No Mountain High Enough - Vienna" (2020), Permanentmarker und Kugelschreiber auf Papier, 8 Seiten (mit Rahmen) 60,5 x 82,5 cm
Erwin Wurm Berg 23, 2017 Patinated Bronze and Hammer 28 x 28 x 23 cm
Erwin Wurm Berg 23, 2017 Patinated Bronze and Hammer 28 x 28 x 23 cm

As multi-faceted, complex geographical places, they force fragmentation in cultures, language, and diet. Simultaneously, a place of Heimat, but also a place for the Heimlos. Mountains, with their foreboding mass, and difficult terrain are often national borders, and lie in a liminal zone between cultures and languages. Or they are mystical places in various religious traditions where divine interventions happen. In a world populated by billions of humans, the mountains are also acts of resistance. Here nature defies the relentless onslaught of human building. 

Original Wire Sculpture
Christian Ruschitzka Gipfel auf Rädern (2021), Modell Silberdraht, geflochten 13 x 12 x 15 cm
Siggi Hofer "Adler" Farbe am Holz

The exhibition is about the idea of moving beyond the conceptual obstacle of how a mountain should be represented and embracing the rich potential of the idea.

Original work of art
Karin Kneffel Ohne Titel 2 (2020) Aquarell auf Siebdruck 29 x 32 mit Rahmen
Video Art
Letizia Werth "Up and Down" Film still from the HD Video Loop, 2015

Participating Artists