Nicole Streitler-Kastberger
The Man Without Qualities
Video
The exhibition Future of Melancholia explores the tensions between nostalgia and belief in progress, which are particularly palpable in cities such as Belgrade, Vienna and Graz. In doing so, it picks up on a melancholy mood that is also reminiscent of the atmosphere of Kakania at the beginning of the 20th century and was condensed into literature by Robert Musil’s The Man Without Qualities. Musil’s protagonist Ulrich embodies a “sense of possibility” that eludes fixed life plans and oscillates between doubt, irony, devotion and creative negativity. The novel, which is considered an interdiscursive work, questions themes that are still valid today such as lifestyle, responsibility and the tense relationship between action and reflection — questions that remain relevant in our present day after retreat and reflection. In this conversation with Sandro Droschl, Musil expert Nicole Streitler-Kastberger has taken a precise approach to the monumental work and discussed these questions in more detail.
Exhibition Page
Artists
Participating artists
Nicole Streitler-Kastberger
ist Literaturwissenschaftlerin, Kritikerin und Autorin. 1990 – 1995 Studium in Wien, dann von 1997 – 2000 und 2003 auf zwei „Wellness-Lektoraten“ in Nizza und Bari. Sie hat ihre Dissertation zu Musil als Kritiker (Bern 2006) verfasst und war zwanzig Jahre lang Mitarbeiterin der Wiener Ausgabe der Werke Ödön von Horváths (Berlin 2009 – 2024). Derzeit ist sie wissenschaftliche Mitarbeiterin (Senior Scientist) am Franz-Nabl-Institut für Literaturforschung der Universität Graz.
More contributions
Hans-Christian Dany: Oswald Wieners Überlegungen zum Spannungsfeld von Dandyism, Paranoia und KI, als frühe Ahnung der gegenwärtigen Probleme der großen Sprachmodelle mit Autophagie, Halluzinationen und dem Habsburg-Effekt
Video
As part of the exhibition A. I. O., Hans-Christian Dany approaches Oswald Wiener’s work from a contemporary perspective. Taking Die Verbesserung von Mitteleuropa, ein roman (The Improvement of Central Europe, a novel) as his starting point, he connects Wiener’s reflections on dandyism, paranoia, and artificial intelligence with today’s experiences with generative AI, and explores the unique resonances that Wiener’s speculative thinking continues to evoke in the present.
Exhibition Tour
A.rtificial I.ntrospection O.
Video
A.rtificial I.ntrospection O. explores the conditions of thinking, perception, and consciousness at the intersection of cybernetics, artificial intelligence, and self-observation, bringing Oswald Wiener’s ideas into dialogue with artistic positions from different generations.
Michael Krebber talks to Sandro Droschl
Video
As part of the exhibition A.rtificial I.ntrospection O., Michael Krebber speaks with Sandro Droschl about his artistic practice and his engagement with the writings and conceptual models of Oswald Wiener.
Nicola Cipani, Thomas Eder
On Oswald Wiener’s « die verbesserung von mitteleuropa, roman »
Video
As part of the accompanying program for the exhibition A. I. O., the two renowned Oswald Wiener experts Nicola Cipani and Thomas Eder will discuss Die Verbesserung von Mitteleuropa (1969).
A.rtificial I.ntrospection O.
Exhibition Tour
Slide show
The exhibition A.rtificial I.ntrospection O. (A.I.O.) explores questions of thought, perception, and subjectivity at the intersection of introspection, cybernetics, and artificial intelligence. Its point of departure is the work of the Austrian writer, cognitive psychologist, and cybernetician Oswald Wiener (1935 – 2021), whose genuine thinking since the 1950s critically navigated between these fields while systematically resisting institutional appropriation.
Dr. Brigitte Borchhardt-Birbaumer
Susanne Wenger’s painting between Africa and Europe
Video
In her lecture, art historian and curator Brigitte Borchhardt-Birbaumer examines Susanne Wenger’s work as a transcultural Gesamtkunstwerk that bridges European modernism and Yorùbá ritual practice, creating a new sacred aesthetic that merges art, ritual, and cultural boundaries.
Kathy Rae Huffman
FROM CYBERFEMINISM
UNTIL NOW
Video
Kathy Rae Huffman’s lecture traces the evolution of cyberfeminism since the 1990s: it connected women in the digital sphere, challenged existing power structures, and presented examples — from VNS Matrix to contemporary digital activism — that highlight critiques of platform corporations, AI cultures, and global inequalities.
Xol Meissner
Concert
Video
New York-based artist Xol Meissner — the alter ego of composer Mauro Hertig — has transformed the HALLE FÜR KUNST Steiermark into a hypnotic soundscape of extraordinary intensity with his haunting music, which oscillates between contemporary classical and avant-garde rock.