Exhibition
The exhibition took place from 30 January to 21 May 2014.
FRANCESCA WOODMAN. Works from the VERBUND COLLECTION
From 30 January to 21 May 2014, the VERBUND COLLECTION, Vienna, presented 80 photographs by Francesca Woodman (1958–1981), 20 of which had never been shown to the public before. It is the first exhibition in Austria of the artist, who is still little known in Europe.
Since its founding in 2004, the VERBUND COLLECTION has continuously acquired photographs by Francesca Woodman and owns the largest collection of her works, apart from her estate. The performatively extraordinary works by Francesca Woodman, with which she redefines the ‘image of the woman’, are part of the collection’s thematic focus “Feminist Avant-Garde of the 1970s”. Francesca Woodman’s work recently attracted special attention in the USA through the exhibitions at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (2011/12) and the Guggenheim Museum New York (2012).
Curator:
Curated by Gabriele Schor, founding director of the VERBUND COLLECTION, Vienna
Team of the VERBUND COLLECTION, Vienna
Theresa Dann – curatorial assistant
Ema Rajković – curatorial assistant
Artists
Francesca Woodman
Francesca Woodman was an American photographer known for her haunting black and white images, often depicting the female body in abandoned or dilapidated settings. Woodman's work, which often incorporates autobiographical elements, blurs the lines between self-portraiture and performance. Her images explore themes such as identity, impermanence, and the act of seeing. Despite her early death at just 22 years of age, Woodman left behind an impressive body of work that continues to be celebrated for its poetic intensity and innovative approach to photography.
VERTIKALE GALERIE der SAMMLUNG VERBUND
Am Hof 6a | 1010 Wien
Insights into the exhibition FRANCESCA WOODMAN. Works from the VERBUND COLLECTION, Vienna
Publication:
FRANCESCA WOODMAN. Works from the VERBUND COLLECTION
published by Gabriele Schor & Elisabeth Bronfen
Hardcover: 301 pages
Publisher: Buchhandlung Walther König
Edition: 2014
Language: German
ISBN: 978-3-86335-352-0
THE FEMININE I
The works of Francesca Woodman were created in a 9-year period of activity from 1972 to 1980 in the context of female subjectivity, conceptual photography, performance art and the discovery of the body. Most of the photographs have a small, square format, are in black and white and were taken with a large-format camera. The artist places her body, often naked, in a surprisingly unconventional manner in reference to her studio room and explores her curiosity with the female I. Her photographs ask questions, point to answers and reflect a specific ambivalence about what it means to be a woman. Previously, Francesca Woodman’s suicide at 22 years of age and her fleeting appearance were at the centre of how her work was received. The disappearance of the female figure is often even interpreted as aesthetic proof that Francesca Woodman anticipated suicide in her photographs. However, the new publication and the exhibition of the VERBUND COLLECTION want to show the photographs of the young artist beyond this conventional wisdom and open up a different horizon that concentrates primarily on the photographs and those contents that have so far not been written about.
Photos: © eSel
