Research Catalogue

In the softness of the belly… There is a war on women is a testimony to the lived stories of abortion from a perspective which transcends time and national borders. This research paper is structured around two intertwined trajectories with varying text formats and writing styles. This structure merges the personal with the political and explores their relationship as it reveals how they can’t be separated in a society with deeply rooted structures of patriarchy and misogyny. The first trajectory chronologically tells the story of the author's own experience with abortion integrated with the personal stories from friends and family members. The process of dealing with abortion is gradually laid out starting from childhood memories, proceeding into the practical turmoil and the contradicting emotions surrounding the experience itself, moving onto the mental and physical aftermaths, and lastly processing the experience and slowly healing. In the second trajectory the topic is explored from a more external perspective rooted in history, politics, culture, and society. Through research on the history of reproductive rights and procreation, the permeating role of patriarchy from the past to the presence is addressed. The investigation of patriarchy dives into the misogynist history of witch-hunts, hysteria, capitalism, domestic labor, and into the present where reproductive rights are both improving but also continuously being tightened or removed. This trajectory further explores several socio-cultural aspects of abortion through research-based text and more sporadic and poetic writings. The topics that are addressed are shame, guilt, religion, gender roles, depiction both visually and written, the public discussion, and the perception of blood, violence, and war in relation to women and reproductive rights. The aim of the research paper is to break down and reveal the patriarchal structures which compromise women's reproductive rights, and to state the importance of reclaiming the personal narratives as well as the autonomy over one's own body, narrative, and life.

reposition Journal of reflective Positions in Art & Research - support project for research documentation at the University of Applied Arts Vienna Initiated by Alexander Damianisch, reposition brings together the wide variety of research at the University of Applied Arts Vienna, and reflects on an ongoing culture of editorial structures for research in Arts and Sciences. reposition collects positions from ongoing processes. It offers researchers of all disciplines and departments at the University of Applied Arts Vienna the opportunity to publish their work according to peer-review principles. Colleagues of any level and doctoral students in arts and sciences are invited to share their work. This series showcases their diverse approaches to project-oriented research work and presents current insights, captivating research processes, and ongoing projects from a deeply personal perspective that courageously unearth the work-in-progress.

New creation - Sign Language and Dance - Video Projection and dance

Conny Zenk (Center Research Focus, PhD candidate PhD in Art), Bianca Ludewig (researcher and journalist) and Magdalena Scheicher (researcher) are interested in taking not only unusual paths but also using vehicles in different ways. In their contribution "A Collective Cycling Body Of Sound", they reflect on the bicycle as a medium for art and sound and present activist strategies of collective cycling to open up queer-feminist, solidarity-based perspectives on the city. In doing so, they explore the possibilities of public space as a sound space and discuss insights from Zenk’s activist practice. Inviting Ludewig and Scheicher for interviews, Zenk discusses bikefeminism and counterpublics, and approaches soundrides as a form of empowerment.

In his contribution "Post-Digital Angst – The Direct Experience", Mong-Sum Joseph Leung (Center Research Focus, PhD candidate PhD in Art) explores anxiety in the post-digital age, examining it as a basic anthropological condition in relation to concepts such as hollowness, nullity, and the unknown. Leung intertwines personal experiences from daily life with his artistic practice and ontological reflections on the human condition, working with Heidegger’s notions of Sorge and Angst, to reflect on affective experiences in a digitalized world.

Gabriela Krist (Institute of Conservation) and Marie-Christine Pachler (Institute of Conservation) provide solutions for challenges in seemingly obvious everyday situations in their contribution "Sustainable Behavior with Cultural Heritage: Study on Visitor Awareness". This text provides insights and findings from a study of awareness-raising measures conducted at Schönbrunn palace. This site is particularly popular with tourists and must deal with the wear and damage of displayed objects. As conservators, the authors draw attention to the damage that visitors can cause, and examine different educational measures to improve awareness among tourists and staff members.