Between art and climate change
In January, large-format works by two students from the Academy of Fine Arts decorate the ball discotheque. From April onwards, the entire city will become a gallery when the first Climate Biennale addresses change through art
A tour by Chiara Joos
From the beginning of April to mid-July, Vienna will be the venue for the first Climate Biennale. The focus is on one mission: enabling a paradigm shift for a livable future on our planet. The Biennale relies on participation, cooperation and awareness-raising as central elements in order to jointly shape answers to the urgent challenges of the climate crisis. Similarly, but on a disco scale of the science ball, two students from the Academy of Fine Arts, Olesia Bieliavtseva (left in the picture) and Alisa Efremova (right), also want to make their artistic contribution to climate awareness.
Painting takes place in the Semperdepot’s multipurpose room: a huge, black fabric, 30 meters long and 3.5 meters wide, hangs on the wall. Depicted are figures on bicycles, trees, wind turbines and the waste incineration plant from Vienna’s 9th district designed by architect Friedensreich Hundertwasser. Olesia and Alisa look like miniature figures in front of this painted utopia of a climate-friendly world. “The idea is to focus on positive developments that can be made possible through responsible action, despite the negative effects of climate change,” Olesia explains the motives. In an effort to make a sustainable contribution to the environment, the two students discovered that even small actions can have a significant impact. Cycling plays a central role, not only is it good for your health, but is also more environmentally friendly than conventional means of transport such as cars, as Alisa emphasizes. And the incineration of waste? Olesia explains: “This type of waste disposal can not only be environmentally friendly, but also a resource-saving alternative.”
Climate Biennale Vienna: https://biennale.wien/
You can read the full text in the 2024 ball magazine, which will be published on the evening of the ball.