excerpts from the Series
'Bespielte Verlassenschaften' | 'featuring Wendy & Jim' | 'Abothek'
The photographs of Luise Hardegg appear archaic and at the same time as ´Zeitgeist´ - looking like stills from films
or moods as they occur to eccentric fashion designers. The viewer might wonder what happened before, during, and after
the recording of the image. In her own words Hardegg describes photography as risky, honest and spontaneous. It awakens her extrovert side.
She is looking for special people or places to watch and eventually to get her ideas about a scenery, often seen as some sort of déjà-vu.
Showcases, for her personally difficult to approach without a camera. With the excerpt shown, Hardegg is taking the viewer
into another world by creating mysterious, disturbing and sometimes scary atmospheres.
'Lost And'
The Photographic series `Lost And´ by Luise Hardegg was taken in Wonder Valley California.
While driving through the dessert Hardegg asked herself who might have lived once in this ghostly
and feral environment. Digging deeper she found out it was a wave of people with pioneering blood in their veins who moved
there to build up a living during the 50s. What the Los Angeles Times called "one of the strangest land rushes in Southern California history"
died down by the late '50s. Later on in the years of 2000 people tried to escape expensive housing in LA.
They found pleasure to start a new life and were drawn by this unique homestead surrounding for
lowest possible cost. And yet the houses are left just a few years later. Expectations were not fulfilled,
living in the dessert turned out to rough and challenging.
Jackrabbit homesteads are only for folks who have a bit of pioneering blood in
their veins.
The land generally is rough, no water is immediately available, more or less road building
has to be done. But fortunately there are many Americans who find infinite pleasure in doing
the hard work necessary to provide living accommodations on one of these sites — and
cabins are springing up all over the desert country.
—Desert Magazine, 1950
'Sa·lon' 1 out of SERIES 1-4 One important place for the exchange of ideas was the salon and still is. But whether real or not, or merely label: The fact is that the "salon, new" is booming. In a fast paced world, we have renewed interest in the opposite - in depth, the digression. Of real contact with artists, real conversations. "A person who attracts people imagination, get people talking, that's what makes a salon.“ And the hope of familial intimacy in the city and those "good people to meet." To talk or more. Luise Hardegg´s Series 1- 4, `Salon´ is a series of photographs taken in private salons. In the Article of Musee Magazine `Highlights from Vienna´, Mona Kuhn said, „Luise Hardegg created a satirical portrait based on the Austrian drag queen Conchita Wurst, winner of the Eurovision Song Contest 2014. Luise juxtaposes the irreverent portrait with the stereotypical Austrian aristocratic salon“ 'BALCONY' A Portrait of the Austrian Princess Stefanie Windisch-Greatz. Painter and Granddaughter of Archduchess Elisabeth, which in turn is the granddaughter of Emperor Franz Josef. 'U - BOOT' 1 out of SERIES 1-5 NUDES - When the girls ride on, performance on installation. MESSAGE - Make Love not War.
EDUCATION
2013 2003 2002 1999
Academy of Fine Arts, Vienna MA University of Goldsmith, London BA London Institude, London Foundation Central Saint Martins
EXHIBITIONS
2015 2014 2013 2011 2010
Gruppenaustellung Interior 2, curated by Lia Guluas West 46, Körperteile photo::vienna - werkschau, MAK - Austrian Museum of Applied Arts / Contemporary Art in Vienna Parallel Vienna (www.parallelvienna.com) Rundgang Akademie of Fine Arts Vienna Solo show, Thema `Wurst` Edition Photo Galerie Hilger Ankerbrotfabrik Rundgang Akademie of Fine Arts Vienna