Erwin Wurm

The catalogue of the Austrian artist''s solo exhibition on the occasion of the Venice Biennale. Known for redefining the boundaries of sculpture through irony, performance and the absurd, Erwin Wurm (1954) has built a career exploring the relationship between body, object and social behaviour - from his famous One Minute Sculptures to his distorted houses and anthropomorphic forms. Published on the occasion of the exhibition at Museo Fortuny in Venice, this monograph documents Erwin''s extraordinary artistic practice related to clothing and conveys his philosophy and aesthetic with intellectual depth and visual refinement. Through essays by Elisabetta Barisoni and Cristina Daroit, compelling imagery, and a contemporary graphic design, the volume engages readers and art enthusiasts in a deeper understanding of the work of this major contemporary figure. The monograph retraces the artist''s solo exhibition at Palazzo Fortuny, which unfolds within the historic rooms of the building, creating a dialogue between contemporary sculpture and Fortuny''s rich legacy of textiles, light, theatre, and experimentation. It delves into themes of clothing, presence, and absence, presenting sculptural ''garments'' and enclosures that evoke the human body through the interplay of form and void.

Autorentext

Elisabetta Barisoni is Head of the Museums Division and Head of MUVE Musei Venezia, Venice.

Cristina Da Roit is a curator at the Museo Civico Fortuny, Venice.

Klappentext

The catalogue of the Austrian artist's solo exhibition on the occasion of the Venice Biennale.

Considered the most important living Austrian sculptor, who was previously chosen to represent his country at the 57th Venice Biennale in 2017, over the course of his long and prolific career Erwin Wurm (1954) has radically expanded the concept of sculpture, challenging notions of time, mass and surface, and abstraction and representation, and for many decades has used clothing to address sculptural issues.

Published to mark Wurm's major solo show, held in conjunction with the Biennale Arte 2026, the volume, produced in collaboration with Élise Mougin-Wurm, relates the works of this leading contemporary artist - who explores the idea of the human body as a sculpture - to the spirit of such a magical place as the Museo Fortuny, whe re the dialogue centres on the body, clothing, sculpture, spatial vision and painting.

Through the essays by Elisabetta Barisoni and Cristina Da Roit and compelling imagery, the book retraces the artist's solo exhibition, establishing fruitful comparisons between his contemporary works and Fortuny's rich legacy of textiles, light, theatre, and experimentation. It delves into themes of clothing, presence, and absence, presenting sculptural "garments" and enclosures that evoke the human body through the interplay of form and void.

The book features installation views and a selection of Erwin's most recent works, alongside iconic and seminal works from across his career, such as the One Minute Sculptures series, which has made Wurm famous since the 1990s.