Bread and Butter

On the Necessities of Life

25.4.–1.9.2024

musa, Felderstraße 6-8, 1010 Wien

Artists Željka Aleksić, Ana de Almeida, Katarína Csányiová, Polina Davydenko, Petja Dimitrova & Happy Akegbeleye, Eszter Magdolna Kállay,  Martins Kohout , Jelena Micić, Olena Newkryta, Alicija Rogalska, Dana Sochorová, Sanja Iveković, Moira Zoitl 

Curators Anežka Jabůrková, Miljana Mirović

Exhibition design WEITBLICK Architektur (Carina Zabini & David Kovařík)

Graphics Kristýna Jordánová

A common thread binding humanity today is the relentless pursuit of income in order to fulfil life’s basic needs and secure the daily existence of ourselves and those dear to us. For the majority, this quest is our bread and butter. What happens, however, when the traditional labour market and the safety nets provided by governments are out of our reach?

The group exhibition ‘Bread and Butter: On the Necessities of Life’ brings together 13 unique artistic positions, which critically examine the topic of labour in today’s society. While each work approaches the topic uniquely, overlapping between the works themselves as well as links to broader issues such as migration, toxicity, homelessness,and sexism are traceable. The exhibition amplifies, through stories and testimonies, the voices of those who have been rendered invisible by societal indifference and illuminate the social cost of systemic injustice. By utilizing various means of artistic expression, the selected art works examine the intersectionality of discrimination within the labour market and the causes of societal inequality that we have come to accept. The majority of presented artworks stem from personal reflections and collected recollections, creating a comprehensive archive of experiences, giving visibility to often overlooked topics in the Austrian labour market and beyond. Such an archive materializes itself, preserved in fat, through a spatial installation by Ana de Almeida.

The exhibition itself is framed by the installations of Željka Aleksić and Jelena Micić, both of which intersect by highlighting the theme of financial poverty; be it the criminalisation of it in today’s society or through the wider implications it has on the environment. Two pillars carry broader themes of the exhibition, the first one with the video artworks by Katarína Csányiová, Sanja Iveković, Polina Davydenko, and Moira Zoitl, questioning the inclusivity of labour market and the position of care work within it. Approaching the question of care work from a different angle are Dana Sochorova and Eszter Kállay, who explore the issues surrounding division of labour in parenthood within the creative professions. On the second pillar, the toll one’s work takes on a body is discussed in Olena Newkryta’s film as well as in Martins Kohout’s documentary. Additionally, the works thematize the late capitalist need to be linked and up to date; an issue that is also being reflected by the installative exhibition architecture. Simultaneously, the interwovenness of electric cables draws attention to interdependencies, highlighting the crucial role of care.

Emphasizing the interconnectedness of the exhibition topic with everyday realities, some works spread out, outside the museal setting and into the common places such as a local supermarket, bakery, or barbershop. Common spaces are transformed into realms of disruption, such as a local supermarket through Alicja Rogalska’s audio work, or the art intervention taking place in a barbershop, by Petja Dimitrova and Happy Akegbeleye, that bares the comprehensive racial profiling of Black Austrians. From the plight of migrants torn between economic necessity and familial obligations to the isolation faced by marginalized communities, the exhibition confronts the harsh realities of a world shaped by disparity and indifference. The exhibition ‘Bread and Butter: On the Necessities of Life’ confronts the harsh realities of a society shaped by disparity and indifference and invites us to challenge preconceived notions, fostering empathy and understanding in an increasingly divided world. 

 

Vernissage