The 2025 programme “Images of Justice (Picturing Justice)“
The Salzburger Kunstverein’s 2025 program, entitled “Images of Justice”(Picturing Justice) explores the complex practice of justice and emphasizes the diversity of perspectives as opposed to a simple distinction between “right” and “wrong.” It refers to current social, environmental and infrastructural injustices and takes into account the interpretive chaos in the digital public sphere, where information is often fragmented and distorted. Invited artists and curators reflect on how different conceptions of justice are connected to philosophical debates about subjectivity, truth, and responsibility. The term “picturing” encompasses both the creative act of imagination and the effort to question and rethink the systems of representation.
15 March – 4 May 2025
Dana Kavelina | Studio
In her latest works, Dana Kavelina addresses the complex realities of forced recruitment in Ukraine. In a stop-motion film, she presents interwoven narratives that address the exploitation of both humans and animals.
New Mineral Collective | Great Hall
The exhibition will be presented in conjunction with a partner project at Mercer Union in Toronto (25.01.-22.03.2025).
The New Mineral Collective presents the “Counter-Prospecting Tools”, which shift the focus from resource extraction to their conservation and restoration by redesigning the form and function of geological tools.
17 May – 13 July 2025
Tania Gheerbrant | Studio
A recent publication in the Fleurs de l’histoire series is dedicated to the antipsychiatric patient collectives of the 1970s and sheds light on the mechanisms of repression in medical and criminal institutions. Tania Gheerbrant draws parallels between the historical persecution of witches during the Inquisition and the current treatment of psychiatric patients, guided by the provocative theses of psychiatrist Thomas Szasz.
Exhibition conceived in collaboration with Frac Bretagne, Rennes. Tania Gheerbrant is the winner of the Frac Bretagne-Art Norac Award 2024.
Mikołaj Sobczak | Great Hall
Mikołaj Sobczak’s artistic practice focuses on the narration of alternative historical narratives. In his paintings and assemblages, he integrates figures from queer and countercultural emancipation movements. For this exhibition, Sobczak deals with the historical and aesthetic links between fascism and capitalism. In doing so, he examines the emergence of modern forms of fascism in the context of the growing popularity of esoteric currents.
26 July – 14 September 2025
Laila Shawa | Studio
This exhibition marks the first presentation of the renowned Palestinian artist Laila Shawa (1940-2022) in Austria. Shawa, who attended Oskar Kokoschka’s School of Seeing in Salzburg between 1960 and 1963, will be the focus of curator Jakub Gawkowski. The exhibition explores Shawa’s multicultural imagery, which is characterized by unconventional shapes and vivid colors. She questions common narratives about “the West and the rest” and uses elements of so-called “Islamo-Pop”. At the same time, she addresses complex, politically charged issues, which she vividly comments on through a dynamic color palette and recurring pictorial motifs.
In cooperation with TRAFO Trafostacja Sztuki Szczecin, where the exhibition will be presented in autumn 2025.
Esben Weile Kjær | Great Hall
This exhibition presents itself as a dynamic stage, a sculptural scenario in which freedom is experienced both as a staged performance and as a reality characterized by spontaneity and uncertainty. Esben Zeit Kjær offers a space for continuous debate and invites visitors to reflect on the notion of nostalgia in the context of the past and the future.
20 September – 16 November 2025
The Museum of (Non)Restitution | Studio and Great Hall
Thomas Geiger, Tatiana Lecomte, Sophie Thun
Using objects from the Salzburg Museum’s collection, Thomas Geiger, Tatiana Lecomte, and Sophie Thun explore how the restitution of artworks and rights can change the identities and communities involved. They challenge the traditional view of restitution as a simple return of property rights and invite visitors to reflect on the deeper questions of property and loss.
This exhibition is a cooperation between the Salzburg Museum and the Salzburger Kunstverein as part of Picturing Justice. The curation is in the hands of Mirela Baciak, Katja Mittendorfer-Oppolzer and Susanne Rolinek.
Sophie Thun, research in the depot of Salzburg Museum, December 2024
13 December 2025 – 1 February 2026
Annual Exhibition of the Members of the Salzburger Kunstverein | Great Hall
The last exhibition of the year is traditionally reserved for members of the Kunstverein and is curated by magazin53a this year.
Magazin53a is part of the Association for the Promotion of Fine Arts in Salzburg and is dedicated to the diverse artistic and cultural offerings of the city and the entire province of Salzburg. These include museums, art associations, galleries and various events. Varied reporting draws attention to exhibitions and projects, and a comprehensive discourse on the art and culture scene in Salzburg and beyond is created. With a feuilletonistic approach, the magazine creates a broad public for the contemporary art scene and serves as a platform for networking institutions and discourses. Young authors in particular are committed to promoting a new form of art criticism.
Art needs space, and Salzburg offers (theoretically) enough of it. House number 53a, an unused vacancy, becomes a program and a symbol for a gap that is to be closed in local cultural reporting.
Isabell Rauchenbichler | Studio
Parallel to the annual exhibition 2025/26, we present an exhibition by Isabell Rauchenbichler, the winner of the 2024 Advancement Award of the State of Salzburg and the Salzburger Kunstverein, in Studio Space.
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