ART – MONIQUE FESSL

BECAUSE OF A WISH

The installation by Monique Fessl and Marta Navaridas is the result of research on “Pleasure Activism” that began in Belgrade in April and May 2022 as part of an artists-in-residence programme.
In October 2022, the two artists presented the performance installation BECAUSE OF A WISH at the < rotor > association for contemporary art/Graz.
In a black, foggy room, illuminated by a large, disc-shaped light reminiscent of the moon, there is a pink battery-powered bird, two high platforms, benches and cushions for visitors, two ballot boxes and a voting booth. The latter consists of a standing table with paper, envelopes and pens, as well as two room dividers that evoke associations with tall grass.
The two artists sit on the pedestals like sphynxes and speak or sing the wishes they collected from people in Belgrade and other European cities in the period from April to October 2022. This is backed by a composition – an arrangement of recordings of water and animal sounds from Belgrade and electronically generated sounds.
The wishes written down by the visitors during the performance will be placed in an envelope and thrown into one of two ballot boxes, as in a political election. At the same time, the visitors choose whether their own wishes are to be burned or drawn by the artists.

The drawn wishes form the second part of this work. As part of the exhibition “Kunstraum Steiermark 2022” in the Neue Galerie Graz, two walls are designed. The left wall shows the drawings of the wishes collected by the artists during their performance installation in October 2022. On the right wall, visitors are invited to write down or draw their own wishes.
BECAUSE OF A WISH highlights the transformative potential of wishes. The artists are convinced that the probability of wishes coming true is greater than one thinks.
The two artists sit on the pedestals like sphynxes and speak or sing the wishes they collected from people in Belgrade and other European cities in the period from April to October 2022. This is backed by a composition – an arrangement of recordings of water and animal sounds from Belgrade and electronically generated sounds.
The wishes written down by the visitors during the performance will be placed in an envelope and thrown into one of two ballot boxes, as in a political election. At the same time, the visitors choose whether their own wishes are to be burned or drawn by the artists.
The drawn wishes form the second part of this work. As part of the exhibition “Kunstraum Steiermark 2022” in the Neue Galerie Graz, two walls are designed. The left wall shows the drawings of the wishes collected by the artists during their performance installation in October 2022. On the right wall, visitors are invited to write down or draw their own wishes.
BECAUSE OF A WISH highlights the transformative potential of wishes. The artists are convinced that the probability of wishes coming true is greater than one thinks.

Klanglicht Festival
Arkestra of Light: levitate

Visual Art: OchoReSotto
Music: Monique Fessl

Carried by the music originally composed for this project, the light images make the illuminated buildings take off. The walls seem weightless. At the same time, the arrangement of the houses in the space reinforces the play of paradigms. Their staggered arrangement allows the visual elements to work with and against the sound installation. An exciting mix of audiovisual impressions allows thoughts to rise, emotions to soar. An immense space that creates perspectives for impressive images is generated with analogue large-screen projectors, each of which moves two film reels with and against each other. Sequences tailored to the location stimulate the complex and bring it to life. They are characterised by fluently consistent movements, captivate with their brilliant luminosity and are precisely synchronised with the music.

12er BERG/SOLID GROUND
First prize Art in Architucture/LKH Villach

Redesign of the Central Wing, Villach State Hospital, Austria.
Art in Architecture, 1st price, 2018.

Joint work with Bernhard Wolf

Wall designs on six floors for reception areas, waiting rooms and corridors. A total of 600 m² of prints on HPL-plates and foils on glass surfaces. The mountain motif is an analogue and digitally processed relief of Villach’s local mountain, the Mittagskogel (Midday Peak).
(Photos©David Schreyer)

Open anonymous competition
Opening: November 2021
Architects: Domenig & Wallner

Your are here/Universum
3rd prize Art in Architucture/LKH Wolfsberg

Joint work with Martin Mathy and Bernhard Wolf (bwolf.at, martinmathy.net)

The central design component features a sun sculpture as a widely visible sign on the roof of the Wolfsberg State Hospital. The imaginary rays emanating from the sun are reproduced as spectral color surfaces in other locations tendered for design, such as the ambulance hall, the roundabout and the main east entrance.

Anonymous, open competition, 2021
Architects: Hinterwirth Architekten
Visualisation: Martin Mathy

Estrella/
Spatial Installation/
University Klagenfurt

MIND GAP/
Installation in public space/
Graz

At two places on the Opernring, poster stands are transformed front and back. On each side of the street, a poster is mounted that shows the space behind it. Viewed from a certain point and at the appropriate time of day, the billboard dissolves into its surroundings. On the inside, by the footpath and cycle path, mirrors are mounted that reflect the person himself in the space and create new space. This creates a mind gap for the person observing/viewed, a brief moment of being thrown back on oneself, beyond the level of the usual thought processes.

Duration of the installation: 10.08. – 31.08.2015

Location: Opernring Graz and Rosseggerkai
Supported by Kunst im öffentlichen Raum Graz