EXHIBITIONS 2025

Exhibition until 31.01.2026

ERWIN WURM - Bad People

Erwin Wurm has been exploring sculpture in various media since the 1980s and works pointedly on the concept of sculpture.

His sculpture series "Bad People", which is characterised by paradoxical depictions of people, was created at the Gmundner Keramik Manufaktur. Noses, ears and mouths, taken from the physiognomy of the human face, are re-contextualised and become part of figures and inflated faces that embody the all-too-human. Erwin Wurm's ceramic sculptures show their immediate creation, the new creation from destruction, deformation and distortion, emphasising the absurd, the gestural expression, the physicality and the creative possibilities of the medium of clay. Ceramics as a means of artistic expression corresponds to Erwin Wurm's performative approach and is once again highly topical in contemporary art.

In addition to the focus on photography in the Francisco Carolinum Linz and sculpture in the Marmorschlössl in Bad Ischl, Erwin Wurm is showing the third exhibition as part of his major solo presentation with OÖ Landes-Kultur GmbH.

Ceramic visions

The collection of the "Österreichische Galerie für Keramik"

Heide Warlamis founded the "Österreichische Galerie für Keramik" in 1981 at a time characterised by change in art. Works by established artists such as Kurt Ohnsorg, Kiki Kogelnik and Colin Pearson were shown alongside works by up-and-coming artists who used clay to create extraordinary sculptures, visionary objects, decorative jewellery and bold designs for ceramic vessels. The exhibition presents an impressive selection of sculptural pieces from Heide Warlamis' multifaceted collection. She has created a unique selection of expressive ceramics that demonstrate the diversity of form, colour and technique of the material.

Elmar Trenkwalder sculptures

Elmar Trenkwalder's monumental ceramic sculptures are reminiscent of magnificent baroque and rococo architecture as well as Asian structures in their fantastic, exuberant richness of detail. For more than three decades, the Austrian artist has been impressing with a body of work of fascinating ambiguity in terms of content and visuals. It is above all his eccentric and radical approach that gives him a unique position on the international art scene. Coming from a background in painting, he was already using clay as an independent means of artistic expression in the mid-1980s. By developing a construction method that was more architectural than ceramic, he increasingly created the opulent, expansive sculptures that can now be found in many important museums and collections.

Moss People

With his life-size "Moss People", visitors are immersed in a fantastic world inspired by the homeland of Finnish artist Kim Simonsson. Reminiscent of fairy tales, manga films and computer games, his ceramic figures are covered with a moss-like surface that makes them appear both mythical and melancholic. Cute at first glance, the artist creates a dissonance that lends the figures a special presence and casts a spell over the viewer.

23x Salzkammergut on a platter

Clothing, work or kitchen utensils, crockery, furniture, grilles or gates - almost all objects of material folk culture are adorned with ornaments. 23 museum artefacts, which are connected to the 23 municipalities of the Capital of Culture 2024 and display ornaments or patterns, form the starting point of the exhibition. These diverse patterns served as inspiration for the Gmunden painters to create 23 unique plates. The resulting works illustrate the diversity of forms in the Salzkammergut region and bear witness to its rich culture, craftsmanship and traditions. Patterns help to localise one's own identity and demonstrate cultural ties. At the same time, they serve to embellish. Whether lines, spirals, zigzag patterns, stars, hearts or tendrils - ornaments have been used, handed down and reinterpreted over the centuries and across regions. They are not rigid structures, but changeable art forms. The fertility of the combination of old patterns and new creative impulses of the Gmunden painters is impressively demonstrated in the plates created, the shape of which was designed by the ceramic artist Gudrun Wittke-Baudisch in the 1970s.

Tip Special: Ernst Grabner Collection

House of ceramics

Even before the opening of the Gmundner Keramik Manufaktur, green-flamed crockery was produced on Lake Traunsee. The presentation of Ernst Grabner's private collection of old Gmundner faience was realised with the curatorial and design support of OÖ Landes-Kultur GmbH. In the newly opened House of Ceramics, colourfully painted ceramics depicting cheerful, lively and crude scenes tell the story of faience production from the 17th century to the start of mass production in 1903.

Town Hall Square 2
4810 Gmunden