Eva Schlegel. Falling up

Press release

21.10.2026

Image Credits

Duration

23.10.2026 - 29.03.2027

Opening

22.10.2026 6pm

Press event

21.10.2026 11am - 12pm

Place of the press event

Kunsthaus Graz, Needle, Space01

Curators

Katia Huemer

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The multilayered nature of space opens up a broad field of reflection in which physics, philosophy, and art play central roles – art in particular as a medium that not only describes but makes tangible how space operates and how we situate ourselves within it.

For some time now, Eva Schlegel has been exploring how perception and immateriality shape our relationship to space. Her practice encompasses a wide range of artistic forms, including sculptures, photographs, graphite and lead works, videos, pictorial objects, and augmented reality projects. This diversity reflects a sustained engagement with the question of how we not only see space, but also think and feel it. Her works open up in-between spaces and dissolve the seemingly fixed boundaries of space. A striking example of this are her mirror works, which allow us to ‘look at the old while also gazing into the new.’ Here, space becomes a stage on which past and future intertwine.

A loss of orientation in the face of far-reaching global crises is one of the defining experiences of our time. The exhibition Falling up takes up this feeling and contrasts it with a different perspective. The paradoxical title – ‘falling upwards’ – challenges the laws of gravity and opens up the possibility of understanding this loss of orientation not solely as a threat, but also as a shift in perspective.

Exhibition architecture: Valerie Messini

Eva Schlegel (* 1960 in Hall in Tirol, lives and works in Vienna), a recipient of the Austrian Decoration of Honour for Science and Art, is regarded as one of the most important voices in contemporary Austrian art. Her international recognition is also evident in her role at the Venice Biennale: in 1995 she represented Austria with her own works, and in 2011 she curated the Austrian Pavilion, for which Markus Schinwald provided the artistic programme. From 1997 to 2006, she taught at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna, passing on her exploration of perception and space to her students.

Important notice

Information for people with cerebral seizure disorders: Please be aware that the projections may occasionally contain rapid cuts and strong light-dark contrasts!

Sound levels in the exhibition may reach up to 88 dB. If you would like to use hearing protection, please ask the staff in the exhibition space.

Press release

Eva Schlegel. Falling up

Booklet

Exhibition views

Artist Eva Schlegel with curator Katia Huemer

Photo: Kunsthaus Graz/J.J. Kucek © Bildrecht Vienna, 2026

Exhibition view of “Eva Schlegel. Falling up” with “Dance of chance,” 2025

Photo: Kunsthaus Graz/J.J. Kucek © Bildrecht Vienna, 2026

Artist Eva Schlegel in front of her work “Dance of Chance”

Photo: Kunsthaus Graz/J.J. Kucek © Bildrecht Vienna, 2026

Exhibition view of “Eva Schlegel. Falling up” with “Bubbles” (2026)

Photo: Kunsthaus Graz/J.J. Kucek © Bildrecht Vienna, 2026

Eva Schlegel at her exhibition at the Kunsthaus Graz, 2026

Photo: Kunsthaus Graz/J.J. Kucek © Bildrecht Vienna, 2026

Artist Eva Schlegel

Photo: Kunsthaus Graz/J.J. Kucek © Bildrecht Vienna, 2026

State Councilor for Culture Karlheinz Kornhäusl, Katia Huemer (curator of the exhibition), artist Eva Schlegel, Sonja Rinofner-Kreidl (Department of Philosophy), Axel Maas (Institute of Physics), Andreja Hribernik (Director of Kunsthaus Graz), Martin Grabner (Assistant Curator), Photo: Kunsthaus Graz/J.J. Kucek © Bildrecht Vienna, 2026

Exhibition view of “Eva Schlegel. Falling up” with “Dance of Chance,” 2025

Photo: Kunsthaus Graz/J.J. Kucek © Bildrecht Vienna, 2026

Exhibition view of “Eva Schlegel. Falling up” with “Floating orbit,” 2026

Photo: Kunsthaus Graz/J.J. Kucek © Bildrecht Vienna, 2026

Exhibition view of “Eva Schlegel. Falling up” with “In between", 2010

Photo: Kunsthaus Graz/J.J. Kucek © Bildrecht Vienna, 2026

Exhibition view of “Eva Schlegel. Falling up” at the Kunsthaus Graz, 2026

Foto: Kunsthaus Graz/J.J. Kucek © Bildrecht Vienna, 2026

Exhibition view of “Eva Schlegel. Falling up” featuring works from the series “Liminal spaces,” 2022, 2026

Foto: Kunsthaus Graz/J.J. Kucek © Bildrecht Vienna, 2026

Exhibition view of “Eva Schlegel. Falling up” with “Bubbles,” 2026

Photo: Kunsthaus Graz/J.J. Kucek © Bildrecht Vienna, 2026

Ausstellungsansicht "Eva Schlegel. Falling up" im Kunsthaus Graz, 2026

Foto: Kunsthaus Graz/J.J. Kucek © Bildrecht Vienna, 2026

Exhibition view of “Eva Schlegel. Falling up” with “Dance of chance,” 2025

More images

Images

Eva Schlegel, in between, 2011 (video still)

Eva Schlegel, o.T. (335/338/341), 2022, printed on Hahnemühle handmade paper

Eva Schlegel, B. Imhof, D. Minovski, see the invisible, 2016

Eva Schlegel, Welle der Libelle, 2025

Eva Schlegel, Exhibition view of “in between,” MAK Vienna, 2010

Eva Schlegel, untitled (114 silber), 2018, Screen printing on paper

More images

Publication is permitted exclusively in the context of announcements and reviews related tothe exhibition. Please avoid any cropping of the images. Thank you for crediting the photographs according to the enclosed indications.