170721 UE Aesthetics of performance art (2020S)

Performance art is a perceptually aesthetic challenge and you don't learn to understand it in school socialization, you have to work it out. In addition to dealing with aesthetics and criteria of performance art - from history and the present - this course will also look at and analyze curatorial practice together with the students. Performance art is mostly "freely" produced art, unlike classical theater art, which is mostly created as commissioned work for theaters. Since free theater work differs very much from institutional work, the layout of the houses that produce and show these free works also have different framework conditions, both structurally and in terms of organizational and subsidy options, location issues and not most recently in questions of mediation and media perception. Curating is a commitment. A commitment to the work, a commitment to the aesthetics. Curating is a bet. A bet on success, a bet on failure. And curating is a declaration of love. A declaration of love to the artists, a declaration of love to the people behind the artistic work. In this course, students gain knowledge of the complexity of production and curation through practical exercises and performance analyzes. Experts are invited and performances in contemporary dance, theater and performance venues in Vienna are attended.