sexy... Basel Al-Bazzaz, Johann Garber, Helga Sophia Goetze, Julia Hanzl, Johann Korec, Hannes Lehner, Karl Vondal
Galerie Gugging, Maria Gugging
February 20 – May 11, 2025
A.LADY, 1988
Ink, 14,7 x 10,4 cm
© Privatstiftung - Künstler aus Gugging
Untitled, 2001
Pencil, embroidery, 76 x 77,8 cm
© Sammlung Pott
Wicked beauty by night, 2021
Pencil, colored pencils, 42 x 56 cm
Courtesy galerie gugging
In the exhibition “sexy…”, seven unique artists come together at the Galerie Gugging and whisk the visitors away into their erotic worlds. From the sexy works of the Gugging Artists Johann Garber, Johann Korec and Karl Vondal to the fascinating universe of Helga Sophia Goetze, the oriental women of Basel Al-Bazzaz, the naked men of Hannes Lehner and the ceramics of Julia Hanzl.
The depiction of naked bodies has a long tradition, from the earliest cave paintings to the present day. Many Gugging Artists and their national and international colleagues have also taken up the theme from the very beginning.
Moulin Rouge, 2020
Pencil, colored pencils, 42 x 56 cm
Courtesy galerie gugging
Basel Al-Bazzaz presents his colourful oeuvre. The artist, who was originally born in Baghdad, has been working in a print workshop in Vienna since 2000, where he creates fine, detailed works on paper that have a special effect on the viewer. Using watercolours, pencils and coloured pencils to create works of art is Al-Bazzaz’s great passion. His playful, erotic depictions of women also reflect his longing for the Orient. While he often uses models for his depictions of plants and animals, the inspiration for his depictions of naked women comes from his own imagination.
Untitled, n.d.
Pencil, 21 x 29,6 cm
© Sammlung Pott
Untitled, n. d.
Pencil, gouache, colored pencils, 29,7 x 21 cm
© Sammlung Pott
The German artist Helga Sophia Goetze (1922 - 2008) was born in Magdeburg. She was a feminist icon, who loved to break boundaries and boldly share her views out into the world. Goetze left behind a fascinating universe of painted pictures, embroidered carpets, sketches, collages and an extensive written legacy, including numerous poems. She was known and infamous for her “vigil” at the Berlin Memorial Church, where she held out for an hour every day for over 20 years from 1983 to proclaim her message: “Fucking is peace!” The Galerie Gugging shows a tapestry and sketches by the artist and poet, who was an investigative, sharp observer and chronicler of her time, as part of the sexy… exhibition.
A-JUNGLE, 2010
Indian Ink, 29,7 x 42 cm
© Privatstiftung - Künstler aus Gugging
The Gugging Artist Johann Garber is best known for his dense Indian ink drawings. A recurring theme in his work are his so-called “Sexi papers”. These have even adorned the renowned Museum of Sex on 5th Avenue in New York. “If you ask Johann Garber why he keeps drawing naked people, his answer is: because that is how we are born! – We come like this … and we leave like this”, says galerie gugging director Nina Katschnig with a smile. Johann Garber was born in Wiener Neustadt and has lived in the House of Artists in Gugging since 1981.
Julia Hanzl is an innovative ceramic artist from Vienna, who has already made a name for herself across borders, especially in the United States, and grew up in a family of artists. The self-taught artist, whose works usually have a provocative sexy-erotic touch, is appreciated for her unmistakable ceramics, mixed media sculptures, porcelain & bronze editions and ceramic sculptures in combination with taxidermy. Julia Hanzl lives and works in Mödling.
Lovers in winter, 1998
Acrylic on canvas, 100 x 100 cm
© Art Brut KG
Alexandera Korbus:, 2003
Indian Ink, Watercolours, 18,9 x 13,9 cm
© Art Brut KG
For the Gugging Artist Johann Korec, the nude depiction of couples was the predominant favourite theme in his works, which he celebrated extensively. Korec lived in the House of Artists in Gugging from 1981 until his death in 2008. While he began his artistic career by tracing figures, drawing and painting lovers later became his preferred motif. The protagonist was almost always the artist himself. He usually added a description of the subjects at the bottom of the picture, making the works appear like a diary. His depicted partners did not come from his imagination, but were often actual girlfriends from the time. In 1990, he was awarded the Oskar Kokoschka Prize, as was Johann Garber with the group of the Gugging Artists.
Naked Man with column, 2023
Acrylic, pencil, coloured pencils
42 x 29,7 cm
Courtesy galerie gugging
Sensual naked man, 2023
Acrylic, pencil, coloured pencils
42 x 29,7 cm
Courtesy galerie gugging
Born in Vienna in 1986, Hannes Lehner loves muscular bodies, enjoys going to the gym and wanted to become an underwear model himself. The artist’s creative career includes central themes such as landscapes, architecture, automobiles, outer space, fantastic animal figures and now also male nudes. Over the years, he has created an extensive oeuvre that includes drawings, paintings and three-dimensional objects. The lively artist, who is always up for a joke, uses acrylic, coloured pencil, gouache or paperboard for his works. Hannes Lehner’s sexy, well-trained men, usually staged in bright colours, are the logical continuation of his popular houses and cars.
She loves music, 2023
Acrylic, pencil, coloured pencils, Indian Ink
29,8 x 70 cm
© Privatstiftung - Künstler aus Gugging
With kisses both, 2022
Mixed media, 59,4 x 42 cm
© Privatstiftung - Künstler aus Gugging
The Gugging Artist Karl Vondal is describes by the Galerie Gugging director Nina Katschnig as the “master of eroticism from Gugging”. Vondal lived in the House of Artists in Gugging from 2002 to 2024 and had a particular fondness for erotic depictions, which he worked on tirelessly day and night. His nude women and loving couples usually appear with him in the role of the prince – in delicate pastel tones, which became more vibrant towards the end of his career. The protagonists of his works are often found on islands under palm trees or above the roofs of towns and villages. Similar to Johann Korec, his works are usually accompanied by illustrious stories. In sexy… the Galerie Gugging exhibits small and large works, some of which have been elaborately and very vividly staged with matchsticks.
GALERIE GUGGING
At Campus 2, 3400 Maria Gugging, Austria