Lentos museum explores politics behind Katrin Plavčak’s colourful art

The Lentos Kunstmuseum Linz is showing a comprehensive exhibition of Austrian artist Katrin Plavčak’s work, where colourful images, unusual figures and humour address issues including fake news, social media, war, violence, democracy, gender roles and artificial intelligence, ORF reports.

At first glance, Plavčak’s paintings appear playful and light. But her works lead viewers into a world between reality, fantasy and absurdity, where appearances can be misleading.

Titled Painting Reality in Surreal Times, the exhibition combines a colourful, often humorous visual language with social and political themes. Plavčak’s figures and scenes can seem as though they come from another world while reflecting the artist’s own time.

Rather than offering clear answers, the artist encourages viewers to change their perspective, look more closely, tolerate contradictions and reconsider things that seem familiar.

The exhibition is the first comprehensive museum presentation of Plavčak’s artistic work. It brings together new pieces and works created since 2009.

“Plavčak’s works respond directly, sometimes almost incidentally, to what surrounds us politically, socially and personally,” said Hemma Schmutz, director of the Lentos Kunstmuseum Linz and curator of the exhibition. The works create multifaceted visual worlds that reflect the present with both precision and an individual perspective, she said.

Plavčak was born in Gütersloh and grew up in Zeltweg. She now lives in Vienna. Her awards include the Georg Eisler Prize, the Frauen-Kunst-Preis and, most recently, the Alfred Klinkan Prize. Alongside painting, she also works in sculpture and music.