Viennese public housing reflected in art

How can contemporary history and contemporary art be combined in a meaningful way and presented in public space? To mark the refurbishment of Franz-Novy-Hof, one of Vienna’s best-known municipal housing complexes, an interdisciplinary project was initiated by builder Gerhard Glantschnig and realized by the Institute of Contemporary History at the University of Vienna and the Department of Graphics and Printmaking, University of Applied Arts Vienna.

This publication sheds new light on Vienna’s public housing projects through a dialogue between students. Texts and podcasts by 11 contemporary history students on aspects of the history of Vienna’s Gemeindebau are juxtaposed with contributions by 12 art students in the form of large-scale paintings.

Essays by Oliver Rathkolb and Jan Svenungsson discuss the challenges of the project.