A(R)Talk 06: Memories of the Arctic
Image: Gregor Sailer
APRIL 12 | 6.30 PM
PLEASE RSVP HERE
The Austrian Cultural Forum New York is pleased to host a panel discussion with esteemed New York-based art historian Dr. Elizabeth Cronin and Austrian photographer Gregor Sailer. Cronin recently curated the exhibition “The Awe of the Arctic: A Visual History” at the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building, New York Public Library, running through July 13, 2024. This large, multi-part survey explores how the Arctic has been visually depicted, defined, and imagined over the past 500 years. Meanwhile, Sailer, who is featured in this exhibition, has extensively traveled to the Arctic Circle, visiting Canada, Norway, Greenland, and Iceland to capture images of some of the world’s northernmost architectural structures. Through PowerPoint presentations and a conversation moderated by Dr. Stephanie Buhmann, Head of Visual Arts, Art, and Architecture at the ACFNY, Cronin and Sailer will discuss their experiences and findings on this complex subject, which triggers our imagination but often eludes clear concepts. The evening will conclude with a Q&A session with the audience.
About the Speakers:
Dr. Elizabeth Cronin is the Robert B. Menschel Curator of Photography at The New York Public Library. She is the Curator of The Awe of the Arctic: A Visual History and author of the accompanying catalog (2024). She is also the author of Heimat Photography in Austria: A Politicized Vision of Peasants and Skiers (Fotohof edition, 2015). She has curated and co-curated such exhibitions as Viewpoints: Latin America in Photographs, Anna Atkins Refracted and Public Eye: 175 Years of Sharing Photography. Cronin received her PhD in Art History from the CUNY Graduate Center. Image Credits: Stephanie Buhmann
Gregor Sailer (born 1980) is a photographer working in the fields of art and architecture. His work explores how buildings and structures can represent economic, political and social ideas, and he often creates images in remote or hard to access locations. From 2002 to 2007 he studied Communication Design at the Dortmund University of Applied Sciences and Arts, specialising in photography and experimental film. He also completed a Master’s degree in Photographic Studies there in 2015. Sailer’s works have won multiple awards and have been shown nationally and internationally in solo and group exhibitions, including in New York, London, Arles, Milan, Vienna, Prague, Berlin and Budapest. Many of his photo series have been published as photo books, most recently The Polar Silk Road, The Box and Unseen Places. He lives and works in Tyrol, Austria. Image Credits: Patrick Saringer
Dr. Stephanie Buhmann (Moderator): Head of Visual Art, Architecture & Design at the Austrian Cultural Forum New York is a historian of art, architecture and design. She has written extensively on visual art and her essays have appeared in a variety of books, international art magazines, and newspapers. Besides curating dozens of exhibitions, she has conducted over ninety published interviews with contemporary artists. In 2013 she conceived of an ongoing Studio Conversations series, focused on women of different generations working in diverse media. Her latest monograph Frederick Kiesler: Galaxies was published in 2023 (The Green Box, Berlin). She was a contributing author and co-editor of Roma Artist Ceija Stojka: What Should I Be Afraid of?, a publication released by Hirmer Publishers and the Austrian Cultural Forum New York in January 2024. Image Credits: Marcin Muchalski & Sabrina Vertzman, New York