Dr. Agnes Husslein-Arco, the founding director of Vienna's prestigious Heidi Horten Collection, delivered an emotional farewell to her audience through tears and subdued sobs as she prepared to step down from her position. The granddaughter of renowned artist Herbert Boeckl and former vice-president of the Carinthian Art Association has successfully led the private museum in Vienna's Hanuschgasse since its opening in 2022, which she established on behalf of collector Heidi Horten.
As her final gift to the institution and art world, Husslein-Arco has curated "The Line," an exhibition that may appear deceptively simple at first glance but reveals profound artistic complexity upon deeper examination. The exhibition explores the fundamental question of whether a line alone can constitute art, drawing inspiration from the philosophical inquiry that has fascinated artists and theorists for generations.
The conceptual framework of the exhibition builds upon the theoretical foundations laid by Wassily Kandinsky in his influential 1926 treatise, which analyzed the relationship between line, point, and surface as essential elements of artistic composition. The show also embraces Paul Klee's poetic description of a line as "an impressive little journey across the drawing sheet" and references the ancient Greek philosophical principle of "no day without a line" (nulla dies sine linea).
Spanning two floors of the museum, the exhibition showcases countless masterpieces of modern art organized into thematic sections including "Form and Contour," "Script and Image," "Line in Movement," "In Space and Boundary," and "Transition and Connection through Deformations." Visitors can experience Jackson Pollock's magnificent "Number 17" (1949), alongside monumental installations by contemporary artist Chiharu Shiota, whose latest work incorporates thank-you letters addressed to the museum.
The exhibition features an impressive roster of artistic giants, displaying works and drawings by Gustav Klimt, Egon Schiele, Wassily Kandinsky, Alexej von Jawlensky, Piet Mondrian, and Paul Klee, whose 1930 piece "Siblings" demonstrates his mastery of linear expression. Contemporary artists are equally well represented, with pieces by Keith Haring, Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol, and Jean-Michel Basquiat showcasing how the concept of line has evolved through different artistic movements.
Minimalist approaches to linear art are explored through the spare, geometric works of Dan Flavin, Fred Sandback, and Donald Judd, whose sculptures strip the line down to its essential elements. Franz West's three-dimensional installation "Securità" (2011), crafted from steel and resin, pushes the concept of line into sculptural space, creating what appears to be living lines in physical form.
The exhibition also features the mesmerizing light sculptures of Brigitte Kowanz, which create magical linear effects through illumination, and video installations that connect dance and line through movement in space. Perhaps most notably, the show includes works by Lucio Fontana, the Italian artist who made art history with his revolutionary cuts through white canvas, fundamentally challenging traditional concepts of painting and space.
"The Line" represents a fascinating journey through modern and contemporary art, demonstrating how this most basic of artistic elements has been interpreted, reimagined, and revolutionized by artists across different eras and movements. The exhibition will remain on display through March 8, serving as both Husslein-Arco's farewell tribute and a comprehensive exploration of one of art's most fundamental yet complex elements.
