We were impressed by the new sculptural work from the artist Christian Murzek at the Parallel Vienna 2021 Art Fair at the Semmelweis Klinik Vienna. Read the full Artist feature here in the Munchies Art Club:
Christian Murzek is a contemporary visual artist who lives and works in Vienna and lower Austria.
The talented artist studied art the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna in the classes of Silke Otto-Knapp, Gunter Damisch, Veronika Dirnhofer and Christian Schwarzwald.
Christian is not only interested in art but also enjoys good food, gardening, loud punk concerts, as well as nerdy subjects.
The artist also has an affinity for the aesthetics of games, science, technology and cryptocurrency.
These stimulate his attempt to go his own path artistically and to develop a connection for digital tools in the analog process.
Christian Murzek work moves on an interface between the digital and analog world (an interface being the device or system that unrelated entities use to interact).
As a starting point for his artistic application, he uses codes and algorithms that he provides for his analogue implementation.
This process includes printmaking, painting and drawing
It all started in 2016 when I shared an apartment with my very good and longstanding friend Florence.
Thanks to Flo´s access to IT & programming, I discovered a strange software that, when fed with fictitious parameters and data, generated very interesting digital patterns for me.
I immediately started experimenting and playing with it.
Soon repetitive shapes and pixels appeared in my work and created a new way of expressing myself or a new toolbox for my work.
Furthermore, my work reflects the use of digital processes that have already become fully established in social life.
Algorithms, binary codes, AI´s, big data, and software from a wide variety of devices dominate our everyday lives so that hardly anyone can understand which cascades of processes are required in the application.
I am particularly interested in the approach, recapture and controlled use of this area as well as ultimately the analog translation into painting, printmaking, and sculpture.
I try to record and manipulate the machine in such a way that the result serves as a formal tool for the aesthetic design of my visual worlds and their composition in the analog process.
“Anyone who only has a hammer as a tool sees a nail in every problem.“ -Paul Watzlawick
Based on this view point, my work opens up new perspectives that are necessary in order to transfer analogue media practices such as painting, printmaking and sculpture that have grown over centuries into a digitized age.
I can work anywhere - in November 2020, I moved into my first very own studio at Jurekgasse 14, where I have plenty of space to work on several things at the same time.
This approach is probably also heavily influenced by printmaking, and I also like the repetitive, often very unspectacular work processes.
I am currently working on a new series of large formats that I have developed using new software.
The codes I use are transformed again into organic forms that are reminiscent of beetles or insects. It is therefore a little more plastic and picturesque.
The latest project, parallel to the large formats, was a series of plaster sculptures based on the digital prototype.
This developed a new approach that I would like to explore more for myself over the next few months.
Furthermore, this year, insofar as Covid-19 permits, there will be some exciting exhibition projects in which I would like to show the resulting works together.
A lot is planned for 2021 - I don't want to and can't reveal more yet.
This will be announced on the website over the next few weeks.
Photo Credits:
and Christian Murzek
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A big thank you to Christian Murzek for sharing his wonderful work and his story with us.
