gugging.! 25 years

25 years ago, the Center for Art Psychotherapy, which had been founded by Prof. DDr. Leo Navratil and still had a clinical focus, was transformed into a residential community for artists—precisely, the House of Artists. The name-giving consequently had deeper significance, too, and was intended to clarify the altered perspective. The director of the Gugging Psychiatric Clinic, Hofrat Dr. Alois Marksteiner, gladly accepted this proposal by the new manager of this institution, Dr. Johann Feilacher. The particular aspect of this was that the so-called patient status was thereby abolished and the personhood of the artist became the essential concern. This also corresponded to the trend for humanizing psychiatry and disbanding the large institutions. The talent of the individual was the important thing, not illness or disability, which thereby became a private matter.

The exhibition guggging.! 25 Years, in 2011, intended to demonstrate the international success of the Gugging Artists in the 25 years before that, on the basis of works that had been presented in museums and galleries worldwide. The concept of the exhibition was to take individual works that were important for the development and specific tradition of art from Gugging as a basis for recounting the success story of the pieces and the artists.  Alongside the art products, exhibition lists and other evidence documented the exciting history and significance of the enduringly unique and productive events revolving around the House of Artists in Gugging.