Give Nature a Break
Edgar Honetschläger
Edgar Honetschläger, Give Nature a Break. Film Performance for the NGO gobugsgo.org, 2022 
Edgar Honetschläger, NON-HUMAN ZONE in Linz, 2025 
Edgar Honetschläger, from the series Sensing Soil, 1989 
Edgar Honetschläger, Plakat for GoBugsGo, 2018 
Edgar Honetschläger/Willi Mahringer, Chicken Erni in Chickenssuit®, Hairy model, 2005 
Edgar Honetschläger, How far can individualism go? from the photo series Sell Fear, 2002
The Nordico is dedicating a comprehensive solo exhibition to the visual artist, filmmaker and environmental activist Edgar Honetschläger. His artistic œuvre has already received recognition through numerous art and culture awards in Austria, Japan and Italy, and has been presented at documenta X and the Berlinale. His work embraces a wide spectrum from drawing, painting and photography to performance, installation, short films and feature films.
Born in Linz, Honetschläger has been using multimedia to explore the dichotomy between man and nature since the 1980s. Subtly critical, while at the same time displaying a poetic and humorous quality, he uses surprising perspectives to question conventional perceptions. For Honetschläger, it simply is not enough for art to address the ongoing environmental crisis in terms of mere aesthetics. As an artist, he sees himself duty bound to take concrete action.
In 2018, as a response to the catastrophic impact of the Anthropocene, Honetschläger founded GoBugsGo – Set Nature Free, a non-profit organisation (NGO), thereby developing a groundbreaking, all-encompassing approach that combines art with environmental activism. This international project initiates collective renaturalisation measures designed to help insects regain their habitats. As a utopian artistic vision, zones are created from which humankind is excluded. In addition to a hundred works, including large-format film backdrops, a “Non-Human Zone” – “a living sculpture of the 21st century” – is also a central element of the exhibition in Linz.
Curator: Sabine Fellner
| Date | Title | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Fri 25.04 | Special guided tour of the Natural History Museum Vienna Insect researcher Dominique Zimmermann worked with Edgar Honetschläger on the insect manifesto for the GoBugsGo association. She conducts research at the Natural History Museum (mainly on insects such as wild bees and wasps) and shows us her workplace and the collection. | 2:00 pm–4:00 pm |
| Sun 25.05 | Family workshop: Sumi‑e: Japanese ink painting for all ages In Japanese, “sumi” means black ink and “e” means painting. This painting is the art of drawing objects and themes in ink with a Chinese or Japanese brush – the unpainted areas are just as important as those painted in different shades of gray. | 10:00 am–12:00 pm |
| Thu 03.07 | Summer party We celebrate summer on the blossoming forecourt of the Nordico with music, food and drink. | 7:00 pm–10:00 pm |
| Fri 11.07 | Nature and culture hike in Neufelden Hike along the Große Mühl to Edgar Honetschläger’s summer house up to the Teufelsstein with a break at the “Hopfen & Schmalz” inn and a swim together. Registration required. | 7:30 am–11:30 am |
Nature:Art Days
Sat 10.05 – Sun 11.05
Artist and curator talks, nature-city explorations tracing wild nature, a film evening, and walks to “Non-Human Zones.” Organized on the occasion of the exhibitions Edgar Honetschläger and Touch Nature at the Lentos.
Cooperation Crossing Europe
The Crossing Europe Film Festival (29.4. – 4.5.) is dedicating a special to Edgar Honetschläger as a local artist, which thematically ties in with the Personale at the Nordico. The screening times can be found online at crossingeurope.at from April 18. The exhibition at the Nordico can be visited free of charge with the Film Festival Pass!
Cooperation Crossing Europe
The Crossing Europe Film Festival (29.4. – 4.5.) is dedicating a special to Edgar Honetschläger as a local artist, which thematically ties in with the Personale at the Nordico. The screening times can be found online at crossingeurope.at from April 18. The exhibition at the Nordico can be visited free of charge with the Film Festival Pass!