Art & Illness

Art & Illness is the second edition of our event series Salon Différance – a new cooperation between the Centre for Science and Research (ZWF) at the Musik und Kunst Privatuniversität der Stadt Wien (MUK) and Tanzquartier Wien. Art & Illness will focus on artistic approaches to topics relating to illness, both of the body and the mind. We will talk about individual sickness as well as about viral diseases. As illustrated by the slogan “Fight Sickness with Sickness” by American performance artist Bob Flanagan, illness can be an inspiration and has been a starting point for many artists, a way of compensating for something or a self-empowering strategy to overcome real suffering. Meanwhile, since the beginning of the 20^th century, illness has repeatedly been accepted as an integral part of art and its history, thereby raising questions about the definition of illness in general.