++++ Born 1970 in Watschig, Austria. Lives and works in Vienna.

++++ In WESTERN you can see Hans Schabus ride the sewage channels of Vienna in a foldable sailing boat of the type ‘Optimist’ called ‘forlorn’ fitted with wheels for transportation by land. Where will he arrive, I ask myself while the video is running? Soon the boat will crop up in New York and Frankfurt and viewers will be able to see the video in a darkened room. Viewed on their own, the manifest objects in this work remain the same, while their story in Schabus’ imagination can be fed back as new impulses for the further processual continuation of his work. For the viewer, the objects appear as immediate material, but they also stimulate the construction of that subjective story with which they may have arrived at the viewing location. Where, however, is the muck from the sewers? What is happening precisely down there at the moment? (Thomas Raab)

Western,2002.Video still. Photo: Hans Schabus