Audio Guide | Terminal Piece | Act 1

Audio Guide
Terminal Piece
Act 1

Act 1 on mumok's Level 4 begins with the exhibition’s namesake, Kate Millett’s 1972 installation Terminal Piece. Leaving the darkened enclosure, you enter a vast gallery with the museum’s panorama window. How do we engage with the works brought together here: who is observing, and who is being observed? Where do we position ourselves?

Dunkler Ausstellungsraum mit einer langen Reihe klappbarer Holzstühle hinter einer hohen Gitterstruktur; mehrere Lichtquellen entlang der oberen Kante erzeugen starke Schattenmuster auf dem Boden. / Dark exhibition space with a long row of folding wooden chairs positioned behind a tall metal grid structure; several light sources along the upper edge create pronounced shadow patterns across the floor.

Intro

In this audio tour, we guide you through the first act of Terminal Piece. Step into an exhibition that places seeing and perceiving themselves at its center.

Detailansicht einer menschenähnlichen Figur in violettem Gewand, sitzend zwischen Reihen klappbarer Holzstühle hinter einer Gitterstruktur in einem dunklen Raum. / Detail view of a human-like figure wearing a purple garment, seated among rows of folding wooden chairs behind a metal grid structure in a darkened space.

Kate Millet

The first act begins with a key work by Kate Millett from 1972: the installation Terminal Piece, which gave our exhibition its title.

Heller Ausstellungsraum mit drei gerahmten Bildschirmen oder Monitoren an weißen Wänden, die jeweils ein kleines helles Motiv vor schwarzem Hintergrund zeigen; im Hintergrund befindet sich eine geschlossene Tür. / Bright exhibition gallery with three framed screens or monitors mounted on white walls, each displaying a small bright motif against a black background; a closed door is visible in the rear wall.

Megan Plunkett

You enter the light-filled, brilliantly white gallery of the first act. Here, a series of large-format photographs by the Californian artist Megan Plunkett unfolds along a circuit through the space.

Fünf gerahmte Schwarz-Weiß-Arbeiten unterschiedlicher Größe hängen mit großem Abstand zueinander an einer weißen Ausstellungswand. / Five framed black-and-white works of varying sizes are displayed with wide spacing across a white gallery wall.

Miroslav Tichý

In the right-hand aisle, you will find a series of black-and-white photographs by the Czech artist and photographer Miroslav Tichý. They raise questions about the power of the observer and the boundaries between artistic form and obsession.

Zwei hochformatige, schwarz gerahmte Bildschirme lehnen an einer weißen Ausstellungswand und zeigen jeweils die unscharfe Schwarz-Weiß-Darstellung einer Hand; sichtbare Kabel verlaufen entlang des Bodens. / Two vertically oriented black-framed screens rest against a white gallery wall, each displaying a blurred black-and-white image of a hand; visible cables run along the floor.

Kobby Adi

The large exhibition space contains the multimedia installation The Machine by the British artist Kobby Adi. The technical apparatus generates fleeting traces of your own presence in the room.

Bodeninstallation aus dunklen Metallprofilen, die einen rechteckigen Rahmen mit vier aufragenden Eckpfosten bilden; kleine aufgeklebte Bild- und Papierfragmente sind über die Konstruktion verteilt. / Floor installation made of dark metal beams forming a rectangular frame with four upright corner posts; small attached image and paper fragments are distributed across the structure.

Melanie Counsell

The British artist Melanie Counsell presents a new work in the main room of the first act of Terminal Piece. She is particularly interested in traces of human presence in seemingly abandoned spaces.

Continue to Act 2

Audio Guide Overview

Texts
Ines Gebetsroither

Translation
Bryony Dawson

Speakers
Bryony Dawson
Marie-Claire Gagnon

Audio Direction, Editing, and Production
Robert Schwarz

Photos
Ausstellungsansicht
Terminal Piece
Foto: kunst-dokumentation.com / Manuel Carreon Lopez