Aura, Capital and Captain (Working Title)

Performance / Video / Collage © 2009

Prints of Spam Emails initially used in the project “Spamming Back / Gallery Schwartz” (45x30cm laminated on Aluminium) were buried in treasure boxes on the 19th of April 2009 2 meters underground in forests in Lower Austria. Artefacts of this performance have been assembled together in a collage and sold at the Viennese art fair. The new owners of “Hochleithen Wald” and “Siebenbrunner Heide” also bought the right to dig up the boxes 25 years in the future – when they will receive the exact GPS coordinates. 

To what extent can we use the term “auratic charge” to describe the transformation of an art piece sold as a virtual commodity on the art market, in reality hidden somewhere in the ground of Lower Austria, and not finished until the year 2034? Or is the performative action of digging these boxes up the more important part of the artwork? Inspired by vintage adverts that became collector items because of their age, this vintage factor is artificially produced. The question whether we will be able to experience spam from the early days of the internet in its original surroundings in 25 years - due to compatibility problems – was inspiration for “Aura, Capital and Captain”. 

As an adventure day trip inspired by expeditions of the 19th century, the roles within the crew are well divided: Captain, navigator, scout, documenter and digging chief act strictly according to a protocol. In every little detail, the trip evokes magic and romantic importance. From the artefacts of the performance two framed pictures are produced, a collection of treasure maps, logbooks, polaroid photos and a DVD which is, as the documentary of the performance, also part of the physical art piece, and is shown at the exhibition on a screen next to the pictures. The collector of one picture also buys the right to dig up the box, the relationship between the owner and the artwork is an important part of the project.

“Aura, Capital and Captain” can be understood as the successive project to “Spamming Back“ – the performative idealisation of the cheapest object in the world (one single spam email) is increased by an artificial auratic charge. Whereas in “Spamming Back” a gallery confuses spam with art, in “Aura, Capital and Captain” it changes into an object of investment, which will be evaluated in 25 years. It is an item of speculation, reflecting the art markets’ attraction towards the potential of young artists’ development and their commercial careers rather than to the aesthetic sides of their work.

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Photos: Georg Geutebrück
with: Sophie Ertel / Georg Geutebrück / Stefan John / Julian Palacz
Thanks to: Geutebrück Consulting / Oles Zupnik / Elisabeth Schwarz