Austrian Pavilion at 2024 Venice Biennale Explores Resistance Through Dance and Time

The Austrian Pavilion at the 60th Venice Biennale, curated by Gabriele Spindler, features Russian-born artist Anna Jermolaewa (b. 1970, Leningrad), who migrated to Austria in 1989. Her project aligns with the Biennale's theme "Stranieri Ovunque – Foreigners Everywhere" through five installation works that emphasize temporality and socio-cultural references. The centerpiece is the video installation "Rehearsal for Swan Lake" (2024), created with Ukrainian choreographer Oksana Serheieva (b. 1986, Odessa), who migrated to Austria in 2022. The work references the Soviet propaganda practice of broadcasting Tchaikovsky's ballet during political instability. Another video, "Research for Sleeping Positions" (2006), shows Jermolaewa attempting to sleep on a bench at Vienna Westbahnhof, reflecting her week-long wait for transfer to the Traiskirchen refugee camp. The pavilion also includes "The Penultimate" (2017), featuring flowers and plants symbolizing popular revolutions, and "Untitled" (2024), a readymade of six phone booths from the Traiskirchen camp. Jermolaewa's approach is described as "Relational Romanticism," offering a gentle yet persistent resistance to conformist thought.