Günter Brus, Viennese Actionism pioneer, dies at 86

Günter Brus, a founder of the Viennese Actionism movement, has died. Actionism emerged in 1960s-70s Vienna, involving body art, performance, and action painting by Brus, Otto Mühl, Hermann Nitsch, and Rudolf Schwarzkogler. Brus used his body to challenge taboos and critique Austria's conservative establishment. In 1968, a performance led to a six-month prison sentence; he fled to Berlin, returning in 1976. His 'self-painting' approach influenced later artists like VALIE EXPORT. A survey exhibition opens at Kunsthaus Bregenz on 17 February, focusing on photographic documentation of his happenings, performances, and Informal paintings, including late works from the COVID-19 pandemic.