#ToArtItsFreedom

To promote the anniversary year “Viennese Modernism 2018”, the Vienna Tourist Board asked the question about the limits of art in our seemingly enlightened society. And started a media experiment. We booked out of home, print and online placements for Egon Schiele motifs and promptly received the not entirely unexpected response from official sources: In the United Kingdom and in Germany the world-famous Schiele nudes were only allowed to be shown with veiled genitals in public. We apologized to viewers for the loss of art enjoyment this caused. With a campaign that stimulated the audience to engage in an active discussion and gained attention for Vienna and Viennese Modernism. Even social media platforms dealt with the campaign in different ways. What some platforms permitted was subjected to censorship by others. Under the hashtag “ToArtItsFreedom”, based on the slogan of the Vienna Secession, people’s reactions on all social networks were collected. The international press also took the campaign as an occasion to join in the discussion about the limits of art and the morals and values of our society.