Michael Horowitz, 28 February – 13 April 2020 @ Albertina

The Viennese publisher, author, and journalist Michael Horowitz (b. 1950) turned to photography at an early age—already during his school days he supported his father, a wellknown theater photographer.
The exhibition focuses on Horowitz’s photographs from the 1960s to the 1980s, when he worked as a freelance photographer and made portraiture his favorite discipline.
One focus of the show is on personalities from Vienna’s cultural life, which plays a major role for Horowitz. He has been closely associated with the theater from his beginnings, and his friendship with Helmut Qualtinger in particular resulted in extraordinary portraits of the stage star.
As his unique photographs of the Viennese art scene impressively demonstrate, Michael Horowitz has a special talent for building trust. From the early 1960s on, the first contemporary art galleries and museums offered artists seeking access to the international art world a platform for exchange and networking. In addition, exhibitions brought the international avant-garde and art stars to Vienna, which encouraged a thorough examination of their ideas and concepts. Horowitz’s personal interest in visual artists and new friendships with them spawned a series of portraits depicting important protagonists of the contemporary scene.
Another focus is on the photographs shot on the streets of Vienna or on behalf of magazines.They show the efforts of a wide variety of actors keen on breaking up the narrowness of postwar society and leaving it behind. The pictures convey an impression of the atmosphere of departure that prevailed in Vienna at the time and initiated a change toward a more cosmopolitan city. Michael Horowitz observes his sitters closely and captures them with great empathy and a feeling for expressive moments in a clear visual language. His photographs of two decades shot in this vein provide us with pictures of famous people who are still associated with Austria today. All photographs on display come from the artist’s own collection and were printed on FineArt Baryta paper.

You can dowload the press kit from here

Michael Horowitz
Senta Berger, 1973 (up)
Hahnemühle Fine Art Baryta Print
Besitz des Künstlers © Michael Horowitz

Michael Horowitz
Arnold Schwarzenegger, 1975
Hahnemühle Fine Art Baryta Print
Besitz des Künstlers © Michael Horowitz

Michael Horowitz
Fatty George, Al Fats Edwards, Helmut Qualtinger, 1977
Hahnemühle Fine Art Baryta Print
Besitz des Künstlers © Michael Horowitz

Michael Horowitz
Friederike Mayröcker, 2019
Hahnemühle Fine Art Baryta Print
Besitz des Künstlers © Michael Horowitz

Michael Horowitz
Kiki Kogelnik, 1969
Hahnemühle Fine Art Baryta Print
Besitz des Künstlers © Michael Horowitz

Michael Horowitz
Marie Colbin, 1982
Hahnemühle Fine Art Baryta Print
Besitz des Künstlers © Michael Horowitz

Michael Horowitz
Mick Jagger, 1967
Hahnemühle Fine Art Baryta Print
Besitz des Künstlers © Michael Horowitz

Michael Horowitz
Oskar Werner, 1983
Hahnemühle Fine Art Baryta Print
Besitz des Künstlers © Michael Horowitz

Michael Horowitz
Simon Wiesenthal, 1976
Hahnemühle Fine Art Baryta Print
Besitz des Künstlers © Michael Horowitz

Michael Horowitz
Thomas Bernhard, 1972
Hahnemühle Fine Art Baryta Print
Besitz des Künstlers © Michael Horowitz