Wall painting in Mariahilf: City council decides to overpaint out of respect

Wall painting in Mariahilf: City council decides to overpaint out of respect

Recently, a controversial murals in Mariahilf caused excitement, and now it is decided: the work in question is painted over. The municipal council today accepted an application from all parties for neutral overpainting. There is a serious reason behind this step: the artist was convicted of sexual offenses in 2003 and thus caused a violent public debate.

The spokesman for residential building councilor Kathrin Gaal (SPÖ) confirmed that this measure was decided out of “respect for the victims of sexual violence”. The city had originally thought of a tender by the "Art in Public Space" initiative (Kör) in order to find solutions for an overpainting. But that was off the table now. Instead, one decided to make an immediate and neutral redesign, which shows that faster action was seen here.

background of the artwork

The murals are located on the fire wall at Magdalenenstraße 33 and has become more and more a target of criticism over the years. The painter of the picture was sentenced to a probation penalty of nine months in the previous year after having abused two women in a body-painting. Since then, feminist initiatives, including "Catcalls of Vienna" and "Ni Una Menos Austria", have called for its overpainting, whereby one of the women concerned even mentioned that she had to pass the work of the perpetrator every day.

criticism of the city government

The reaction of the Vienna People's Party was mixed after today's decision. Silvia Janoch, the family spokeswoman for the ÖVP, expressed her relief that it has finally been acted. However, she criticized that the SPÖ and NEOS had previously blocked the initiative. Janoch emphasized that it was not sustainable for women who were abused by art under the guise of art, that the mural of a convicted sex offender in Vienna remains present.

The decision to overpaint was interpreted as a sign of respect for the victims and thus represents a significant step. The city now seems to be on a clear course in order to take into account the request for change and respect. The developments for murals in Mariahilf are in a row with a broader discussion about art in public space and how this can be reconciled with social values. In Vienna it will be exciting to observe how these topics will develop and which art will be visible in public space in the future.

For more information about the background and current developments, the article can be found on wien.orf.at