Valie Export facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Valie Export
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Valie Export in 2013
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| Born |
Waltraud Lehner
17 May 1940 Linz, Nazi Germany (now Austria)
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| Died | 14 May 2026 (aged 85) Vienna, Austria
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| Known for | Artist |
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Notable work
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Cinema Work, Photography, Sculpture, Computer Animations |
| Movement | Avant-Garde, Performance art, Contemporary art |
| Awards | Grand Gold Decoration for Services to the Republic of Austria |
Valie Export (born Waltraud Lehner) was a famous Austrian artist. She was known for her unique and often surprising art, especially her public performances and film work. She also created video art, computer animations, photographs, and sculptures. Her art often explored how society views women and how media shapes our understanding of the world.
Contents
Early life and education
Valie Export was born Waltraud Lehner in Linz, Austria, on May 17, 1940. She grew up there with her mother and two siblings. Later, she moved to Vienna to study painting, drawing, and design at a special school for textiles.
Artistic journey
A new name and bold art
In 1967, she decided to change her name from Waltraud Hollinger to VALIE EXPORT. She explained that she wanted a new name that was her own, not from her father or husband. She liked the idea of "exporting" her ideas to the world. This name change showed her strong desire to be an independent artist.
At that time, the art scene in Vienna was very active with artists who created bold performance art. Valie Export was inspired by this energy. She used her art to question how women were seen in society and in the media.
Valie Export created many memorable performances. She wanted to challenge the usual ways people viewed women in public spaces.
Another important performance was Tapp-und-Tast-Kino (Tap and Touch Cinema), which she did in several European cities. For this, she wore a small "movie theater" box on her front. She invited people to interact with this "cinema" in a new way, challenging how we usually experience movies and public art. This performance made people think about how we use our senses beyond just sight. Her bold art sometimes caused strong reactions from the public and media.
Exploring body and media
In other works, like Invisible Adversaries and "Korpersplitter," Valie Export explored how the human body connects with historical buildings. She used these connections to discuss how society shapes roles for people, especially women.
In 1971, Valie Export created a pioneering video art piece called Facing a Family. It was one of the first times an artist used television in this way. The video showed a family eating dinner and watching TV. When other families watched this on their own TVs, it made them think about their own lives and how they interacted with television.
Speaking up for women
In 1972, Valie Export wrote "Women's Art: A Manifesto." In this important writing, she encouraged women to express themselves and define their own image. She believed that art could help change society to better meet the needs of women. Her manifesto highlighted how women's lives were often limited by societal expectations.
Her 1973 short film, Remote, Remote, explored the pressures women face to meet certain beauty standards. The film showed actions that represented the harm these expectations can cause to a person's body.
Following her manifesto, Valie Export organized an art exhibition in Vienna in 1975. It was called MAGNA. Feminism: Art and Creativity. This show was important because it presented women artists as curators and historians of modern art.
In 1977, her first full-length film, Unsichtbare Gegner, was released. She worked with Peter Weibel on the script. The movie tells the story of Anna, a photographer who believes an alien force is taking over people. The film explores how societal expectations can affect a person's mind. This film received some criticism, with some people misunderstanding parts of her artistic message. Valie Export had to correct false information spread about her work.
Later career and recognition
Her 1983 experimental film, Syntagma, used different film techniques to explore how the female body is shown in art and history. Valie Export believed that art and stories often shaped how people viewed women's bodies. She said, "The female body has always been a construction," meaning it's often shaped by ideas rather than natural reality.
Her 1985 film, The Practice of Love, was shown at the 35th Berlin International Film Festival.
From 1995 to 2005, Valie Export was a professor at the Academy of Media Arts Cologne. She taught about multimedia performance art.
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In 2016, her hometown of Linz created a special research center for her work. They also acquired her archive, which holds many of her artistic materials.
In 2016, Bard College held an exhibition focusing on her 1977 film Unsichtbare Gegner. The show included Valie Export's art and works by other artists who were inspired by her groundbreaking ideas.
In 2019, Valie Export received the Roswitha Haftmann Prize. This is one of Europe's biggest art awards, recognizing her important contributions to the art world.
Advocacy for peace
In February 2023, Valie Export was one of many people who signed a "Manifesto for Peace." This petition asked leaders to work towards a peaceful solution in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
Death
Valie Export passed away in Vienna on May 14, 2026, just before her 86th birthday.
Works
Selected filmography
- Splitscreen - Solipsismus (1968)
- INTERRUPTED LINE (1971)
- ...Remote…Remote... (1973)
- Mann & Frau & Animal (1973)
- Adjungierte Dislokationen (1973)
- Invisible Adversaries (Unsichtbare Gegner, 1976)
- Menschenfrauen (1977)
- Syntagma (1983)
- The Practice of Love (Die Praxis der Liebe, 1984)
- I turn over the pictures of my voice in my head (2008)
Awards
- 1990: City of Vienna Prize for Visual Arts
- 1992: Austrian Prize for video and media art
- 1995: Sculpture Award at the Generali Foundation
- 1997: Gabriele Münter Prize
- 2000: Oskar Kokoschka Prize
- 2000: Alfred Kubin Prize Big Price culture of Upper Austria
- 2003: Gold Medal for services to the City of Vienna
- 2005: Austrian Decoration for Science and Art
- 2009: Honorary Doctorate of the University of Arts and Industrial Design Linz
- 2010: Grand Gold Decoration for Services to the Republic of Austria
- 2019: 19th Roswitha Haftmann Prize
- 2020: Golden Nica Visionary Pioneer of Feminist Media Art Prix Ars Electronica
- 2021: Honorary Fellowship of the Royal Photographic Society
See also
In Spanish: Valie Export para niños
