Rudolf Polanszky

Austrian artist Rudolf Polanszky is a pivotal figure in the Vienna art scene.

Biography of Rudolf Polanszky

Rudolf Polanszky was born in Vienna and grew up in the 1960s amidst the Viennese Actionists, a group of artists known for their graphic and often bloody actions and performances involving people and animals. Initially, Polanszky responded against this movement with his own ironic actions. For instance, in the 1980s, he attached paintbrushes, sponges dipped in paint, and colored pens to his body. He then filmed himself moving around and rolling on the floor of a paper-covered room, creating paintings.

In his "Sprungfedernzeichnungen" ("Coil Spring Drawings") (1983–85), he propelled himself around his studio on a large metal spring, holding elongated paintbrushes in each hand and leaving painted traces of his spontaneous movements. In his "Schlafbilder" ("Sleep Pictures") (1983), he wore a jumpsuit adorned with painting and drawing tools while sleeping on the floor, letting his sleeping state serve as the body’s kinetic pattern illustrations.

In the 1990s, Polanszky underwent an artistic transformation. This period marked a shift as he started crafting canvas-mounted and freestanding assemblages. These works combined salvaged industrial materials such as acrylic glass, aluminum, mirrored foil, resin, silicone, and wire into new aesthetic forms. By freeing these materials from their original contexts and uses, Polanszky embarked on what he terms "ad hoc synthesis." This process involves combining deliberate artistic strategies with the randomness of incidents to create new meaning.

Polanszky's artistry has been recognized with solo museum exhibitions across Europe. Notable among these are "Translineare Strukturen (Translinear Structures)," a retrospective held in 2015 at Zeit Kunst Niederösterreich in Krems, Austria, and "Eidola," an exhibition showcasing his works at the Secession in Vienna in 2018.

Rudolf Polanszky continues to live and work in Vienna.