PTS | MANN MACHT KUNST: Rethinking Violence in Art and the Role of Museums
At the end of January 2026, the documentary project MANN MACHT KUNST by Elisabeth Schäfer (Faculty of Psychotherapy Science) was launched in collaboration with the collective MATHILDA. The project is funded by the BMKÖS Film Funding Program, the ÖFI-ORF Film/Television Agreement, the Arts and Culture Funding of the State of Lower Austria, and the City of Vienna.
Themes and Questions
The documentary investigates key societal questions:
- How do we today handle artworks that originate from contexts of violence?
- Is there a fascination with this violence – among artists, museums, or audiences?
- What responsibility do institutions bear, and what role can museums play as instruments of power?
Using a collage of materials from different historical periods, the film revisits sites of discovery, action, and violence and transforms them into spaces for encounter, dialogue, and societal reflection. In doing so, the documentary itself becomes an imagined site of negotiation, addressing gaps that have so far remained largely invisible in legal, societal, and institutional contexts.
Societal Relevance and Outreach
The project demonstrates how SFU Vienna’s research perspectives can be creatively brought into societal discourse: a compelling example of successful 3rd Mission outreach.
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24 March 2026