Babylon Design School

Blue Sky Research, Action Design, Art

Art's Birthday — January 17
Der Geburtstag der Kunst — 17. Januar
2019/20, University of Applied Arts Vienna

In 1963 the French Fluxus artist Robert Filliou suggested that precisely 1 million years ago art was born. “It happened when someone dropped a dry sponge into a bucket of water”. Since then every year on January 17th an “Eternal Network” celebrates Art's Birthday and the principle of “création permanente” (ongoing creation). Four students from the University of Applied Arts Vienna honored the 1 million and 57th Birthday of Art with unique artistic presents Aya Shalkar Maris Nisu Verena Repar Frances Stusche





↑ top

Aya Shalkar
A Placeholder for Kazakhstan at La Biennale
Placeholder 2019, frame with paper, 59.4 x 84.1cm



2019 was supposed to be the first year when artists from Kazakhstan represented their country in an own pavillon at the Art Biennial in Venice. Due to political changes the Kazakh government cancelled the exhibition shortly before the opening. Kazakh artists protested against the political arbitrariness by using blank white canvas to demonstrate the systemic absence of art in their society.

On the occasion of a study trip to the Art Biennial the young Kazakh artist Aya Shalkar secretly installed a framed white canvas at the Biennial’s main pavillon. The bold installation was a placeholder to postulate the presence of art from Kazakhstan. The message was spread in the internet by a targeted social media campaign.
















↑ top

Maris Nisu (assisted by Aya Shalkar)
Birthday Cake
Experimental confectionary art

The cake dough is made of walnuts, bananas and green algaes. These odd ingredients not only produce a truely unique taste, but they manifest the conceptual confection of the cake: walnuts represent the brain, bananas suggest phallic qualities and the algaes arouse admiration for the ability to produce energy from sunlight. The consistence of the vegan creme remains secret, so does the mystery of the sprouts.








↑ top

Verena Repar
A Letter to Art
Poetry in the wilderness

“Nature is the greatest artist!” says young designer Verena Repar and writes a heartfelt birthday letter. “... My existence is not your condition, it's your choice ... Do you regret the day when I appeared? ... When did I become so arrogant to call my possession what what actually belongs to you? ... I rate my wealth higher than my origin ... I unlearned to breathe with your lungs, to let your streams flow inside of me and to weep your tears. How can I feel you inside of me while I have excluded myself and got lost with superficial shallowness?... I find silence through you because you never keep still ...”





↑ top

Frances Stuche
The Skin of Gifts — Packaging can make objects become presents
Happy wrapping!

Frances Stusche reuses and recycles ressources from her household and from her everyday life: a box of chocolates, leather, stockings, cling wrap, underwear, scrunchies, bubble wrap, rubber band, toilet paper etc.





Happy Birthday Art!