Bodi Bill
MuseumsQuartier, 2009
Our offstage session with Berlin-based Bodi Bill might not have taken place in such an unhindered manner if it had happened a few weeks later. Then the location – Museumsquartier (MQ) – became subject of a huge debate on how to define and use public space, namely if people should be allowed to drink self-brought alcoholic drinks and make music within the MQ area. At first, rules were tightened, but after some protests softened again. Anyway, despite the exposed location high above the MQ square and next to the greyish cube that houses the Museum of Modern Arts nobody comes to interrupt Bodi Bill’s inspired performance of their crowd-favourite “Very Small” and the brand new song “Garden Dress”. Except the friendly old lady, who gets out of the elevator, sees band and camera and jokes about her dog wanting to be the star of the video. Initially, we intended to film the session at Donaukanal, but singer Fabian’s pollen allergy made us leave there and head to this entirely blossomless steel-and-concrete-space, that makes a nice contrast to Bodi Bill’s crackling, organic electronic sounds and warm melodies. And their multicoloured clothes stand out even more!
- Photography
- Simon Brugner
- Artist
- Bodi Bill
MuseumsQuartier
MuseumsQuartier (MQ) is with 60.000 m² the eight-largest cultural complex worldwide and has already gained the third spot on Vienna’s most-visited list (after Schönbrunn and Kunsthistorisches Museum) since the opening in 2001. The complex was installed on the former imperial stables with some buff historic structure enclosing a vast court with several modern museum buildings inside like Architekturzentrum Wien (documents international architectural developments), Kunsthalle (shows local and international contemporary art), Leopold Museum (presents 19-century and modernist Austrian artworks and the worlds biggest collection of Egon Schiele paintings) or MUMOK (focuses on 20th-century-art as pop art, fluxus, nouveau realism, expressionism, cubism, minimal art and Viennese Actionism). Between the light and limestoned Leopold Museum and the dark MUMOK with its basalt rock murals stretches a wide courtyard with people sunbathing in summer or curling in winter. Apart from the manifold cultural programme people also come for the little shops, restaurants or cafés. Café Leopold with nightly DJ-programme is most popular.