Portfolio-Review
24. November 2014
Emanuel Layr Galerist, Wien
Portfolio-Review Emanuel Layr
I studied art history in Vienna starting in 1999. Then I ran an alternative
space together with friends from university for 3 years. I did some internships at galleries and at an auction house, but
I soon realized that I didn’t want to wait 20 years to curate and organize my first project on my own.
The model of the alternative space didn’t give me enough perspective in developing a programme. I had the feeling that I needed to find a model where I could work for a longer period, and more closely with artists. The gallery model was more interesting to me. In 2002-03 I entered a collaboration with Thomas Wüstenhagen, who is now working for Art Basel.
We started a project space close to the Museums Quartier. In 2005-06 we found a new location in Vienna city center and Gallery Layr Wuestenhagen was established.
The model of the alternative space didn’t give me enough perspective in developing a programme. I had the feeling that I needed to find a model where I could work for a longer period, and more closely with artists. The gallery model was more interesting to me. In 2002-03 I entered a collaboration with Thomas Wüstenhagen, who is now working for Art Basel.
We started a project space close to the Museums Quartier. In 2005-06 we found a new location in Vienna city center and Gallery Layr Wuestenhagen was established.
In March 2011 the gallery was reestablished under my directorship. Since then, the gallery programme
has expanded with new artists joining the gallery like Franz Amann, Andy Boot, Lili Reynaud-Dewar, Plamen Dejanoff, Benjamin
Hirte, Lisa Holzer and Stano Filko and I have intensified working with existing artists like Julien Bismuth, Mahony, Marius
Engh and Nick Oberthaler, organizing exhibitions in and outside the gallery, publication projects, etc.... The gallery also
maintained an ambitious programme of solo exhibitions, punctuated by frequent group shows like "... forsakes its existence
and gives its shape over to recollection" curated by Severin Dünser and Christian Kobald, "No day without a temperament" curated
by Benjamin Hirte, "Very abstract and really figurative" curated by Emanuel Layr and other curatorial projects such as curated
by_vienna 2012, "The Body Argument" curated by Florence Derieux, curated by_vienna 2013 curated by Bart van der Heide and
2014 by Egija Inzule.
Info
Rustenschacherallee 2-4, 1020
Wien