In the summer of 2025, the auditorium of the Stadtkino im Künstlerhaus was closed for extensive renovation. Artist Anna Paul and designer Daniela Mehlich were commissioned to redesign the auditorium in accordance with historic preservation considerations. In this talk, the duo provides insights into the underlying concept of their critically reflective design, taking into account the context in which the cinema auditorium was created in the early post-war years. Prominently displayed in the cinema auditorium are two large-format canvas paintings by Rudolf Hermann Eisenmenger, a painter with Nazi ties and long-time president of the Künstlerhaus. In this setting, Anna Paul and Daniela Mehlich, who have already addressed the issue of how to deal with Hitler’s birthplace with their association DA – Verein zur Förderung von Diskurs in der Architektur, will talk to art historian Veronika Floch, whose research includes the reception of Eisenmenger’s work. Floch was part of a commission of historians that provided academic support for the renovation project at the Stadtkino.

Registration at: https://stadtkinowien.at/news/talk-am-2-oktober-vorsicht-faschistisch-gestalten-zwischen-kontext-und-kritik-die-sanierung-des-stadtkinos-im-kuenstlerhaus/