The Life and Training of Luisa Kasalicky

Luisa Kasalicky arrives in the artistic landscape of Central Europe via her birth in Prague, Czech Republic, on July 15, 1974. Her formal training begins not in the capital, but in the mountains of Tirol. From 1996 to 1998, she attends the Glasfachschule Kramsach, a period that establishes her technical foundation before she moves toward the broader complexities of fine art.

The focus shifts to Vienna in 1998. Here, Kasalicky enters the Akademie der bildenden Künste Wien to study painting and graphics. She joins the class of Gunther Damisch, a formative environment that shapes her development through the turn of the millennium. By 2004, she has integrated into the Viennese art scene, becoming part of an atelier community that continues to host her practice. She completes her formal education at the Akademie in 2005, receiving her diploma and transitioning from student to professional practitioner.

Artistic Technique and Material Exploration

Kasalicky operates through a principle of modular structures. She moves away from the traditional direct application of paint by developing a method that relies on specific spatial arrangements. Her process often involves the use of "poor materials"—the discarded remnants of consumer culture. She hunts for clearance stock in hardware stores, specifically targeting building materials from the 1970s and 1980s. Linoleum, carpet, insulation boards, tiles, and decorative fabrics become the physical vocabulary of her work. These are not merely surfaces; they are the foundation of her compositions.

The work shifts between the two-dimensional and the sculptural. She assembles these fragments into objects that mimic the presence of emblems, figures, furniture, or other everyday items, yet they remain stripped of any actual utility. Polystyrene, bitumen plates, and PVC tiles are integrated into these assemblages. She uses a specific visual grammar to take these former inventions and transfer them into entirely new contexts. The materials retain their history through texture and color, even as their original functions vanish.

Exhibitions and Professional Activity

The professional trajectory of Luisa Kasalicky shows a consistent presence within the international art fair circuit. Between 1994 and 2016, her work moved through major global hubs, establishing a footprint in the contemporary market. The year 2013 marks a significant period of visibility, as her practice appeared at Art Basel and Art Basel Miami Beach. This momentum continued into the mid-2010s, with her work featured at art cologne in 2015 and abc art berlin contemporary in the same year.

Her engagement with these high-profile platforms remained steady over the following decade. She maintained a presence at Art Basel in 2021, and her professional reach extends into the future, with scheduled participation at Art Basel Paris 2025. This ongoing activity highlights a career defined by regular inclusion in the most prominent institutional and commercial art events across Europe and the Americas.

Notable Solo and Group Exhibitions

The exhibition history of Luisa Kasalicky moves through significant institutional spaces and galleries. In 2012, she appeared in the exhibition Immer Bunter. This was followed by her participation in Wiener Glut – Neue Kunst aus Wien und Düsseldorf. The momentum continued into 2013 with the solo exhibition Intro: desiderio. By 2014, her work was featured in the solo show Invitrospektive.

The focus shifted toward more complex installations and specific material inquiries in later years. In 2020, she presented Tiefschlaf in der Stadt. This was followed by the 2022 solo exhibition Medleys, Reliefs and Color Charts, which explored the relationship between musical forms and visual fragments.

• 2013: Intro: desiderio
• 2014: Invitrospektive
• 2020: Tiefschlaf in der Stadt
• 2022: Medleys, Reliefs and Color Charts

Where to See Her Works Today

The physical presence of Luisa Kasalicky's output is distributed across several significant institutional collections. In Vienna, her work finds a home within the Sigmund Freud Museum. This placement places her visual language in direct dialogue with the city's intellectual history. Her pieces are also held by the Artothek des Bundes, part of the federal collection of modern and contemporary Austrian art.

Beyond the capital, her work moves into the southern regions of Austria. The Museum Moderner Kunst Kärnten in Klagenfurt maintains works by the artist, ensuring her presence in the regional museum landscape. In Burgenland, her contributions are held by the Kunstraum Schattendorf. These locations represent the institutional recognition of her practice across different territories.