Erwin Wurm is politically incorrect on purpose – Humans in awkward poses

Erwin Wurm - Instructions on how to be politically incorrect, Spit in Someone's Soup, 2003
Erwin Wurm – Instructions on how to be politically incorrect, Spit in Someone’s Soup, 2003

Introduction

Erwin Wurm is undoubtedly one of Austria’s and one of the world’s most recognizable artists. Using social taboos and absurd scenarios to create his thought-provoking work, Wurm’s artworks have broken boundaries and changed how people approach and view art in contemporary society.

Erwin Wurm - Instructions on how to be politically incorrect, Inspection, 2002, C-print, 126 x 184-cm, Foto Erwin Wurm, VG Bild-Kunst Bonn
Erwin Wurm – Instructions on how to be politically incorrect, Inspection, 2002

How to be politically incorrect

How to be Politically Incorrect consists of a strange series of photos depicting human beings in several awkward situations that would otherwise be deemed politically incorrect in any part of the world. The series of photos was created between the years 2002 and 2003.

Erwin Wurm - Instructions on how to be politically incorrect, Looking for a Bomb 1
Erwin Wurm – Instructions on how to be politically incorrect, Looking for a Bomb 1

How to be Politically Incorrect comprised several inappropriate scenarios that should never happen in real life, such as a woman peeing on a rug, as well as a scene containing a man whose head is stuck beneath a woman’s blouse. Comic and absurd, each of these scenarios was created to question political and social standards as human beings understand them today.

Erwin Wurm - Instructions on how to be politically incorrect, Looking for a Bomb 2, 2003
Erwin Wurm – Instructions on how to be politically incorrect, Looking for a Bomb 2, 2003

Challenging societal ethics

For years, Wurm has been creating facetious skits that challenge the rules of stability and societal ethics. Each of these works is created using photographs, performances, installations, and videos with the subjects or the actors posed in particular compromising situations. The subjects or mannequins in the series were made with simplicity in mind to come as close to resembling real human beings as possible.

Erwin Wurm - Instructions on how to be politically incorrect, Looking for a Bomb 4
Erwin Wurm – Instructions on how to be politically incorrect, Looking for a Bomb 4

In the series, the subjects and the various scenes were designed to represent events that take place in daily life and Wurm emphasized their ridiculous nature to drive the point home. By relying on absurdities to make up his work, Erwin forces the viewer to confront and challenge expected behavioral conventions.

Erwin Wurm - Instructions on how to be politically incorrect, Looking for a Bomb
Erwin Wurm – Instructions on how to be politically incorrect, Looking for a Bomb

About Erwin Wurm

Throughout his career, Erwin has been creating art that both entertains and irritates at the same time- this has become his standard and style. When he creates art, Erwin strives to continually investigate the limits of human behavior by challenging the legitimacy of the norms and rules established by society.

Erwin Wurm - Instructions on how to be politically incorrect, Observation, 2003, Bildrecht Wien
Erwin Wurm – Instructions on how to be politically incorrect, Observation, 2003

Erwin Wurm’s work

Through his installations, Wurm comments on modern society and critiques it through his curious perspective of the world that has catapulted him to global fame and success. Throughout his career, Wurm’s transient performative one minute sculptures which he often photographs before exhibiting, have combined both humor and fundamental criticisms, which has paved the way for numerous explanations and interpretations from audiences.

Erwin Wurm - Instructions on how to be politically incorrect, Pee on someone's rug, 2003, c-print (126 x 160 cm)
Erwin Wurm – Instructions on how to be politically incorrect, Pee on someone’s rug, 2003

Biography

Born in Austria in 1954 in Bruck an der Mur, Austria, Erwin has gained fame for his figures and sculptures, making rounds in biennials and galleries since the 80s. His work has been the subject of numerous museum exhibitions, including the National Gallery of Victoria, the National Museum of Art in Osaka, and many more. Today, he lives and works in Vienna.

Erwin Wurm - Instructions on how to be politically incorrect, Two Ways Of Carrying A Bomb
Erwin Wurm – Instructions on how to be politically incorrect, Two Ways Of Carrying A Bomb

 

All images by Erwin Wurm unless otherwise noted.

More by Erwin Wurm

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