We remember VALIE EXPORT, performer and pioneer of multimedia art, who passed away in Vienna on 14 May 2026 at the age of 86. She was invited to the Centro Pecci in Prato in 2006 with a solo room in the group exhibition Opera Austria (curated by C. Bertsch, S. Hoeller, and S. Pezzato). With her well-known self-portrait from 1967/1970, now part of the Centro Pecci collection and currently on view in Eccentrica, she asserted her determination to define herself on her own terms by adopting a pseudonym functioning as an independent “Made in Austria” brand, alongside a virile, self-promotional pose traditionally associated with male stardom, challenging her condition and claiming female self-affirmation within a patriarchal and oppressive society.
Initially associated with the research and practices of Aktionism, her work used the human body as a tool for a radical feminist critique of society, expressed through photographed actions exploring social and sexual identity, films and videotapes informed by Freudian themes or fetishistic tendencies, and politically driven performances. Her major photographic works (Body Configurations, 1972–1982) reflect the physical and socio-cultural context in which the artist’s body is situated. Alongside these expressive investigations, VALIE EXPORT also pursued early experiments in Expanded Cinema, focused on deconstructing cinematic language and renewing forms of communication.