HERMANN NITSCH

Orgy Mystery Theater Six-Day Play Hermann Nitsch: Vice: I study political science.
Why?
Has that always been your feeling about politics?
So, you are a nonpolitical person.
Hermann Nitsch surrounded by collaborators during his action 122 at the Burgtheater in Vienna in 2005. Are there reflections of war experiences in your work?
You started out quite conventionally, studying graphic design at the University of Vienna. What influenced you as a young man at that time?
And on a philosophical level?
What was Vienna like at the time of your first exhibition?
How did you meet the other artists with whom you later came to be known collectively as the Vienna Actionists?
Orgy Mystery Theater What happened?
Later you were sentenced to six months parole.
Die erste heilige Kommunion A blindfolded man was crucified in front of a bisected bull while several naked men stabbed him with giant spears as blood spewed from his mouth during action 122 at the Burgtheater, Vienna, 2005. Was it as difficult in Bavaria as it was in Austria?
Had the country changed much?
You held a few of your performances in America as well.
Yes, the Austrian experimental filmmaker.
Village Voice Sometimes you conduct your art-action performances alone, and on other occasions it’s a big spectacle with almost 100 people. How much of it is staged, and what happens spontaneously?
But more people means more logistical investment. Do you sometimes feel like a musical conductor or a dictator?
A group of actors organized by Nitsch tore apart a calf carcass as a crucified and blindfolded man held still underneath during action 111 at Fondazione Morra in Naples in 2002. Do you feel relief when a performance is over?
What’s it like to work with blood and flesh?
Have you ever considered working with something other than these materials? You could have created a similar intensity with feces, for example.
What are your feelings regarding provocation?
A man kneads a pile of entrails as a part of action 129 at the Galleria Officina Dell’Arte in Rome in 2002. But breaking taboos is an essential element of your work, is it not?
Isenheim Altarpiece Does it make a difference to you how this intensity is generated? Whether it’s somebody tied to a cross or you putting sheep entrails on a penis?
Where do you draw the line?
Where does your moral understanding come from?
How do you feel about religion?
Your work reflects that.
For whom are you writing your thick, theoretical books?
What about the people who confront your work without any theoretical knowledge?
Are you a missionary?
And you want to be comprehended.