EVA GENTNER. Constellations of the Future
Our film explores the artistic practice of Eva Gentner, whose latest works, presented at the STRABAG Artaward, map the sky anew—not with mythological figures, but with symbols of contemporary technological ambition. Inspired by the overwhelming presence of satellites in Earth’s orbit, her work questions the evolving relationship between human progress and the cosmos.
The film follows Gentner’s journey, tracing the origins of her project back to Paris, where she spent six months on a scholarship during the lockdown. Isolated in her room, she found herself navigating the vast digital landscape of the internet, only to be confronted by an equally boundless and unsettling reality: the growing satellite constellations of SpaceX. The sheer number of artificial bodies soon to populate the sky shook her deeply, leading her to an urgent inquiry—what happens when the sky becomes so crowded with man-made objects that it ceases to be a space of wonder? Will we rename these satellites, just as past explorers once named newly encountered stars?
Through intimate interviews and carefully captured visuals, the film reveals Gentner’s artistic research into historical celestial cartography. She discovered that while the northern hemisphere’s constellations bear the imprint of Greek mythology, those of the southern hemisphere reflect the era of European expansion—named not after gods, but after instruments of technological progress, such as the “Chemical Furnace” and the “Compass.” This historical precedent became the conceptual backbone of her project: a series of new constellations, each named after present-day technological frontiers—terms like “Supercomputer,” “Brain-Computer Interface,” and “Lithium.” These names, drawn from contemporary advancements, also carry with them an implicit critique, hinting at the ethical complexities embedded in progress.
The film also captures Gentner’s meticulous working process. Initially experimenting with standard paper, she eventually sourced antique sky atlases reminiscent of 17th-century star maps. The resulting drawings, evocative of copperplate engravings, blur the boundaries between past and future, science and myth, aspiration and consequence.
Rather than offering definitive answers, our film invites viewers into Gentner’s world—a space where nostalgia and futurism collide, where technological optimism is shadowed by the irreversible marks of human intervention. At a time when the sky is no longer a limitless expanse but a contested space, her constellations serve as both a reflection of progress and a quiet, poetic warning.
The exhibition "beton" by the artist is on display at the STRABAG Art Site im Gironcoli-Kristall, Donau-City-Straße 9, 1220 Wien from March 4th till April 3rd 2025.
https://www.strabag-kunstforum.at/Das könnte Sie auch interessieren
EDVARD MUNCH. In Dialogue
18. February 2022
PETER CVIK. Winner of a recognition prize of STRABAG Artaward International 2023
12. October 2023
KUCSKO - Double Coated IP Capsule
19. January 2011
Tomak - PHANTOMAK
11. January 2012
Homo Fabre - in the realm of the Blue Hour
16. May 2011
ALBERTINAmodern. Ein neues Museum entsteht
7. November 2019
Basquiat Warhol - Psychophysical Dialogues
17. October 2013