Art project in Linz

Lent: owl and donkey in the Ursuline Church

The donkey shooting in the church.(Bild: Bildrecht Wien, 2025)

During Lent, the Ursuline Church in Linz opens its doors to art: Nicole Six and Paul Petritsch have invited animal guests. Films now document this encounter. The crypt is also open to visitors, with an inscription about Planet Earth deep down.

Today's Ash Wednesday is the start of an art presentation in the Ursuline Church in Linz. The motto is "Memento Mori", a Latin expression meaning "Remember that you must die".

Throughout Lent until Good Friday (April 18), two installations can be seen that have been specially developed for the church interior and the crypt.

Animals as equal "fellow creatures"
The well-known Viennese artist couple Nicole Six and Paul Petritsch invited animal guests into the church. A donkey, goats, a rooster, sheep, a raven and a tawny owl were given the opportunity to sniff around the church space, to look around - and were filmed in the process. The films flicker on monitors in the church.

Nicole Six next to the monitor in the Ursuline Church, showing the film with the animals.(Bild: Diözese Linz, Johannes Kienberger)

Steep stairs lead to the crypt
Artist Six, who incidentally comes from Vöcklabruck, says of the surreal scenes: "Our central concern is to give animals a presence and language here and also to grant them a moment of self-determination." The idea that humans are subjugating the earth is no longer tenable. "Today, it's about participation and coexistence of all beings - in churches and in everyday life."

A steep staircase leads to the crypt. Here you will discover tombstones of the Ursulines and a small entry carved into the wall by Styrian artist Werner Reiterer. They are numbers: The age of the planet Earth and its presumed "death date" in 6 billion years (other predictions say 7.6 billion). One thing is certain: the sun will swallow the earth, there is no escape!