"Christians fair game"

Art show outrages with Our Lady as a trans woman

The show at the Künstlerhaus has been criticized by Christian groups.(Bild: Klemens Groh)

Priests as wolves and a crucified frog are just the beginning: a show at Vienna's Künstlerhaus has sparked a culture war. The Christian Protection Reporting Office speaks of "targeted, tasteless degradation". 

The exhibition "Du sollst dir ein Bild machen" had only been open for a few weeks when a sharply worded letter (available to the "Krone") landed on the desk of President Tanja Prušnik.

Fierce criticism from Christenschutz
In it, the Christian Protection Reporting Office speaks of "deliberate, tasteless disparagement of the saint". The president of MROS, Jan Ledóchowski, draws a drastic comparison: certain works (see below) would "never" be conceivable in the context of Islam or Judaism. Why is Christianity in particular "fair game" for obscenities?

A tasteless degradation of the sacred. Some works would not be conceivable in the context of Islam or Judaism.

Jan Ledóchowski, Meldestelle Christenschutz

Bild: privat

A loving and humorous approach
The list of objectionable works is long - and violent. Allusions to sexuality and fetishes are used deliberately to provoke. And a wolf in priestly garb defames clergymen as dangerous animals - one of the more harmless works. One sentence from the accompanying booklet is particularly offensive to the reporting office: The exhibition stands "not for superficial provocation", but for a "loving" and "humorous" approach to Christian iconography.

Die Werke stehen im Zentrum der Aufregung

Die Bilder und die Kritik daran:

The exhibit "Of Sheep and Wolves" by Deborah Sengl shows a figure in liturgical priestly garb, but with the head of a sheep and the baring teeth of a wolf. Criticism from MROS: "Priests are being defamed across the board as dangerous predators."(Bild: Deborah Sengl/Bildrecht Wien 2025/Ingo Pertramer)

Martin Kippenberger's "Fred the Frog Rings the Bell" (a crucified frog) is also on display. Criticism from the Reporting Office: "You are doing this in the full knowledge that this work has already triggered massive protests and has even been criticized by Pope Benedict XVI as an affront to religious feelings. The fact that you are showing it again proves intent."(Bild: Estate of Martin Kippenberger, Galerie Gisela Capitain, Cologne.Photo: Foto Hofer.IBK)

Renate Bertlmann's "Tender Christ" shows a crucifix that is completely covered with latex nubs. Criticism from the reporting office: "The accompanying booklet boasts of transforming one of the "most powerful symbols" into an "erotically connoted object". The cross, a sign of suffering and redemption, is brought close to sexual fetishes here."(Bild: Renate Bertlmann/Bildrecht Wien 2025/Claudia Rohrauer)

The work "Quaint Sunday/Mary's Penis N°3" by Anouk Lamm Anouk. Criticism from the Reporting Office: "Here the Pietà, the image of the grieving mother with her dead son, is distorted into the grotesque. Mary is depicted here as a trans woman, explicitly with a penis held by Jesus. Such a sexualization of the Mother of God crosses every boundary of taste."(Bild: Simon Veres)

More space needed for Islam exhibition
Curator Günther Oberhollenzer responds to the Krone inquiry. The criticism is taken "very seriously", but hurting religious feelings is "not the intention of this show". Many believers had found the exhibition "challenging but stimulating" - even clergymen attested that they did not perceive the works as disparaging. He rejects the accusation of a one-sided selection. Christianity has shaped Europe's visual world for centuries, which is why the show concentrates on this tradition. A parallel treatment of Islam and Judaism is possible, but would require a completely different concept and significantly more exhibition space. However, it is also a fact that Christians are currently being persecuted in many countries and that there are also increasing attacks on Christian institutions in Austria.

Criticism of funding
In any case, politics has now also become involved. This is because the Künstlerhaus is funded by the City of Vienna. ÖVP culture spokeswoman Judith Edelmann: "Of course artistic freedom applies, even when religions are the subject. Nevertheless, some of the exhibitions in question are simply tasteless and should not be financed with public funds. Pure provocation does not create real discourse."