Early Life and Artistic Training

Richard Kriesche enters the scene in Vienna, Austria, on 28 October 1940. The city provides the initial backdrop for a rigorous academic formation. Between 1958 and 1963, he navigates the structured environments of the Academy of Fine Arts and the University of Vienna. His focus settles on the technical and conceptual foundations of graphic design and painting. These years establish the formal discipline that would later underpin his explorations into complex media.

The scope of his training expands beyond the borders of Austria. He moves through the academic landscape to University College London, broadening his perspective through international study. This trajectory leads him to the United States, where he conducts a research stay at the M.I.T. in Cambridge. This exposure to a different intellectual climate marks a significant shift in his development, moving him toward the intersection of traditional art and emerging technological research.

Academic and Professional Career

The trajectory of Kriesche’s career moves from the classroom to the institutional core of Austrian art. He begins his teaching career at the Höhere Technische Bundeslehranstalt Graz, a position he holds from 1963 to 1967 and again from 1969 to 1990. This period of instruction overlaps with his time as an assistant at the University of Applied Arts Vienna between 1967 and 1968. He later shifts his focus toward technical and academic instruction, holding a teaching position at the Technical University Vienna from 1988 to 1991.

The 1990s bring a transition into higher education and international guest roles. In 1991, he is appointed to the Hochschule für Gestaltung Offenbach. This academic momentum carries him to Paris, where he serves as a guest professor at the École des Beaux-Arts from 1995 to 1996. His professional reach extends into the administrative and cultural sectors of the Styrian Provincial Government, where he serves as the deputy head of the science department in the Office of the Styrian Provincial Government in 1996, eventually moving to the culture department in 1998.

The final phase of his institutional involvement includes a tenure at the Landesmuseum Joanneum Graz, where he works from 2003 to 2005. Throughout these decades, his professional life remains anchored in the intersection of pedagogy and the evolving structures of media and art institutions.

Artistic Focus and Techniques

Kriesche operates at the intersection of the biological and the digital. His practice spans a vast spectrum of media, moving from the tactile weight of painting and mixed media on board to the ephemeral nature of video art, computer art, and net art. He treats the canvas and the screen as interconnected sites for investigation, often utilizing an expanded understanding of art to bridge the gap between the genetic micro-worlds and the macro-worlds of the universe. This approach allows him to navigate the shifts from the physical to the virtual, exploring how information and communication technologies reshape human perception.

The materiality of his work often involves unconventional substrates. He employs digital prints, newspaper print, and even original postage stamps to ground his conceptual inquiries in the everyday. In his later investigations, the focus shifts toward the tension between digitization and spirituality. He analyzes the aesthetic parameters of new technologies, looking for ways to use their formal and semiotic idioms to address the permanent process of datafication. His work does not merely react to technological change; it examines the aesthetic and social potential of these innovations through performance, installation, and multimedia art.

• Objektbild No. 21967 (1967, mixed media on board)
• Austria Doppelbild (2019, digital print and original postage stamp)
• Easter 2017 (2017, newspaper print)

Major International Exhibitions

The trajectory of Kriesche’s career finds its most significant markers in the major international forums of the late twentieth century. In 1968, he enters the 34th Venice Biennale, a presence he maintains through the 42nd Biennale in 1986 and the 46th in 1995. These appearances in Venice place his investigations into media and information at the center of global contemporary discourse. His work moves from these Venetian stages to the rigorous environments of Documenta in Kassel, appearing in Documenta 6 in 1977 and Documenta 8 in 1987.

The intersection of art and technology becomes a recurring theme through his involvement with Ars Electronica. He appears as a featured artist in 1989, 1994, and 2003, marking decades of engagement with the evolution of electronic and digital media. This focus on the technical and the aesthetic extends to major institutional settings, including exhibitions at the Centre Pompidou in Paris and the Museum of Modern Art in New York in 1978.

Key Works and Artistic Projects

The trajectory of Kriesche’s practice moves from the physical act of creation toward the invisible structures of data. In 1972, the performance documentation Kunst ist Erstellen von Kunst captures a moment of conceptual inquiry. This focus on the process of making continues through video demonstrations, such as Peeling Off and the 1977 work Malerei deckt zu Kunst deckt auf. These projects examine the mechanics of the image and the medium itself.

As technology evolves, the work shifts toward the intersection of the human and the digital. The interactive installation Self-Space brings individual presence into dialogue with an invisible algorithm. This project addresses the ongoing process of datafication, where digital devices record and analyze the individual. It bridges the gap between the physical presence of the viewer and the mathematical structures of the digital age.

Kriesche’s later output continues to explore these layered realities through diverse media. In 2019, the work Austria Doppelbild utilized digital print and an original postage stamp to construct its visual field. This approach reflects a long-term interest in how information and communication technologies reshape our perception of reality.

• Series XI, No. 2 (about 1965)
• Objektbild No. 21967 (1967)

Awards and Honors

Recognition for Kriesche’s contributions to the Austrian art scene arrived in stages, moving from municipal honors to national distinction. In 1988, he received the Kunstpreis der Stadt Graz. This was followed by the Anerkennungspreis des Landes Steiermark für bildende Kunst in 1995. These awards marked his growing influence within the Styrian region and the broader Austrian landscape.

The focus of his recognition shifted toward the intersection of science and art as his work engaged more deeply with technological and digital revolutions. He was awarded the Austrian Decoration for Science and Art. This prestige was further cemented when he received the Österreichisches Ehrenkreuz für Wissenschaft und Kunst in both 2006 and 2007. By 2010, his specialized focus on new media was formally acknowledged with the Österreichischer Kunstpreis für Medienkunst.

Where to See His Works Today

The physical presence of Kriesche's output is anchored in several significant Austrian institutions. His works reside within the Generali Foundation Collection, a repository that holds pieces reflecting his long-standing engagement with media and information technology. The Fotosammlung des Bundes also maintains works by the artist, preserving his contributions to the photographic and visual record.

In Salzburg, his pieces are part of the holdings at the Museum der Moderne Salzburg (Mönchsberg). This collection places his investigations into digitization and media revolutions within a broader museum context. Additionally, the Landesmuseum Joanneum Graz holds works that trace his development from early conceptual experiments to contemporary multimedia installations.