CAMERA AUSTRIA nr. 31/32 owes its structure and content to all the protagonists in the debate on photography in this country: artists, mediators, critics, writers and sponsors. Preparing for the photographic event of the century, we began collecting this material in 1988. The original idea to have a project team prepare a joint publication of all photography events in 1989 to gain public presence foundered in the lack of funs and coordination. While in other countries such ideas have long been instutionalised, in this country the sum total of all initiatives in merly the number of the individuals involved. This state of things, however, also has its positive sides: the present publication,a sampler of the work that has been shown and can be seen in our country is evidence of the fact that the majority of the 35 organizers (galleries, museums, associations, public institutions) of roughly 120 photo exhibitions during the past year are showing a degree of photographic continuity also reflected in the level of the work and the debate.

Another aspect becomes evident in the structure of this issue: taking into consideration the historic interest in the medium, the number of exhibitions of contemporary photography is extraordinarily high. The fact that “The History of Photography in Austria” was presented as early 1983/84 in an exhibition and publication- the result of serverals year’s work – should not distract from the thrush that photography continues to suffer neglect by research and educational institutions in Austria.

In consequence, CAMERA AUSTRIA 31/32 intends to motivate the reader to take a look (perhaps a second look) at what was on show in this country in the course of one year. The data accompanying the pictures include not only the authors but also places and – in such case when the work was shown in group or theme exhibitions- titles of exhibitions. In an attempt to give emphasis to certain contents, some of the exhibitions have been dealt with more extensively. The choice of such points of emphasis and the decision which individual picture was to represent a series of works on show rested with the editors of this issue. Special attion was given to materials that should be notes internationally: Vienna street scenes by Emil Mayer , made in 1910 but first exhibited as reprints in 1989 as Galerie Faber; a selection of photographs from the exhibition “Inside the View” dealing with aspects of surrealist photography in Eastern Europe; Wolfang Kudrnofsky’s  work in Vienna from 1949 to 1950M the heretofore unpublished photographs of the Vienna actionist group;  “The Metric Films as  Images” by Peter Kubelka. There are highlights of contemporary photography like the exhibition “Concept -Installation- Imagination” (shown, like W. Kudrnofky, at the Kulturhaus der Stadt Graz) as well as ta confrontation of the works of Rudolf Bonvie and John Davies.

The editors thank all participants who have made available pictures and thefts for this publication, especially Christian Eigner who made the collection of materials for this issue possible in the first place. We hope this issue will give an impression of what this collection of images is trying to convey: the level of the debate on photography and the quality of photographic art in this country.

Christine Frisinghelli, Manfred Willmann