FREIRAUM 26

International Art Symposium in Cuenca, 2025

About FREIRAUM

As an initiative of visual artist Josef Bernhardt, the FREIRAUM project was launched in March 1993, aiming to create a “free space” in which art can be created and presented without restrictions of any kind.
The FREIRAUM art symposia serve not only as an opportunity for the artists to work together but also to make international contacts and to exchange experiences in diverse areas (techniques, art creation, current social issues, art market, …).
The created artworks are presented to a broad public with a final exhibition, aiming to promote direct communication with artists and to contribute to a better understanding of contemporary art.

FREIRAUM 26 in Cuenca

Concept

Where will we go?
Will it be a long or a short journey?
Slowly, but even more clearly, we see that change is needed.
But just saying, just speaking, will not be enough.
Without action, without doing, nothing will happen.
It is necessary to question everything.
Everything in the past, everything we have grown to love,
to find the right thing to do for tomorrow and the day after tomorrow.
For this reason, for this purpose, we want to work together, discuss with each other, and gather impressions in the community and the city.
New artworks will be created, and new friendships that will last longer than a beer.
Everything in life thrives on mutual exchange, and it thrives on one experience that has slowly slipped away from us: personal conversation, face-to-face.

Josef Bernhardt

Organizing team/curators:
Adrián Capparós (Kaprax), Josef Bernhardt
Implementation period:
2025, for two weeks,Open Symposium“, visiting day
Vernissage and presentation of the results
Place of work:
Cuenca / Spain
Artists:
10 national and international artists from various artistic disciplines: visual arts (painting, sculpture, media art, performance, photography, etc.) music/composition, literature
Selection according to artistic quality
Balanced gender distribution

International FREIRAUM Art Symposium

1993 to 2024

FREIRAUM 1: 1993 FORCHTENSTEIN, AUSTRIA
BERNHARDT Josef. (Austria) BERTINI Renato. (Italy) FROHNER Adolf. (Austria) HAZOUME omuald. (Benin, Ivory Coast) KLIMO Karoly. (Hungary) KUTROWATZ Eduard. (Austria) STIMM Oswald. (Austria) WEER Walter. (Austria)

FREIRAUM 2: 1994 CSONGRAD, HUNGARY
BERNHARDT Josef. (Austria) BOTOND. (Germany) KLIMO Karoly. (Hungary) KLÖTZER Bernd. (Germany) MITTRINGER Robert. (Austria) VERES Andor. (Hungary) WEER Walter. (Austria) WEINER Willi. (Germany)

FREIRAUM 3: 1995 PEUERBACH, AUSTRIA
AGULHON Gens Pierre. (France) BERNHARDT Josef. (Austria) DALPRA Mario. (Austria) EGGER Herbert. (Austria) KLIMO Karoly. (Hungary) KUMMER Sylvia. (Austria) MITTRINGER Robert. (Austria) POYET Francois. (France) SUGAR Janos. (Hungary) WEER Walter. (Austria)

FREIRAUM 4: 1995 LENORA, CZECH REPUBLIC
BERNHARDT Josef. (Austria) EGGER Herbert. (Austria) HURTA Vojtech. (Czech Republic) LINHARTOVA Eva B. (Slovakia) MITTRINGER Robert. (Austria) VALENTINI Luisa. (Italy) VINCIGUERRA Giampiero. (Italy) WEER Walter. (Austria)

FREIRAUM 5: 1996 FORCHTENSTEIN, AUSTRIA, “Annäherung Sprache-Bild”
ABE Shigeru. (Japan) BERNHARDT Josef. (Austria) DRAESNER Ulrike. (Germany) FÖLDENYI Laszlo F. (Hungary) GANSERT Ulrich. (Austria) KUMMER Sylvia. (Austria) PERUMANES Antonio. (Spain)

FREIRAUM 6: 1997 FORCHTENSTEIN, AUSTRIA
BORA Gabor. (Hungary) KOTANYI Attila. (Hungary) MC CARTY Diana. (U.S.A) SUGAR Janos. (Hungary) WIECZOREK Dieter. (Germany)

FREIRAUM 7: 1997 DUEVILLE, ITALY
ABE Shigeru. (Japan) BERNHARDT Josef. (Austria) ECKER Gottfried. (Austria) GUZZONATO Pino. (Italy) MITTRINGER Robert. (Austria) WEER Walter. (Austria)

FREIRAUM 8: 1997 BURG FORCHTENSTEIN, AUSTRIA
BERNHARDT Josef. (Austria) EGGER Herbert. (Austria) GYOLCS Franz. (Austria) PICHLBAUER Hannelore. (Germany) VINGTDEUX Denis. (France)

FREIRAUM 9: 1997 FUJINO, JAPAN
ABE Chikayo. (Japan) ABE Shigeru. (Japan) BERNHARDT Josef. (Austria) PICHLBAUER Hannelore. (Germany) WEINER Willi. (Germany) YOU Mung Gyun. (Korea)

FREIRAUM 10: 1998 LANDSEE, AUSTRIA, “Afrika ist überall”
BERNHARDT Josef. (Austria) BETHE-SELASSIE Mickael. (Äthiopia) CMELKA Helga. (Austria) GYOLCS Franz. (Austria) KOS Tonia. (Austria) MUTEBA LUNTUMBUE Toma. (Dem. Rep. Kongo) NTAKIYICA Aime. (Burundi) PICHLBAUER Bernd. (Germany) WEER Walter. (Austria)

FREIRAUM 11: 1998 VARANASI, INDIA
ABE Chikayo. (Japan) ABE Shigeru. (Japan) BERNHARDT Josef. (Austria) EGGER Herbert. (Austria) FREY Matthias. (Switzerland) MADAM Lal. (India) PICHLBAUER Bernd. (Germany) PICHLBAUER Hannelore. (Germany) PICHLER Arnold. (Austria) ZEISS Kate. (U.S.A.)

FREIRAUM 12: 2001 CSONGRAD, HUNGARY
ABE Shigeru. (Japan) BERGLUND Anna. (Sweden) BERNHARDT Josef. (Austria) PICHLBAUER Hannelore. (Germany) TANAKA Chizuko. (Japan) TOYAMA Hanako. (Japan) YAMAMOTO Shogo. (Japan)

FREIRAUM 13: 2006 ARACENA, SPAIN
BERNHARDT Josef. (Austria) DE BRITO Vicente. (Portugal) GAÑAN Nino. (Spain) KAPRAX. (Spain) KISHIMOTO Shohachiro. (Japan) POYET Francois. (France) STÖGER TINA. (Austria) VIDAL Juanma. (Spain) VINGDEUX Denis. (France)

FREIRAUM 14: 2007 FARO, PORTUGAL
BERNHARDT Josef. (Austria) DE BRITO Cidalia. (Portugal) DE BRITO Vicente. (Portugal) ERRA Paulo. (Portugal) KAPRAX. (Spain) STÖGER Tina. (Austria) TANAKA Chizuko. (Japan) VIDAL Juanma. (Spain)

FREIRAUM 15: 2008 LUCENA DEL PUERTO, HUELVA, SPAIN
ACKERMANN Molly. (U.S.A.) BERNHARDT Josef. (Austria) MING YI CHOU. (Taiwan) NAKASATO. (Japan) SHIGERU Abe. (Japan) STÖGER Tina. (Austria) VIDAL Juanma. (Spain)

FREIRAUM 16: 2009 ZURNDORF, FRIEDRICHSHOF, AUSTRIA
ACKERMANN Molly. (U.S.A.) BERNHARDT Josef. (Austria) IGLESIAS Gracia. (Spain) ISIK Hüseyin. (Turkey) STÖGER Tina. (Austria) TOTOKI Michiko. (Japan) VIDAL Juanma. (Spain) VINGTDEUX Denis. (France)

FREIRAUM 17/18: 2009 FUTTSU, JAPAN
ABE Shigeru. (Japan) KO Matsunaga.(Japan) MAKII Masaru. (Japan) MARTÍN Otilia. (Spain) NOVOSZEL Erich. (Austria) PILLER Attila. (Hungary-Austria) TAKEMURA Shigeru. (Japan) VIDAL Juanma. (Spain)

FREIRAUM 19: 2010 AUBAIS, FRANCE

FREIRAUM 20: 2012 MADRID, SPAIN

FREIRAUM 21: 2018 SEVILLA, SPAIN
BERNHARDT Josef. (Austria) JIMÉNEZ MUÑOZ Concha. (Spain) KOBAYASHI Koji Kobayashi. (Japan) OLIVEIRA Fernanda.(Portugal) POYET François. (France) STÖGER Tina. (Austria)

FREIRAUM 22: 2019 SAN ESTEBAN DE GORMAZ, SPAIN

FREIRAUM 23: 2024 VARANASI, INDIA
ABE Shigeru. (Japan) BERNHARDT Josef. (Austria) BERNHARDT Katrin. (Austria) DUBEY Prakhar. (India) CAPARRÓS „KAPRAX“ Adrian. (Spain) GALHOTRA Vibha. (India) GUPTA Madan Lal. (India) KAVČIČ Mateja. (Slovenia) NAIR Suresh K. (India) PAUL Uday Pratap. (India) VALENTINA Luisa. (Italy)

FREIRAUM 24: 2024 GOLS, AUSTRIA
BERNHARDT Josef. (Austria) BÖHM Vincent Caspar. (Austria) GARGLIARDI Marco. (Italy) GUPTA Madan Lal. (India) MÄKIPÄÄ Tea. (Finnland) POYET François. (France) RABÓCZKY Judit Rita. (Hungary) STÖGER Tina. (Austria) WALLNER Elijas. (Austria)