Renate Bertlmann, Die schwangere Braut im Rollstuhl, 1978
Renate Bertlmann
Die schwangere Braut im Rollstuhl

After a brief spell in Oxford, Renate Bertlmann (*1943, Austria) studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna from 1964 to 1970, followed by twelve years of teaching at the same academy. In her work, Bertlmann uses all kinds of media, from drawings, paintings, objects and installations through photographs, photo films and videos to performances and texts, in which she often examines the erotic and biological conditions of the female existence. In 2019, she represented Austria at the Venice Biennale.

artist's website: bertlmann.com

In this piece performed in 1978 at Österreichischer Kunstverein zu Wien, the Pregnant Bride in the Wheelchair is pushed into the hall to the sound of a lullaby emanating from a musical box she wears around her neck. Once she is left in the hall, we hear the wailing of a baby. The pregnant woman eventually gives birth to a tape recorder emitting intense baby cries, which she leaves behind in the wheelchair – a female take on Beckettian drama.

Courtesy Renate Bertlmann
Document media
Super 8 film, b&w, silent, 20:00 min

Issue date
1978

Tags
dis/ability, maternity, sexualities, sound