Meditated Vandalism: Farbanschlag in sieben Repetitionen
(Paint Attack in Seven Repetitions)
This project was created within the framework of an art-in-architecture commission: In spring 2025, the architectural firm Theo Hotz Partner AG commissioned the artist duo Gen Atem / Miriam Bossard to realize a work for a window front in their Zurich offices—with the aim of projecting outward into the urban space while also serving as a source of identity within.
The engagement with aspects of architecture and urban development, gentrification and protest, as well as research into urban art in this context, formed the conceptual foundation of the work. From this arose the idea of artistically interpreting and employing the “instrument” of the paint attack (Farbanschlag).
The ambivalence and paradox inherent in the tension between protest and subversive street culture on the one hand, and official commission and monetized art on the other, are addressed thematically, conceptually, and formally in this work.
The paint attack was executed in acrylic on canvas, photographed, and digitally processed in seven exposure variants. In addition to the large-format works—printed on foil and mounted on glass—the artist duo also produced a small-format paper edition.
