Edgar Honetschläger’s artistic intervention entitled WALK OF INSECTS consists of 13 granite slabs set into the forecourt of Wilhelm Exner House on the grounds of the university’s Türkenschanze Campus. Each slab is engraved with the image of an insect species and a text. Collectively, these form something of an artistic “insect manifesto” made up of 13 demands dedicated to protecting these creatures, which the artist compiled together with an entomologist and in consultation with university staff. When realising this intervention on site, great emphasis was placed on climate neutrality and minimal use of resources, as well as on integrating the work into surfaces that were previously sealed.
Another integral component of the project is a plot of land in rural Lower Austria that was purchased with the aim of transforming it into a “non-human zone”. This area, which is closed to visitors, is to be restored as a habitat for insects and birds and conserved for the long term.
In his work, Edgar Honetschläger marries art and activism in the area of environmental protection and sustainability. He draws attention to the drastic decimation of insects caused by humans and places the question of society’s relationship with nature at the centre of his artistic and collaborative practice. He makes a strong statement in alignment with the tenets of the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, which seeks solutions for societal issues and a sustainable future. In 2018 the artist founded Go Bugs Go, an association that is committed to initiating collective renaturation measures and restoring habitats for insects.
