Contemporary art in public space

TRIENNALE KLAUSEN: BEING HUMAN

From 13 June to 7 November 2026, Klausen becomes a stage for contemporary art. Five main artists from South Tyrol fill the town's public space with site-specific works – complemented by twelve guest artists at the Stadtmuseum Klausen and two accompanying art interventions in the old town. The guiding theme of this first Triennale is "Being Human".

At the heart of the Triennale lie questions of encounter, diversity, and social cohesion – explored in stone, wood, light, photography, and sound. The Triennale Klausen is a format that returns to Klausen every three years, drawing on the town's tradition as a "town of artists" – a place where Albrecht Dürer once paused on his journey to Italy and immortalised Klausen in one of his engravings, and where a vibrant artists' colony later flourished.

Flyer

Being human means, first and foremost, being able to encounter one another.

We live in a time in which more divides people than unites them. Camps form, voices grow louder, direct exchange becomes rarer. The Triennale Klausen 2026 counters this with a simple question: what remains when we set the dividing lines aside for a moment? What do we share, beyond all our differences? "Being Human" means, first and foremost, being able to encounter one another. The guiding theme opens a space in which questions of identity, diversity, and social cohesion are explored through art – without offering ready-made answers.

The five main artists
Five artists from South Tyrol form the artistic foundation of the Triennale: Lukas Mayr, Patrick Obkircher, Christian Gufler, Florian Tschurtschenthaler, and Bernhard Reiterer. Each of them develops a distinct, site-specific work for a designated location in Klausen. The works remain accessible throughout the full five months and shape the town's cultural character.

The five main artists

Lukas Mayr

Lukas Mayr is one of the five main artists featured in the Klausen Triennial.

“La frequenza che sostiene è sempre presente. La domanda è solo se ci muoviamo al suo interno.”

The artist, who lives in Brixen, explores the question of what drives every human being to create something lasting. He calls this ‘microculture’. For his work ‘Philosopher’s Stone’, he has extracted a huge stone colossus from the depths of the earth and carved it.

More about the artist

Patrick Obkircher

Patrick Obkircher is one of the five main artists featured in the Klausen Triennial.

“WHAT MATTERS TO ME ISN’T MAKING A BEAUTIFUL SCULPTURE. BUT ONE WITH DEPTH.”

The young artist from Nova Levante/Welschenofen has created a rather unusual self-portrait. It is entitled ‘Being’.

More about the artist

Christian Gufler

Christian Gufler is one of the five main artists featured in the Klausen Triennial.

“When I photograph, I look for the spark in the eyes – for me, that is life.”

The artist from Lana photographed 30 people in his studio for his work. He was inspired to create this work when he stood still in the middle of a bustling square in Rome, amidst the hustle and bustle, and watched as people passed him by.

More about the artist

Florian Tschurtschenthaler

Florian Tschurtschenthaler is one of the five main artists featured in the Klausen Triennial.

“The greatest human strength? Doing the right thing, even if you’re the only one.”

The young artist from Sexten/Sesto loves working with wood.

More about the artist

Bernhard Reiterer

Bernhard Reiterer is one of the five main artists featured in the Klausen Triennial.

“COLOURS ARE VISIBLE VIBRATIONS.”

With his artwork ‘The Inner Glow’, the master painter from Merano brings human encounters to life.

About the artist

Events

Overview

Five main artists, five months, five invitations. Each artist shapes their own project period – through ritual, concert, workshop, photography, movement. Anyone passing through Klausen is invited to join, reflect, and share the experience. Art comes alive where people truly encounter one another.

June: Lukas Mayr

Lukas Mayr

Stones of Hope
21.06.2026
15.00
Fragener Platz

For the summer solstice, Lukas Mayr invites everyone to take part in a shared ritual centered around his work Philosopher’s Stone. The longest day of the year has long been seen as a moment of energetic strength – a time when community becomes tangible and a wave of hope can be set in motion. With a brush, anyone may leave something on the stone: a message, an image, a thought. Afterwards, each participant receives a small pebble to take with them. What it symbolises, the artist reveals on site.

July: Christian Gufler

Christian Gufler

Human Family
03.07. & 17.07.2026
16.00-20.00
Apostelkirche/Chiesa degli Apostoli
Oberstadt, beim Brixner Tor/Città Alta, presso la Porta di Bressanone

Christian Gufler invites visitors directly into his installation. Inside the Church of the Apostles, the human family continues to grow. The artist sets up his mobile photo studio, and everyone is invited to be photographed. Each portrait is printed on site and placed freely onto a black canvas – a colourful patchwork of contrasts and diversity, in which every person matters. Taking part is simple: drop by, have your photo taken, belong …

August: Florian Tschurtschenthaler

Florian Tschurtschenthaler
For peace
10.08.-14.08.2026
9.00-17.00
in front of the Museum Chiusa/Klausen
Frag 1

Florian Tschurtschenthaler, a wood sculptor from Sesto, arrives in Klausen bearing a gift. In front of the Town Museum, he carves a dove of peace – over the course of five days, in full view of everyone. Entitled For Peace, the work echoes the central theme of his main installation in the Capuchin Garden: the question of how peace between people can be achieved. At the end of the project, Florian hands the dove over to the town of Chiusa – as a gesture of gratitude and a lasting symbol of love, gratitude, forgiveness, and acceptance.

September:/October Bernhard Reiterer

Bernhard Reiterer
Experience an inner glow
05.09. + 11.09. + 19.09. + 10.10. 2026
9.30 - 12.00 & 15.30 - 18.00
Ehem. Gasthof Grauer Bär/Ex locanda Orso Grigio
Unterstadt 1 Città Bassa

Bernhard Reiterer invites visitors into a shared immersive experience. Step into his circle of dance and colour, and bring the work to life through movement. Vibration becomes visible, connection tangible, and the power of being human something to be experienced together. For the artist, encounters such as these are a form of peace work.

November: Patrick Obkircher feat. Lissy Pernthaler

Finissage: The circle is complete
Performance, Konzert & Umtrunk
Patrick Obkircher & Hexagon feat. Lissy Pernthaler

07.11. 2026
11.00
Museum of Klausen / Chiusa
Frag 1

Patrick Obkircher’s contribution to the Public Programme also marks the Triennale’s finissage, jointly carried by all five main artists. His contribution is music: a live band brings the day to a close. At his invitation, Lissy Pernthaler joins as a guest artist with her three-part participatory performance Colliding Into Being – a process of encounter in which community becomes tangible behind the masks we wear. The finissage then flows into the concert and a relaxed gathering with drinks and snacks. Donations support the social associations involved in the Triennale.

Guided City & Triennale Tours

Guided City & Triennale Tours

Information & registration:

Tourist Coop. Soc. Klausen

info@klausen.it
+39 0472 847 424

Guided tours of the town including the Triennale are available on request – a shared journey through Chiusa and the Town Museum. For information and bookings, please contact the Klausen Tourist Board.

Guest artists at the Museum of Chiusa /Klausen

In addition, the Museum of Chiusa/Klausen presents twelve guest artists working across a range of disciplines. Painting, sculpture, photography, performance, poetry, and musical formats broaden the scope of the Triennale and illuminate the theme of "Being Human" from further perspectives. Two of the twelve guest artists live with physical or intellectual disabilities – participation was built into the concept from the very start. The participating artists are Marlies Baumgartner, Rebekka Frei, Markus Gasser, Sophie Lazari, Paul Moroder dë Doss, Lissy Pernthaler, Albin Portner, Florian Prünster, Evelyn Rier, Matthias Sieff, Ariel Trettel and Vera Überbacher.

More about the twelve guest artists

Accompanying art installations

Una Boccata d'Arte
A national art project organised by the association “I Borghi più belli d'Italia”, of which Klausen is a member. Italian artist and researcher Francesco Alberico (Pescara, 1996) is creating his project “Vogelrat. Il consiglio degli uccelli” in collaboration with the municipality of Klausen and the Seeburg institution.
Opening: 20 June 2026

More information

Art in the Old Town
From August, South Tyrolean artist Heinz Lastei will be displaying his own works in the shop windows of Klausen’s Old Town — a stroll through the narrow streets becomes an accompanying art experience.

Opening: 7 August 2026

More information

The Triennale Klausen Magazine

A magazine rather than a catalogue

A dedicated companion newspaper accompanies the Triennale Klausen, published in a print run of 5,000 copies and available at provincial museums and cultural institutions throughout South Tyrol. It is deliberately not a conventional catalogue – people are at its heart. The newspaper opens with a lead essay by Lukas Mayr, the originator and initiator of the Triennale. This is followed by in-depth portraits of the five main artists, an overview of the twelve guest artists, and interviews with Mayor Peter Gasser; Evi Dissertori, managing director of the Klausen Tourism Association; and Lara Toffoli, curator of the Stadtmuseum. The Triennale also shines a light on five social organisations, each given a voice in its own portrait. And a site map guides readers through the exhibition venues. The result is an art newspaper with depth – about the works, and about the people behind them.

Map

Overview of the artworks, their locations, and opening hours

TRIENNALE KLAUSEN

Visitor information

Opening
Saturday, 13 June 2026 at 3 p.m. at the Stadtmuseum Klausen

Exhibition dates and venue
13 June – 7 November 2026
The five works in public space are, for the most part, freely accessible. The twelve guest artists exhibit at the Stadtmuseum Klausen during the following opening hours:
Tuesday – Saturday | 9.30 a.m. – 12 noon and 3.30 – 6 p.m.
Closed on Sundays, Mondays, and public holidays (15.08.2026)

About the Triennale Klausen

The Triennale Klausen is a new format for art and culture, held in Klausen every three years. Its organising association is Hexagon EO, together with the Municipality of Klausen, the Stadtmuseum Klausen, and the Klausen Tourism Association.
At its heart lies the idea of bringing contemporary art out of the museum and into public space. Five main artists bring their work to sites in the heart of the town – squares, walls, lanes, churches – making art part of everyday life. To walk through Klausen is to walk through an exhibition. Each edition of the Triennale is devoted to a guiding theme. For the first edition in 2026, the theme is "Being Human". The five main works are complemented by twelve guest artists at the Stadtmuseum and two accompanying art interventions in the old town – together forming a programme that shapes the cultural life of the town for five months.
The Triennale Klausen sees itself not as a finished concept but as an invitation. It poses questions rather than asserting answers. It opens a space rather than merely filling it. The first edition in 2026 is a beginning – a gesture meant to be carried forward into the Triennales to come.

The artists

The organising association Hexagon bears the hexagon in its name. Five main artists form the artistic foundation of the Triennale – the sixth position is held by the town of Klausen itself: as place, as stage, as silent participant. And so, within the hexagon, a space opens up for art, for encounter and connection.
Lukas Mayr – sculptor from Brixen, whose sculptures unite archaic forms and cosmic energies. His work invites reflection on faith and togetherness.
Patrick Obkircher – sculptor from Welschnofen. His work approaches the origins of the human form and confronts viewers with their own being.
Christian Gufler – photographer from Lana. With life-size portraits on lengths of fabric, he creates a forest of flags that makes the diversity of people visible and engages with the theme of human equality.
Florian Tschurtschenthaler – wood sculptor from Sexten. His sculptures tell of a true story from the First World War – and ask how peace can be achieved today.
Bernhard Reiterer – master painter and decorator and artist from Jenesien. His walk-in light installation invites visitors to experience the power of human encounter through the senses and to perceive the vibrations of colour.

In addition, the Stadtmuseum Klausen presents twelve guest artists from a range of disciplines: Marlies Baumgartner, Rebekka Frei, Markus Gasser, Sophie Lazari, Paul Moroder dë Doss, Lissy Pernthaler, Albin Portner, Florian Prünster, Evelyn Rier, Matthias Sieff, Ariel Trettel, and Vera Überbacher. These include painting, sculpture, photography, performance, poetry, and musical formats. These additional positions broaden the thematic and formal range of the Triennale and foster interdisciplinary exchange. The theme of "Being Human" is illuminated from a variety of perspectives and made accessible to a wide audience.