Kapeller, Peter

Austria, 1969

Peter Kapeller was forced to abandon his studies and his planned career in sanitary system engineering following a severe mental-health crisis. Austrian social services housed him in a tiny shared flat in Vienna, with the bare minimum of furniture: a bed, a cupboard, a shelf and a table. “I draw in my ghetto”, he explains. He feels freer during the quiet hours of darkness, spending his time meditating and reminiscing. The books he has read and his past studies combine to create a rich source for his art. He slowly builds up his drawings, whose richly striking power draws on their dual nature, part notebook, part diary. Some of his works take the form of letters of protest to various administrative bodies. An exhibition was recently devoted to his work at the prestigious Haus der Kunst in Munich.