Street Art. "Pick your own poem"
This was a headline the Vienna press released about the literary evening of the creative organisation "Anima Incognita". It should be noted that Vienna, like the rest of Austria, is unimaginable not only without music, but also without literary events.
The evening was dedicated to the famous Viennese poet Helmut Zeethaler, named "leaflet poet" by the press. More than two thousand court cases in almost 30 years could not stop him from spreading his own leaflets with socially-critical poems around the city. Hundreds of them have hung on underground stations, on trees, on construction fences and on lampposts. Anyone can pick a poem, just as people pick flowers. "This is how my creations reach even those who are not inclined to read books," says the poet himself.
Some journalists and well-known literary critics often write in their articles and columns about meeting him at his work in the street, at underground stations and bus stops. Zeethaler only needs double-sided tape, which he uses within seconds to wrap around lampposts and other surfaces visible to passers-by, and then deftly begins gluing the pre-prepared pages of his poems to them. And right between the poems, in large letters, one can see a note "Pick your own poem!" Some passengers stare at him curiously, others stop, read, and even tear the leaflets off to take away with them.
"My poetry is for everyone!" - proudly declares the author.
How did he make a name for himself? After finishing school, in 1974, his first poetry collection was published. The poet soon realised that this way he would not win the number of readers he wanted. It's not about royalties, he decided, but "ears that listen". He dreamed of speaking directly to people, interacting with them every day, being heard and noticed.
With his taste for criticism, he could certainly have become a politician, but he decided to be a poet and started posting critical poems on the walls of Vienna. But as it turned out, not only unannounced demonstrations were forbidden in Austria, but also this kind of unofficial street lyricism. The police went on a rampage. Public transport companies, the municipality and numerous private individuals joined in. They had to hire people and pay them to remove Seethaler's poems from fences and walls.
In general, the background to Seethaler's interactions with the community is quite curious. On the one hand, the city has from time to time sued Seethaler for damages (the costs of removing the leaflets), and on the other hand, grants were awarded to him from the same city for the development of his art. The source of the leaflet poet's livelihood is this material support. He receives occasional literary scholarships, as well as material support from his admirers and sponsors. What's more, he even manages to use fines receipts as a working expense.
Remarkably, a social foundation that supports the artists gives Seethaler about a thousand euros a year for creative trips. "This is how I have already been exported to Paris, Budapest and a book exhibition in Frankfurt," laughs the poet. He is now in Berlin, where he introduces his leafy poetry to Germans for four weeks.
Seethaler claims that he is not experiencing the same problems in Berlin that he faces in Vienna. In his hometown he is not only attacked by officials and, as he calls them, police art experts. He is repeatedly rebuked by ordinary passers-by, once even attempting to use physical force. Vienna is always looking for something to provoke displeasure," jokes Seethaler. "I used to get a lot of ridicule and remarks, but now I even enjoy it! At the moment, however, the Austrian authorities are preparing a new, stricter law on poster display. "Well, in that case we will have to double and triple our efforts!" - the author does not give up.
Meanwhile, a literary evening was dedicated to the determined poet, attended by eight of his colleagues. Their poems as well as those of other members of the creative association, printed on scraps of coloured paper, were hung up in the garden and in the Heinrich literary café. Thus other visitors could also pick up a poem they liked. The evening was hosted by art historian and gallery owner Hubert Thurnhofer. It was Thurnhofer who told the audience this remarkable street art story, comparing Seethaler's work to that of the graffiti makers. On the one hand they are still persecuted and on the other many of their works have been recognised as works of art. Recently, the authorities in Vienna have given away entire neighbourhoods to graffiti artists, such as the stone walls that run along the Danube Canal. This canal was already lined with granite by Kaiser Franz Joseph and is now a favourite recreational area for Vienna's youth. And even in these covid times they are so crowded that the police have to watch out for social distance and masking.
