Our Federal President at steirischer herbst (I): How Rudolf Kirchschläger Expressed Solidarity with a Far-Right Activist

4.7.25 / Herwig G. Höller

In this blog, steirischer herbst research fellow and journalist Herwig G. Höller shares his discoveries in the festival archive. They frequently reveal surprising connections between steirischer herbst and the world of—local as well as international—politics.

Jonas: 1970, 1972
Kirchschläger: 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1984, 1985

In the third year of its existence, steirischer herbst wanted to position itself as an established festival, following the example of Salzburg or Bregenz. “Furthermore, it would mean a boost in publicity for steirischer herbst if the federal president could be persuaded to open steirischer herbst 1970,” wrote the festival’s secretary general, Paul Kaufmann, on 25 March 1970, to Alfons Tropper, the right-hand man of Governor Josef Krainer Sr. Kaufmann explained that the presence of the federal president would mean appreciation especially for Austria’s young artists.

Federal President Franz Jonas (1965–74) agreed in June, but requested that the opening, initially planned for a Sunday, be moved forward to Saturday. His wish was the festival’s command. Jonas’s speech at Eggenberg Palace fulfilled expectations: “We hope, along with the young artists, that they will find understanding and fair viewers in Graz who will encourage them to continue their work,” he said. Attempts to bring Jonas back to Graz in 1971 failed. He did, however, speak at the opening of steirischer herbst ’72.

Yet, the presence of the head of state not only boosted the festival’s publicity, it also served as an argument for its conservative opponents. For example, in a March 1973 letter to Governor Friedrich Niederl, retired lawyer Heinrich Stöger repeated his objection against the poster featuring an obese man that had caused the festival’s first major scandal in 1972. Stöger explicitly justified his call to “exert influence on certain inconveniences in connection with steirischer herbst” with the fact that it was opened by the federal president.

Rudolf Kirchschläger (1974–86) attended for the first time in 1974. Except for steirischer herbst ’83, he opened every edition during his two terms in office. In his first speech, Kirchschläger interpreted the opening of the festival by the head of state as an expression of the people and the state’s identification with the artist and artistic interpretation. In later speeches, he emphasized the festival’s right to exist, but struck a much more critical tone.

Festival president and state cultural adviser Kurt Jungwirth, who oversaw communication with the federal president at the time, withheld sensitive documents from others at the festival. As a result, there is little in the festival archives about the difficult relationship with Kirchschläger. With the files of the presidential office in the Austrian State Archives, the situation is different.

By 1981–82 at the latest, a conflict culminated behind the scenes and likely caused the federal president to cancel for 1983. Signs of alienation between Kirchschläger and the festival can be seen in his speeches since 1976. Interestingly, this coincided with a campaign by anti-modernist aristocrats and right-wingers in the Austrian People’s Party, who in late 1975, early 1976 tried in vain to bring steirischer herbst under their control. Between 1977 and 1982, the federal president spoke about the “courage to say yes, but also to say no” at the opening, referring to the disapproval of some of the festival’s program.

The 1981 escalation was probably due to the Hermann Nitsch exhibition curated by Otto Breicha, which led to protests. Among other things, the far-right activist Herwig Nachtmann, chairman of the Bürgerinitiative gegen Religionsverhöhnung, öffentliche Perversität und Steuerverschwendung (Citizens’ Initiative Against Religious Mockery, Public Perversity, and Tax Waste), dumped a load of manure in front of the exhibition venue, the Graz Kulturhaus.

In a letter to Nachtmann dated 23 November 1981, Kirchschläger’s attitude is clear: he expressed his solidarity with Nachtmann’s aesthetic views. “From the moment I became aware of what was being presented in the Nietsch [sic] exhibition, I exercised my right to say no, which I had encouraged others to do even before the opening of steirischer herbst 1981,” the federal president wrote. Because of his rejection of the Nitsch show, he did not want public funds to be spent on such purposes, but at the same time rejected official censorship. Kirchschläger was convinced that the exhibition itself and the widespread protests against it would have an impact on the future programming of the festival, thus implicitly advocating self-censorship.

On 16 October 1982, the federal president nevertheless opened the next edition: “I know that some of my fellow citizens find it difficult to understand that, after the understandable rejection that an exhibition at last year’s steirischer herbst met with, I, who try to represent different values, am returning to open steirischer herbst again.”

The clash between Kirchschläger and Jungwirth a few days earlier was not made public at the time. After the head of state had complained to Governor Josef Krainer Jr. about Augusto Boal’s play Mit der Faust ins offene Messer (With the Fist into the Open Knife), scheduled for 16 October, Jungwirth requested a call. “Any misunderstandings” were discussed on 12 October.

“The federal president made it clear that he had never had any objection to frank language, but that this type of ‘theater culture’ seemed to him to speculate on the ‘pornographic needs’ of a certain audience and the desire to attract attention through possible theater scandals,” a note made by an employee of the presidential office states. The president, according to the note, did not advocate censorship, but rather the right of the vast majority of citizens to live by different standards, and he also claimed this right for himself.  Jungwirth tried to counter Kirchschläger’s reservations “with the usual reference to the ‘zeitgeist.’”

A memo from the president in late September suggests that the state adviser’s efforts to persuade him were doomed to failure: “The text is such that I am glad not to be there,” Kirchschläger wrote by hand in reference to Boal’s play. The presidential office subsequently informed steirischer herbst that the federal president would not be attending the opening premiere that evening due to scheduling conflicts and would be leaving in the afternoon.

Scheduling conflicts were also cited for the opening of the next edition: 17 September 1983 was taken up by the inauguration of the Oberwölbling military cemetery and the opening of the Church Music Days at Lilienfeld Abbey, the head of state notified Jungwirth in March 1983.

The available documents do not say how Kirchschläger was persuaded to return to steirischer herbst in 1984 and 1985, or whether this was indeed necessary. However, it is clear that the new artistic director, Peter Vujica, also went to great lengths to woo him. In May 1983, Vujica politely asked whether “the video artist Richard Kriesche, who is also known outside Austria,” could conduct a fifteen-minute interview with the federal president on art and politics. “But I need not say that I would respectfully understand a refusal considering your position,” the director concluded his letter. Kirchschläger agreed—Kriesche's installation Es spricht der Bundespräsident (The Federal President Speaks) was shown in the music pavilion of steirischer herbst ’83.

To be continued.