Thrill me 

Cathrine Edlinger-Kunze’s painting ‘Thrill me’ presents a swirl of theatrical figures, seemingly caught in a moment of high drama. Its blend of historical costume and dreamlike imagery hints at complex social undercurrents. Looking at the work we might ask what are the politics of imagery at play here? The artist uses visual codes like the elaborate dress of the figure on the left to suggest aristocratic European traditions, maybe even referencing the Baroque era. But she renders these symbols in a deliberately unstable way, full of abstract shapes. In Post-War Austria, where Edlinger-Kunze created her painting, there was a keen interest among artists to challenge institutional norms. The figures in this painting may be a means of critiquing conservative society or perhaps a more general comment on the social structures of its time. To fully understand this, one could research the artist's biography, Austrian art history, and critical texts on performance and social critique. Art offers us a window into the social conditions and power dynamics of a particular moment.