Hope4Hope

At the beginning, there was hope. Well, at least the topic of hope. The programme of the Donaufestival 2026 was centred around issues of hope, inviting us – the MA students from the Cross-Disciplinary Strategies department at Angewandte – to investigate the concept of 'Mad Hope' in the framework of an exhibition. We began by asking: What is hope? Where can its traces be found, and why does it matter?

This website mirrors the corresponding publication and is the result of our collective investigation, which unfolded in two stages: first, our individual explorations into traces of hope, which resulted in a total number of 16 artefacts and/or artworks; and second, a collective reflection on what notions of hope we are dealing with in our works, and what they mean to us.

The latter process is mirrored in the section 'Modes of Hope' in this publication, which lays a broad variety of approaches to the overall topic, filtered through their particular embodiment in the ultimate selection of works. The featured artworks are also presented here, in then form of individually designed artist pages. In addition, the publication contains further materials and text, such as the essay 'For – Or Against? – Hope' by Christian Höller, as well as a short guide how to use this book.