Fat House poses weighty questions

Set amid the lush garden of the 18th century Upper Belvedere Palace in Vienna, Austria, is the Fat House.

Its swollen facade, which makes the structure look as if it is overstuffed with things, is Austrian artist Erwin Wurm's rather pointed critique of today's consumer culture, where people are obsessed with owning more.

The sculpture, created in 2003, is accessible to the public at no charge from today.

People can walk into the house, where they can watch a video that poses philosophical questions like: "When does a house become art and who determines that?"

The display at the Belvedere is meant to serve as an introduction to Wurm's contribution to the Venice Biennale, where his works have been chosen for the Austrian Pavilion.

The nearby 21er Haus Museum of Contemporary Art will also be showing his statues and performative sculptures from June 2 to Sept 10.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on May 06, 2017, with the headline Fat House poses weighty questions. Subscribe