Eye Filmmuseum presents Ulrich Seidl – Über das leben, die liebe und den tod, the first exhibition – and the first complete film overview – of the renowned Austrian filmmaker in the Netherlands. Featuring a wealth of early, little-known and newly commissioned (film) works, the exhibition confronts visitors with the lives of a number of seemingly ordinary individuals, people who try to, in their own ways, make something of life in a late-capitalist society in which meaning has been replaced by consumerism.

In the exhibition Über das leben, die liebe und den tod (On life, love and death), Seidl’s ongoing exploration of the human condition takes centre stage. He has an interest in the everyday and, in particular, those who fall outside the bounds of daily order. Seidl’s work is often described as unsettling because it confronts viewers with their own preconceptions about how people live, what they think, how they furnish their homes, how they entertain themselves, and how they seek a sense of security, each in their own way.

What I try to do is to look behind the beautified surface and to go into a private space, and that’s often uncomfortable and may look different than what people would like it to look like.

(Ulrich Seidl)

At the intersection of documentary and fiction

Another way in which Seidl achieves a degree of disorientation is by positioning his work at the intersection of documentary and fiction. Research into real people, places and situations forms the basis of his work, which he then interweaves with fictional elements and characters. Non-professional actors play themselves in their own environments, while professional actors are invited to enter this context and improvise.

Film, talks and events

The exhibition includes screenings of all films from Ulrich Seidl’s filmography, with several 35mm prints drawn from the Eye collection. This marks a first: never before has a complete retrospective of the Austrian filmmaker’s work been presented in the Netherlands. A series of Eye on Art specials will delve deeper into themes within Seidl’s work and explore how his oeuvre resonates in the work of other contemporary filmmakers.