Shared Grounds

Austrian Jewellery Art Between Pomp and Protest

at

LISBON JEWELLERY BIENNAL 2026

at Klein Space, Rua Achieta 5, 1200 – 032 Lisboa

22. – 26. September 2026

Opening hours 4 – 7pm

Artists:

Stina Bross, Nikolaus F. Egger, Benedikt Fischer & Rudy de Gruijl, Ursula Guttmann, Susanne Hammer, Iris Hummer, Noah Layr, Gerti Machacek, Stephie Morawetz, Manfred Nisslmüller, Konstanze Prechtl, Ulrich Reithofer, Deborah Schultheis, Peter Skubic, Miriam Strake, Eva Tesarik, Petra Zimmermann

Vienna, 31 August 2026 – Mountains, Kaiserschmarrn, waltz rhythms: This is how Austria is typically portrayed. But beneath this surface lies an equally strong tradition of radical dissent. It runs from the Vienna Secession to the Wiener Werkstätte, and to Peter Skubic in the late 1960s, who separated jewellery’s value from its material and called it ‘a discipline of the mind.’ In September, 18 artists will showcase how much explosive power a small object worn on the body can hold in the exhibition ‘Shared Grounds’ at the Lisbon Jewellery Biennial.
“Shared Grounds” builds a bridge between Austria and Portugal: The exhibition brings perspectives from the Austrian jewellery scene to Portugal and fosters cultural exchange between the two countries. The exhibition project is supported by the Austrian Embassy in Lisbon.
Contemporary Austrian jewellery art is firmly rooted in the tradition of breaking with convention. With irony and wit, it engages with art history, design, industry, and pop culture. At the same time, it uses this intimate medium to address pressing debates about inclusion, feminism, the gender gap, and microplastics. ‘Shared Grounds’ unfolds amid this tension: The exhibition brings together several generations of Austrian jewellery artists. In Lisbon, they demonstrate how this coexistence of tradition and rebellion can be lived out and shaped today.