Saturday 19th July & Friday 8th August 2025
5pm—7pm
Two art-science walk-swims along two different sections of the Donaukanal, in partnership with Schwimmverein Donaukanal. Join artist-researcher Lili Carr, urban researcher Madita Kümmeringer and members of the SVDK for a multisensory deep dive into the material histories of the Danube’s ‘Vienna Arm’. All are welcome!
Meeting point Saturday 19th July: swim stop Alsergarten
Meeting point Friday 8th August: swim stop Sophiengarten
In English, with German translation.
Please note this is a walk and a swim - please bring bathing gear and, if possible, a dry bag!
The Donaukanal was once the ‘Vienna Arm’ of the Danube supporting fishing, farming, bathing and various water-dependent industries. Yet these riparian livelihood activities were uncertain and precarious, their duration and scope regulated by the course and force of the river. Today, the ‘Vienna Arm’ is decoupled into two distinct bodies of water. One flows above ground; a collecting basin into which Vienna's streams and other surface waters flow. The other flows underground; a combined sewer whose contents are treated at Simmering before being discharged into the Danube. The Donaukanal is the artery of the city: absolutely everything and everyone flows through it.
Contact: info@hybridwaters.net