Galería Hanbell
Lukas Weitzhofer
My name is Lukas Weitzhofer (Luky Vete) and was born on August 31st, 1988.
In 2004 I went to a high school with a special branch for arts.
In 2011 I was part of an art exhibition in my University.
2019 and 2020 I was part in the annual exhibitions of the art club Passau, Germany.
In August 2021, I was the assistant of the mural artist Said Dokins from Mexico and helped him paint
a big wall in Vienna.
Next year, I will be part of the team of the festival for urban aesthetics in Vienna.
In October I will become a resident artist for the T/M gallery in Brillon, Germany.
Artist: Lukas Weitzhofer
Based in Austria
Instagram: @lukyvete
What are some struggles of being an artist?
It´s very hard to gain access to an elitist art circle with galleries and collectors, especially if you don´t live in one of the world´s art capitals.
Self promotion, for example via social media, can help up and coming artists to get recognized everywhere around the globe. It is a huge empowerment for unknown artists to open to the public. Self promotion helped me for example to get to know the amazing team of "culturally" who supported me a lot!
How would you describe your art? What makes it special?
I would describe my workfield as "streetart without streets", since I live in the the countryside. Whenever go to a new city, I focus on the art that surrounds me on the walls, streets and many other places in an urban area. That´s where I get a lot of inspiration from. I let the impression of these colourful, dirty and unadorned places flow into my own work. I also use a lot of spraypaint in my art to get that street-style that fascinates me.
What were some crucial moments that helped shape you into the artist that you are today?
My awakening moment was at an art exhibition of the Austrian artist Alfred Kubin, that I visited as a child. From that day on, I wanted to become an artist myself and started painting more frequently and seriously.
Two years ago, I visited the "Calle Libre" festival for urban aesthetics in Vienna. I met the spanish artist Alvaro Oskua, who encouraged me to publish my art on social media. This year, I worked as a volunteer at the "Calle Libre" and managed to become the assistant of Said Dokins from Mexico, who did a painting on a wall, that was about 26 meters high. Afterwards, I got invited to become part of the team for next years festival.
The german artist Tim Guse gave me the opportunity to become a resident member of his T/M - gallery, which opens in October 2021.
I am excited to see, what the future will bring and where this path will lead me.
What is important to you as an artist?
To me, it´s important to be passionate about art and constantly driven by the need to create something unique. Then I had to learn to step out of my comfort zone
and present my art to others.
Another very important thing is, to be resistant and don´t give up. It takes a lot of patience to become an artist and I know that there is still a long way in front of me, but I am willing to walk it.
What messages/things do you portray in your art?
In my art, I like to emphasize on the outsiders of society. People who are not considered productive members of a community can still be important human beings, since they also help and effect others around them. I´m also interested in their personal motivation of leaving the mainstream way of life.
Apart from that, another main topic is dealing with my inner life. I try to cope with bad feelings by visualizing them in a positive way.
