Core Concept and Design
Holzinger's 'Seaworld Venice' functions as an underwater-themed installation structured as a triptych combining three elements: a theme park, a sacred building, and a water treatment facility. The work explores the transformation from contamination to cleanliness, with water as a central medium. The installation features significant water elements throughout the Austrian Pavilion and includes performance spaces where artists interact with the environment.
Performance Component
The installation features 25 female performers who will perform daily from opening day through November 22, 2026. The performances are nude and represent continuous action throughout the pavilion's duration. Performers are documented to perform on treated and purified water, according to the Austrian Cultural Ministry, and activities include various engagements with water-based installations including jetski sequences.
Controversial Elements
The installation incorporates portable toilets whose contents feed into large containers that serve as swimming pools for the artists. A hidden message appearing on the project website reads 'I Live in your Piss,' highlighting the transgressive nature of the work. The Austrian Cultural Ministry emphasized that performers work with treated and processed water, not raw waste, and characterized the project as demonstrating 'innovative force' selected by expert jury from 54 submissions.
Reception and Scale
The installation is described as one of the most spectacular productions at the Venice Biennale and considered a potential favorite with audiences. It received 600,000 euros in government funding. The work has generated significant international media attention and represents a bold assertion of artistic provocation within the 2026 Biennale's already contentious context. 
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