Reba Maybury subverts art nouveau's erotic legacy

How do you dominate Gustav Klimt? This was one of the first questions Reba Maybury posed while preparing her exhibition I Come in Peace. Maybury is an artist, writer, and political dominatrix whose multidisciplinary practice interrogates the intersections of feminism, sexuality, labour, and power. Her exhibition unfolds over four sites – across the building’s façade, in the foyer, upstairs in the Grafisches Kabinett, and in the Beethoven Frieze space. The artist conceived a site-responsive project, not only in terms of its architectural interventions but also in its engagement with the institution’s history. Approaching the iconic Secession building today, visitors encounter twelve usernames mounted on the façade. The names were sourced by the artist from online platforms where men publicly review their experiences with female sex workers in Vienna. Executed in the same gold Art Nouveau typeface that already adorns the building, the