Julla Kroner

Julla Kroner explores in her artistic practice the question of how and why humanity engages in storytelling. A story is primarily a unifying element of society; people agree on a story, and thus they become a community. This spans from religion to deity myths to Hollywood to Game of Thrones, encompassing all time levels. Julla is particularly interested in the points where stories change, return, or repeat. Society shapes the way we tell stories, but a story also shapes society. Central to her research is always a thought experiment that attempts, through a story, to create a community or group that is inclusive. The concepts developed during this process are elaborated in immersive performance pieces and installations. Julla often collaborates with other artists from various disciplines and presents her projects in different spaces, ranging from art venues to theatres and public spaces.

Julla Kroner, born in 1996 in Duisburg, lives and works in Cologne. She studied sculpture at Hochschule für Bildende Künste Braunschweig and Staatliche Akademie der Bildenden Künste Karlsruhe. In 2023, she won first place in the Förderpreis Kunst + Kultur Offenburg and received third place in the Technologieregion Karlsruhe Prize. Kroner was a recipient of the postgraduate scholarship from the MWK Baden-Württemberg and the research scholarship from the Fonds Darstellende Künste. Her works have been exhibited in numerous group exhibitions, including in Berlin, Munich, and Düsseldorf.

About the project

During her year in the Fresh Air Scholarship, Julla Kroner will delve into the phenomenon of the oracle in history, reaching into the present. In a performative monologue, a human being and an oracle encounter each other and form a story in the process. The magical being is something that has always existed. Particularly the being that predicts the future for us. The AI as an oracle is just a small link in this chain of attempts to bring light to something we will never be in – the future. The performance searches for stories and questions how they can be automated, despite the fact that they should not be. It investigates how stories have been automated and how we can prevent it. The performance is a plea for collaborative, non-violent storytelling.

Photos: Galya Feierman