“Resonance Body” is a frieze consisting of 43 oak modules. The work was conceived and created by Peter Sandbichler in 2023 as an in-situ work for the Austrian Parliament in Vienna:

The frieze, which is around 40 metres long, is based on an orthogonal basic grid that quotes the historical ornamentation of Theophil Hansen. In the process, the two-dimensional pattern is curved into the third dimension through parametric deformations, thereby reflecting the multitude of possibilities that arise from limited basic parameters. The dynamic band stands for the diversity of society and the liveliness of the democratic process in which all participants leave their mark.

The parameters for the deformations are derived from the timeline of parliament since 1848. Milestones such as the introduction of women’s suffrage can be traced, but also caesuras such as the elimination of parliament by the Dollfuß government and democratic political premieres such as the first referendum in 1978.

The frieze refers to the restored exterior frieze on the façade, which repeats a constellation of allegories in a repeat. While this configuration represents idealised motifs, the frieze in the interior reflects an abstract pattern that shows no repetition in the sequence but changes continuously and conveys new impressions both haptically and visually in each sequence.

In the process of developing the work, four modules were made in special dimensions of 116 x 116 x 16 cm, these are each one square larger than the modules hung in the Parliament, and are to be understood and sold as individual works.