It all started in 2022 with Matthias Kretschmer’s idea, joined by two other people, Ingeborg Rauss and Michael Wittig, who took on the mammoth task of planning and implementing a new format of an art fair that took place for the first time in 2024, which we look back on with pride. They were supported by the jury team, consisting of Mag.a Marlene Elvira Steinz, Dr. Lucas Cuturi and Dr.in Maria Reitter-Kollmann, who has been pursuing new career paths in the Upper Austrian State Cultural Promotion since autumn 2025. Her place will be taken by the gallery owner Mag.a Eva-Maria Männer.
Incidentally, the evocative name “POTENTIALS” was created during a working session between the trade fair management and jury at the suggestion of Marlene Elvira Steinz.
For 2026, we have succeeded in gaining strong cooperation partners in ORF OÖ and OÖ Nachrichten. Through this cooperation, we achieve broad public attention, which directly benefits the artists. Art fairs are not only venues for art, but also places for discovery, networking and exchange with like-minded people. At the same time, they offer visitors an indispensable participation in the current art scene of the Upper Austrian art associations. Art fairs are not only venues for art, but also places for discovery, networking and exchange with like-minded people. At the same time, they offer visitors an indispensable participation in the current art scene of the Upper Austrian art associations.
