Some books document an exhibition, and then there are books that extend it. The catalogue |indeterminate⟩⟨apparatus|, released alongside the fifth edition of the Civa media art festival, belongs firmly to the latter. It is not simply a container of ideas, but a tactile, visual, and material continuation of the exhibition’s central inquiry: how do we engage with the indeterminate?
Published along with the exhibition at Belvedere 21, the book brings together artistic and theoretical perspectives that orbit around quantum concepts such as entanglement, superposition, and observation. Artists including Black Quantum Futurism, Alice Bucknell, Libby Heaney, Natalie Paneng, and Mike Rijnierse contribute to a layered exploration of non-binary realities — where science, aesthetics, and politics dissolve into one another.
What truly sets this publication apart is how precisely its materiality mirrors its conceptual core.
At first encounter, the book’s exterior already signals that this is no ordinary exhibition catalogue. The protective cover, crafted from Invercote G 180g, is delicately laser-cut with a constellation of star-shaped openings. These perforations are not merely decorative, they act as apertures, revealing glimpses of the Mirror Hologram 330g cover beneath. The effect is quietly spectacular.
As light moves across the surface, the holographic layer shifts and refracts, producing a fluid spectrum that recalls oil slicks, soap bubbles, or iridescent glass.
As light moves across the surface, the holographic layer shifts and refracts, producing a fluid spectrum that recalls oil slicks, soap bubbles, or iridescent glass. What appears subtle at rest becomes dynamic in motion — echoing the unstable, probabilistic nature of quantum states. The design transforms the book into an apparatus in itself: perception changes depending on position, light, and interaction. Mirror Hologram (previously featured here), a newer addition to the holographic paper family alongside tones like Silver, Gold, and Pillars of Light, proves particularly fitting here. It captures that elusive balance between restraint and spectacle — soft and atmospheric in ambient light, yet vividly expressive under direct illumination.
Inside, the tactile experience continues with Munken Polar Rough 120g, a paper choice that grounds the otherwise shimmering exterior. Its uncoated, slightly textured surface offers a calm counterpoint, inviting slower reading and reflection. This contrast between exterior brilliance and interior softness feels intentional. It mirrors the exhibition’s tension between the measurable and the unknowable, the observed and the imagined.
A distinct visual thread of a rich purple tone runs throughout the book, appearing in chapter openers and re-emerging in the typography. This chromatic consistency creates a rhythm across the pages, subtly guiding the reader through the publication’s layered narratives while reinforcing its atmospheric cohesion.
Edited by Stella Rollig and Eva Fischer, and designed by Manuel Radde and Philipp Doringer, the catalogue spans approximately 128 pages and includes around 45 images. The format allows for a generous interplay between text and visuals, giving equal weight to theoretical contributions and artistic documentation. Published by Verlag der Buchhandlung Walther und Franz König, the bilingual (German/English) edition ensures accessibility across audiences — an important gesture for a project rooted in interdisciplinary and international dialogue.
Beyond Documentation
Launched during the International Year of Quantum Science and Technology 2025, which brought renewed attention to quantum research, the Civa festival positions itself as a platform for artistic speculation on urgent contemporary questions. Since its inception in 2021, it has grown into a space where digital, physical, and hybrid realities intersect. Probing how knowledge is constructed and experienced. This catalogue embodies that ambition. Rather than offering fixed interpretations, it embraces ambiguity. Rather than presenting definitive answers, it opens possibilities.
Every material decision, from the laser-cut protective layer to the holographic substrate and the tactile interior stock, contributes to a unified narrative.
And what makes |indeterminate⟩⟨apparatus| particularly compelling from a design and paper perspective is how seamlessly its concept and production intertwine. Every material decision, from the laser-cut protective layer to the holographic substrate and the tactile interior stock, contributes to a unified narrative. It is a reminder that print, at its best, is not static. It can shimmer, shift, and respond. It can challenge perception. It can embody ideas. And in this case, it does so beautifully. Turning a catalogue into an experience that is, quite fittingly, never entirely fixed.
Images © Belvedere, Wien / Eva Lahnsteiner