Ab☺ut [Uschi]

With her initiative “I TAKE SPACE – analog resistance” DJ Uschi addresses that neither public nor digital spaces are safe environments for women. The following questions were the foundation of the initiative: Who owns „space“? Who determines participation in public spaces or in digital discourse? Who can, wants to, or is allowed to show up in these spaces—and who is excluded, attacked, and why?

While women can avoid an unsafe street or leave a nightclub, digital violence (e.g: deepfakes) penetrates directly into the private home. Violence in the digital sphere is potentially infinitely replicable and permanently visible. For women, the consequence is often (Self)-silencing.

This initiative breaks the enforced Silencing through a conscious, deliberate practice. DJ Uschi takes space(s) and provides a space where the body itself becomes the medium of protest (We show up! And we show everybody that we enjoy life!).

Space is not only claimed physically but also auditorily. In a club and cultural scene where women and FLINTA* individuals have historically been underrepresented on lineups and in the club sound in general, this initiative flips the script. DJ Uschi reclaims the acoustic space and fills it with strictly female produced (house) music. This disrupts the typical, often male-dominated dynamics of the dance floor. It creates an atmosphere completely detached from the „male gaze,“ focusing instead on collective ecstasy and mutual care.

For women in a patriarchal society, being „uninhibited“ and „loud“ always carries the risk of stigmatization or harassment. This art project provides a curated safer space. The everyday rules are suspended, and the room is held by a solidary community, perceived vulnerability transforms into pure, collective power. Dancing here is not mere escapism. It is a physical reclamation of autonomy, an act to release whatever tension and to strengthen resilience due to simply being present.

The name of the event “MILLIDÄNCE” is inspired by Emilie Turecek (1846 –1889). Known by her stage name „Fiaker-Milli“. She was a legendary Austrian folk singer and one of the most prominent cultural icons of 19th-century Vienna. She is widely celebrated as an early, rebellious figure who boldly challenged patriarchal norms by physically and acoustically reclaiming the public entertainment spaces of her time. A section of the Donaukanal Promenade is officially named Emilie-Turecek-Promenade.