Exzerptmarterln

(…) In the so-called Exzerptmarterln from 1980, the sheet of paper is both a drawing ground and a writing surface. Once again it becomes evident that Steiger was not only a drawing scribe, but also a reading draftsman. In an almost manic manner, he transcribed or excerpted what he had read, gathered individual pieces information from various fields of knowledge, which suggest order and logic through their meticulous and precise transcription. (...) Written words as a semantic carrier of meaning turn over and leave the text oscillating in content between a just-yet and a not-more. Even if a thought flashes here and there, or an animal lifts its eyes out of the thicket, the reception of distinct signs and the recognition of contexts of meaning seem reserved for the author alone. For everyone else, Steiger's excerpts turn into torture - or into senseless pleasure beyond a clear reading..(…)

Hans-Peter Wipplinger in: a picture is a voiceless poem.  Spielarten der Zeichnung im Werk Dominik Steigers, in: Exhibition catalog DOMINIK STEIGER RETROSPEKTIVE, Kunsthalle Krems, 2014, ed. Hans-Peter Wipplinger, concept Suse Längle and Hans-Peter Wipplinger, Verlag d. Buchhandlung Walter König, 2014, p.90