Delving into Lisa Herfeldt's Unsettling Sealant-Based Art: In Which Objects Seem Animated
If you're planning bathroom renovations, it might be wise to steer clear of engaging this German artist for the job.
Indeed, Herfeldt is a whiz with a silicone gun, creating fascinating creations out of an unusual substance. Yet longer you look at the artworks, the stronger one notices that something feels slightly off.
The dense tubes of sealant Herfeldt forms extend over the shelves supporting them, drooping off the edges towards the floor. The knotty foam pipes expand till they rupture. Certain pieces leave their acrylic glass box homes completely, turning into an attractor of debris and fibers. It's safe to say the ratings might not get positive.
There are moments I feel the feeling that objects are alive within a space,” remarks the sculptor. Hence I came to use this foam material because it has such an organic sensation and look.”
In fact one can detect rather body horror regarding Herfeldt’s work, including that protruding shape which extends, hernia-like, from the support at the exhibition's heart, or the gut-like spirals of foam that burst like medical emergencies. Along a surface, are mounted prints depicting the sculptures captured in multiple views: appearing as squirming organisms picked up on a microscope, or colonies on culture plates.
“It interests me is how certain elements in our bodies occurring which possess independent existence,” the artist notes. Phenomena which remain unseen or control.”
On the subject of elements beyond her influence, the exhibition advertisement for the show displays a photograph of water damage overhead within her workspace located in Berlin. Constructed made in the seventies as she explains, was instantly hated from residents as numerous old buildings were torn down for its development. By the time dilapidated as the artist – a native of that city although she spent her youth north of Hamburg prior to moving to the capital during her teens – began using the space.
This decrepit property proved challenging for the artist – placing artworks was difficult her pieces anxiously risk of ruin – but it was also intriguing. With no building plans accessible, nobody had a clue the way to fix any of the issues that developed. When the ceiling panel at the artist's area was saturated enough it fell apart fully, the only solution meant swapping it with another – and so the cycle continued.
In a different area, Herfeldt says the leaking was so bad that a series of shower basins were installed in the suspended ceiling to channel leaks to another outlet.
It dawned on me that the structure was like a body, a completely flawed entity,” the artist comments.
The situation brought to mind Dark Star, John Carpenter’s debut cinematic piece about an AI-powered spacecraft that develops independence. As the exhibition's title suggests given the naming – three distinct names – that’s not the only film to have influenced this exhibition. These titles refer to main characters from a horror classic, another scary movie and Alien respectively. The artist references an academic paper written by Carol J Clover, outlining these surviving characters an original movie concept – women left alone to overcome.
They often display toughness, rather quiet enabling their survival due to intelligence,” says Herfeldt of the archetypal final girl. “They don’t take drugs nor sexual activity. Regardless the viewer’s gender, everyone can relate to this character.”
The artist identifies a connection between these characters and her sculptures – things that are just about staying put under strain they face. Does this mean the art focused on cultural decay rather than simply water damage? As with many structures, substances like silicone that should seal and protect from deterioration in fact are decaying in our environment.
“Completely,” says Herfeldt.
Prior to discovering her medium using foam materials, the artist worked with alternative odd mediums. Previous exhibitions included forms resembling tongues crafted from a synthetic material found in in insulated clothing or in coats. Similarly, one finds the sense these strange items might animate – a few are compressed like caterpillars mid-crawl, pieces hang loosely off surfaces or extend through entries gathering grime from contact (She prompts people to handle leaving marks on pieces). As with earlier creations, those fabric pieces are also housed in – leaving – cheap looking transparent cases. The pieces are deliberately unappealing, and really that’s the point.
“These works possess a certain aesthetic that draws viewers very attracted to, yet simultaneously they’re very disgusting,” Herfeldt remarks amusedly. “It attempts to seem not there, but it’s actually very present.”
Herfeldt's goal isn't art to provide ease or aesthetically soothed. Instead, she wants you to feel unease, awkward, perhaps entertained. However, should you notice water droplets on your head as well, remember this was foreshadowed.