Bigger, Younger, More Diverse – Our Sculpture Spots 2025

Who are the people strolling through Art Düsseldorf? They are presumably all united by an interest in art, but in addition to collectors and journalists, they also include artists and students, historians and directors of large museums or galleries. Their tastes in art are just as varied as their expectations of it. Ideally, therefore, the works presented to the public at an art fair should be equally diverse.

Following the great success of the 2023 and 2024 sculpture program, Art Düsseldorf is once again showing a wide range of sculptures and installations this year. The total of 18 positions range from up-and-coming talents to established artists, but are significantly younger, more female and more diverse than ever before. This development also reflects the steadily growing audience.

The common thread running through the selection is the examination of perception, materiality and social constructions. The sculpture sites form surprising islands that break up the usual gallery circuit, offering space for breaks and an opportunity for debate.

For example, with the mechanisms of an exhibition: Laura Schawelka deals with the question of how value is created. For her work “Stand, Stand, Stand” (2024), she uses various display modes and their ability to draw attention. The arrangement of the three displays is reminiscent of the minimalist aesthetics of a “showroom”, which retailers traditionally use to present goods. However, the displays, which on closer inspection can be identified as clothes rails, do not carry classic consumer goods, but photographs printed on Plexiglas. These thus become goods themselves. The three-part work illustrates the parallels between presentation techniques in museums and in the commercial sector.

One work that deals with spatial control and access restrictions is Emil Walde‘s sculpture “Gatekeeper” (2025). A gatekeeper is someone or something that controls access to information, resources or decisions. Walde’s aluminum system not only directs the visitor’s gaze, but also their direction of travel. Originally, such a construction is used to secure terrain. The artist has equipped the material with fluorescent tubes and thus misappropriated it. The bright light provocatively draws attention to the sculpture and positions it confidently in an environment in which “gatekeepers” are traditionally at home: the art fair.

Edith Dekendt‘s sculpture “Specific Subjects” (2024) divides the room like a gigantic theater curtain. However, the work does not appear heavy or massive, but rather translucent and part of its very own staging. The artist works with everyday materials and their unfinished, open states. Here she has soaked a cotton cloth in wine and wine lees. The effect of the capillary action is clearly visible: the fabric has partially absorbed the liquid and turns blood-red in these places. This also gives the work an ominous component. Immersed, suspended, floating – Dekyndt concentrates on the concept of the process. The non finito, the unfinished, is a key component in her work.

But other artists also deal with material transformation. In her work “schlauch #6” (2023), for example, Toni Schmale stages steel, which is typically used in the heavy and armaments industry or in automotive and mechanical engineering, and essentially radiates hardness and resistance. Here, however, it appears as a supposedly soft, flexible material. The unexpected crushability of the sculpture casts doubt on its material nature. Its surface folds at the bending and kinking points as if it had human skin. The ends of the tube lie loosely on top of each other like fabric. “schlauch #6” shows that every material, no matter how hard, has a melting point and can appear fragile and soft.

The starting point for Janine Eggert‘s “Rear Bumper Expressionism” (2024) was a stay in Los Angeles. Her colorful, streamlined works are reminiscent of flashy cars or flashing bumper cars. In the USA, the bumpers (“rear bumpers”) are often particularly eye-catching, especially with bumper stickers, which serve as an expression of opinion, humor or affiliation. Eggert’s sculptures and installations combine the clear, industrial design language of serial production with the uniqueness of handmade works. The series is a deliberate allusion to the aesthetics of expensive cars and questions their role as prestige objects and luxury accessories.

Stephan Marienfeld‘s sculpture “TWIST” (2024) skillfully plays with light, shadow and movement so that its form appears to be constantly changing. From one perspective, it may look like a person bent forward, but from another angle it looks completely different. The work exposes our efforts to recognize something concrete in abstract forms. Marienfeld creates an illusion of movement with precision, inviting us to explore the sculptures from different angles and discover their complexity. The dynamism of the forms is transferred to the viewer with ease – for example, when you crouch down to get a view from the frog’s perspective.

Nicole Warmer’s awning sculpture “Vertical Awning” (2016) is an unusual sight. It is part of a series of so-called “adapted readymades”, rolled-up awnings designed with custom-made fabrics and stands that stand on their side. The work implies how soft materials, especially textiles, divide, appropriate, privatize, shade, domesticate or protect public space. However, as the awning is completely rolled up and displayed compactly as a vertical, column-like form, it does not appear at all engaging. Perhaps its material properties, namely its flexibility, are also the reason why the sculpture is perceived as unthreatening. The work illustrates how spaces and their claims to ownership are constantly being redefined.

Another awning can be found in a completely different constellation a few meters further on. With “You and Me Shop” (1994), Takako Saito integrates the public into her artistic process. The small store is a successful change of pace at an art fair that often seems passive. Saito breaks with traditional boundaries and in this way cultivates an experimental character . In addition to the performative materials, the store includes a large number of editions and objects by the artist.

In “HOLISTIC PARANOIA (SHRN/WRSP)” (2023), Emma Adler criticizes the link between misogyny and right-wing ideologies. The sculpture consists of a black urinal with urinal channels and small separate cubicles. The black structure almost seems to float, like a shrine or altar worthy of worship. As a metaphor for intimidating, male-dominated structures, the work shows how women are systematically oppressed – a tactic that runs through religions and conspiracy theories. Racist and homophobic ideologies in particular are based on a sense of superiority over the rest of society. Adler has incorporated the screaming heads of their leaders into her totem-like sculpture.

Stefan Strumbel‘s “Fuchs” (2024) questions the concept of home and national connotations. The work is based on a story in which an old fox loses his mind. The fox, actually a cunning predator, can no longer cope with his everyday life due to his age and is dependent on the help of his former enemies and prey. He finds support, security and protection in the community. In his sculpture, Strumbel explores the concept of “home”. Instead of an idealized, romantic or nationalistic idea of home as a place of security, he shows a colourful, humorous and diverse image. In doing so, he challenges the idea that home can only be a uniform, intact world.

Speaking of colorful: Claus Richter‘s sculpture “Peacock Party” (2015) is full of colorful plumage. A row of birds perch on black frames, with an inviting bench underneath. Richter plays with the urgent need to rest for a moment and let your legs dangle. At the same time, the visitors themselves become observers under the watchful gaze of the birds – who can stare any longer? Richter combines public and private space in his work and entices visitors with a parallel world in which nature and tranquillity contrast with the hustle and bustle of an art fair. The colorful staging is somewhat reminiscent of an inanimate stage set that you can only circle around longingly, but not use.

Standing around is something you can do very well at art fairs. Jorinde Voigt takes a particularly lyrical approach to the standing position with her series of sculptures “Rainbow Position” (2025). The distance between the two related arches corresponds to the distance between two feet when standing. The sculptures’ shimmering paint, which is reminiscent of the changing colors of the sky, appears anything but down-to-earth. The charmingly reflective surfaces blur the boundaries between object and space. The title of the work also points to a parallel with the firmament. The “Rainbow Position” suggests that one is on the verge of becoming a celestial body oneself. Voigt draws attention to the spaces in between, to distance and proximity. Where does the next step go?

The “Bahamas Chairs” (2023) by Katja Tönissen also make a clear reference to the human body. As in most of her works, the artist plays with gender and symbolism – here she gets to the bottom of femininity and longing. The “Bahamas Chairs” oscillate between object and body, between intimacy and functionality. Their seats are reminiscent of bathroom tiles, spaces of cleansing and vulnerability. At the same time, anatomical traces such as nipples and curves are clear references to the human form. The work poses the question of when an object becomes a body and when a body is architecture. Tönissen approaches the themes of stereotypes and gender roles with humor.

Mille Kalsmose‘s installation “Cosmic Relations” (2017) is dedicated to the theme of identity from a cosmic perspective. A series of figures are arranged in three different formations above curved metal elements. The structure is reminiscent of planetary orbits or cosmological models from antiquity. At the same time, the individual elements appear human, as if one were watching a humanoid gathering in contemplation. Perhaps it is even a kind of family constellation that can be observed here. At the same time, meteorite pebbles and circular flight and celestial paths point to much more universal phenomena, to infinity and incomprehensibility. As an outside observer, we think we are getting a glimpse of the systems that make up our lives.

Jonathan Monk‘s installation “Two Piece Reclining Figure – Divided” (2023) shows that unsuccessful job interviews are not all bad. The starting point for this series of bronze sculptures was a job interview the artist had at Chelsea College of Art at the age of 18. At short notice, he realized that everything he had prepared was too big for the office on the fourth floor where the interview was to take place. Monk decided to lean his material against the Henry Moore sculpture on the school’s forecourt and point to individual pieces from the office window. Pretty brave – but the talk was unsuccessful. Now Monk has redesigned the Moore sculpture that supported him back then: He has broken down the digital 3D version into manageable pieces, had them shaped by machines and finally cast them in bronze. In this way, Monk has not only come to terms with his unsuccessful interview, but can also finally transport the sculpture to the fourth floor.

Nora Lube also ventures a deconstruction with her “Revolt of the Rocking Horses” (2024). The sculpture thematizes military monuments and refers to their original symbolism of power. The artist uses concrete casts of a found, hand-carved wooden rocking horse that was lying discarded on the street. One of the horses is wearing a bandage – a reference to the typical leg position of equestrian figures in public spaces: the bent leg symbolizes a knight who has died as a result of injuries sustained in battle. However, neither knights nor wounds can be seen here and the children’s toy army appears harmless rather than representative. A successful dissection of the dynamics of power.

João Maria Gusmão and Pedro Paiva are also dedicated to the physiognomy of horses. The duo explores optical illusions and our perception of movement. Their sculpture “Horse” (2015) stands on three legs and has one bent at an angle. It looks strangely awkward and almost human – also because they have feet instead of hooves. The artists refer to Eadweard Muybridge, famous British photographer and pioneer of the moving image. In 1872, Muybridge took the first series of photographs of a galloping horse using an elaborate experimental setup. This enabled him to visualize for the first time how a horse moves its legs when galloping – and that the hind legs actually bend forwards, not backwards. Due to the speed of the galloping horse, the leg position had previously been invisible to the naked eye. In a humorous way, “Horse” tells of groundbreaking technical innovations, of gaining knowledge and of how changeable the human concept of reality is.

Does “Another city model #2” (2024) seem rather structured or confusing to you? Pedro Cabrita Reis refers to imaginary cities and social structures with his sculptures. While some recognize an immanent order, for others the work reflects urban chaos. For his objects, the artist recycles building materials and architectural fragments, including steel, concrete, glass, neon light and wood. The sensitively constructed work is symptomatic of a complex relationship with the environment, of the fractures and peripheries of our society. In Pedro Cabrita Reis’ sculptural works, discarded materials are given new dignity and meaning.