Frame 61October 24, 2019

Lennart Foppe

Frame 61October 24, 2019

“I gained a certain satisfaction with the viewer's behavior, especially when they see art installations and how they react if there are in the middle of a spatial experience.”

Interview by Simek Shropshire

Your installations feature everyday objects that function as biological forms and your paintings are reminiscent of biospheres. How did your practice evolve to focus on the biological?

Before I had this strong focus on biological topics I experimented a lot with installations in general, especially with an eye on new media and post internet stuff. Around that time my work was infused with collage based mixed media paintings and I had the urge to try something total different and did a long research process of topics which kept my interest. After that process I remembered my contradictory love for biological facts and scientific views of these topics during my early school years. To be honest It sounds like a cliché, but I was very good at art and hated the scientific classes in school but the topics in my biology class were fascinating and opened in some kind of way a new universe to me — especially regarding forms and colors. Unfortunately the focus on teaching topics like cell productions and different stadiums of progression, is based on dry chemical forms and statistical studies. And this loss of emotional connection to this complex process in biological things in general always triggered me, because I really wanted to discuss that. Above that, I gained a certain satisfaction with the viewer’s behavior, especially when they see art installations and how they react if there are in the middle of a spatial experience. So My questions were, what does the viewer think about those forms? Is it a challenging thing to get a connection to installations, which seem to have no clear message ? In the end it's a confrontation with a paradoxical spacial experience, which should raise questions instead of giving sophisticated answers.

Could you tell us a bit about yourself and your background? Where did you study?

I was born in the northwest of Germany, near the dutch border and grew up in an artistic minded family: my father is a furniture restorer and my mother works in the psychology field. For my parents, engagement with art in general has always been highly important, so I started early on working in my dads wood shop creating different things. After my school education I decided to study something in the creative field, whether it was Fine Art or Design. I chose Design and focused on editorial illustration but was always connected to the art world. During the years of my design studies I began working as a freelance Art handler for various Art spaces in Germany and was fortunate enough to meet internally well-known artists. While setting up, the exhibiting artists were always present, so I got the opportunity of a great exchange from many artistically minded people which encouraged me to keep on focusing on my own artistic work. After finishing my illustration studies I travelled a lot and worked for the Sculptur Projekte Münster 2017 and other Art Institutions like the Westphalian State Museum of Art and Cultural History. In 2018, I got the great opportunity to do a Residency in Madrid Spain and continued to work on my own Installations until today.

*Tunicata Prokaryote, 2018, Espositivo Residency Madrid*

The objects of your installations are made of synthetics materials, such as foam, rubber, PVC, and latex. How are these materials connected to different periods of intercellular activity in your works? Which material do you find to be the most interesting to manipulate and work with?

There are literally no limitations in working with materials. The dynamic of comparing certain materials evokes a great contrast in itself. Concrete next to a slimy latex mixture is, from the viewpoint of structure, very thrilling. By mixing different type of materials and structures you inevitably create a tension, and often it isn’t manageable in its message. So, I guess that’s the great thing about working with material based installations. Not every aspect is controllable and planned. You can use everything you want, but you have to put a detailed emphasis on areas you want to put in the foreground. I wanted to create artificial forms that had direct references to existing biological material. For example if you look at the structure of our skin, you will note that there are many different kinds of layers like Epidermis, Dermis, Hypo dermis and Muscles. With this prior knowledge the use of different layers of material is inevitable, because of satisfying the complexity of biological matters. Over the years I experimented a lot with silicone and latex and it's a very interesting material, because it goes through different stages of “mobility“. You can manipulate it in every direction and form but there is a need to find a lasting position before its hardened. Beyond that, it includes a great contrast between shiny and matt surfaces.

What type of research do you conduct prior to the creation of your installations and paintings? Can you explain your process of titling the works?

At the outset of the installation I only have a rough plan. I often start with sketches and do some research in old books of biology. There is always a certain base of material which is included most of the time — like foam rubber etc.

But I try to bring up new materials to this catalog of things I use.
For example: I research chemical ingredients of things and try to include that kind of information in the process of making, or directly into the installations. Moreover, I try to include old and used materials, such as fabrics, foils or coatings. So I spend a lot of time researching things in different hardware stores and of course online.

Regarding the paintings, its nearly the same just without using so many materials. I have a huge collection of magazines and old books, which are the source of all the collage parts attached to the paintings. It's a process of figuring out the best snippets for the work.

What artwork have you seen recently that has resonated with you?

Well, there are plenty of great artist and artworks out there and through the time of working as an artist assistant I developed a strong enthusiasm for some of these artistic positions.

One of them is Haegue Yang, who is one the greatest sculptors of our time with a wide range of amazing works. Another great experience was the exhibition from Helen Marten earlier this year in Berlin. It was mesmerizing because her work is so crazy detailed and full of perfection that you could easily spend the whole day in the space, exploring every little aspects of the installations. It may sounds a little exaggerated, but I think her work is way ahead of its time.

How do you go about naming your work?

I try to avoid giving too much information about my work, especially if it's a detailed explanation of some installations. It is not beneficial to the process of the spacial experience to have detailed information about every form and material decision I made. The consequence would be a falsified viewing of some artworks. The process of trying to understand it and being confronted with a special unawareness is essence of the work. Therefore, just some titles give a little “spark“ of the content related inner structure of the work.

Is there anything new and exciting in the pipeline you would like to tell us about?

Currently, I'm working on a series consisting of different wall objects with a focus on experimenting with the attachment to the wall. Figuring out a way to present form based installations on the wall, but not destroying the experience of the room.

Furthermore, I'm working on a publication about my work I did the last 2 years.

lennartfoppe.de

@lennartfoppe

All images are courtesy of the artist
Publish date: 24/10/19

Frame 61