SIS

DIOÉ | 2003 | HAMBURG

For a time, I wandered the streets at night, collecting wood from construction sites and rummaging through dumpsters for floorboards and waste wood. I was fascinated by the signs of public spaces and the raw, provisional aesthetics and architecture of construction sites. To me, the kind of raw sculpture I wanted to create was already present in them. The expansive spatial aspect of large sculptures amazed me and yet I struggled with the wasteful amount of required resources. That was why used wood with its remnants of carpeting and paint, oxblood, poster scraps, concrete, etc. was the ideal material for my work.

Using spray paint, graffiti, posters and papers I proceeded to turn the wood into sculptures - carriers of graphics, signs and references, reminiscent of their use in public spaces. A further aspect that interested me while making the sculptures was the process of creation itself. The wooden walls were heavy and unwieldy, but could be assembled quickly and easily with an electric screwdriver. The rough work on the construction site sculptures was a welcome counterbalance to all stereotypes that were often associated with my gender and physical appearance at the time.

Still, I could not resist adding a graffiti with my portrait to the sculpture to add an element of transgression - something I was always striving for, both in terms of content and form. Just like the wooden wall of the sculpture (an obstacle obstructing the view) disrupts the space and is neither sculpture nor painting. This made me a misfit in the context of the group exhibition once again, as DIOÉ was a collective of mostly up-and-coming young painters around the "Golden Pudel Club".