“I love the interplay of control and coincidence.”
Name
Katharina Gahlert
Profession
Artist
Website
Where are you from?
I was born and raised in Annaberg-Buchholz. After stations in Norway and Leipzig I´ve been living in Halle/Saale now for almost 10 years.
Your style in 3 words?
organic, inorganic, cosmic
Your weakness? Your strength?
I try to keep my weakness and call this strength.
What makes you different?
my DNA
When did you decide to become an artist?
When I came into contact with the work of Carlfriedrich Claus during a school internship at a gallery, I caught fire. For me his works opened up a new understanding of what art can be like.
What do you find most fascinating about your work?
I often work with dyeing processes on textiles and I love the interplay of control and coincidence. Maybe I like the coincidence best of all.
A few words about your favourite creation?
I think there is no favourite creation…. it’s always about the current piece or project. Right now I’m working on an installation which is about underground areas and the relationship between body and landscape.
Someone else’s work that inspired or inspires you…
There are always particular artists who are quite important to me for a while and from whom I draw inspiration. However, this changes constantly. Most recently, I fell in love with the work of Otobong Nkanga. Her way of combining a range of media into a clear statement impresses me.
Who would you like to work with someday and why?
Pakui Hardware. I love their aesthetics and their particular approach to material. As an artist duo, they practice a collaborative way of working on a permanent basis and are professionals at working together. This is fascinating.
A new project coming up or an idea you want to work on?
Last year I had my first contact with the medium of performance when the feminist artist group »Hazy Borders« performed in a theater context with my body-related objects. That was super inspiring and I want to integrate more performative elements into my work in the future. That’s totally new to me and pretty exciting.
Finish the sentence „More important than my career is…“
My family.
2021: Where are we going?
In the clear knowledge that you never know what is coming.
When the going gets tough…
inhale, exhale
Put on your future vision glasses: What direction is our generation moving in, what will our world look like in 50 years?
Our bodies will continue to be engineered, technology will influence our actions and decisions to an even greater extent, and in the best case scenario we will have learned to use these developments for the good of the community and the planet.
What would you do if you could change the World?
make the rainforest great again
If the universe is everything and it’s expanding, what is it expanding into?
eternity
Tell us about your future plans…
This year I will finish my diploma.There will also be a collaborative collage project with 4 artist friends that will result in a small publication titled NADA 21. And I am working with two other artists and two curators on an exhibition project that will be realized early next year. Due to covid, the schedule has been pushed back, though this gives us the opportunity to develop the project all the more intensively over a long period of time.
Your city’s favourite spots?
The house I live in is an extraordinary place where many creative people gather and form a unique community. This is my favourite spot.
Last but not least: what is your favourite Song?
It depends…there are so many. What I hear frequently is the music of Michelle Gurevich and one of my favorites from her is the song »Fatalist Love«
One last statement please: „Wood or stone, gold or art?“
It all comes from the same: particles from dying stars and cosmic haze.
Your #…?
