FINALE: Wednesday 17 December

CITLALI L. HALFAR – Winner 2/2

And now for the next announcement of the evening: Congratulations to CITLALI L. HALFAR, the 2nd from 2 winners of our 15th ART MATTERS online competition. The young artist with Mexican roots (*2004 in Stuttgart, DE) is currently still studying at the Düsseldorf Art Academy. Although she is only 21 years old, her works already show remarkable artistic maturity. Her honest, subtly sensitive portraits fascinate and inspire us with their painterly quality and content, and we are delighted to be able to show a selection of her paintings in our Cologne gallery from 4 December 2026 – together with Kyungseo Lee, the other winner of our online contest. (Two more participants will be selected via ART MATTERS 16 in March/April 2026!)

In her oil paintings, Citlali L. Halfar depicts people from her immediate environment, often in classic portrait situations, all based on real, informal situations from their everyday lives. The concept of memory plays an important role in this. By elaborating on a person in a selected moment, the artist has to deal with every detail of that moment and thus experiences this memory again in a differentiated way from her current perspective.

‘I look for moments that express my perception of their realities and thus capture their personalities. These are usually moments when they are very calm and preoccupied with themselves, as this is when their characters are most clearly recognisable.’

CITLALI L. HALFAR

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KYUNGSEO LEE – Winner 1/2

It is time to announce the 1st from 2 winners of our 15th ART MATTERS online competition: Congratulations to KYUNGSEO LEE, whom we hereby invite to participate in the 2nd physical ART MATTERS group exhibition at our gallery in Cologne. (The 2nd winner will be announced at 6pm!)

The emerging artist Kyungseo Lee (*1995 in South Korea) lives and works in London. She earned her Master of Arts in Painting from the Royal College of Art (2023) and her Bachelor of Arts in Painting and Visual Communication Design from Hongik University (2020). Lee was selected as an artist in residence at the Cité Internationale des Arts (Paris, 2016) and the PADA Artist Residency (Lisbon, 2023).

Kyungseo Lee's erotically charged paintings challenge the viewer to confront their own ambivalence towards the theme of ‘body image’. Although the artist's style has recently shifted from a more figurative style to abstraction, the human body remains an integral part of her work.

Lee works with a loose painting style in which the figures quickly merge with surface markings and gestures. A sometimes rather uniform colour palette oscillates with more vigorous use of lively brushstrokes in stronger colours. Her work promotes physical eroticism in contemporary painting. It invites different ways of viewing and interpreting, and although abstract landscapes are also present, it is above all the hidden voyeuristic windows that captivate us most. We are delighted to be able to show a selection of her paintings from 4 December 2026.

KYUNGSEO LEE

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Our final TOP 9 is complete – thank you for participating in our online group show ART MATTERS 15 (from top left):

Citlali L. Halfar – Chiau-Syuan Chai – Francisco Gonzalez Camacho

JKB Fletcher – Raha Rastifard – Francesco Gioacchini

Stephen Whatcott – Ruud Simons – Manuel Rumpf

Tonight at 5pm and at 6pm we will announce the 2 winners of our ART MATTERS 15 online competition!

About ART MATTERS 15:

For the 15th edition of ART MATTERS, it was once again difficult for us to select only 9 artists for our online show from the many outstanding submissions we received in response to our latest Open Artist Call.
We hope that this multitude of perspectives and positions results in an exhibition that shows a field of tension, but also a symbiotic dialogue between the individual works of art. An exhibition that fits in with the orientation and philosophy of our gallery, but also definitely brings something new to our programme.
There is so much remarkable art out there, but we can't show it all in our gallery. The ART MATTERS series allows us to present many artistic positions from around the world to a wider online audience for about two weeks, three times a year.
Many thanks to everyone who has been following this project and many thanks also – above all – to all participating artists, especially to our TOP 9 and the 27 Honourable Mentions (some of whom we are still presenting today in our Instagram Stories).

FINALS DAY: Wednesday 27 August

RAFAEL TRIANA – Winner "ART MATTERS 14: Still Life"

It's time to announce the winner of our 14th ART MATTERS online competition: Congratulations to Paris-based artist RAFAEL TRIANA (*1988 in Ciego de Ávila, Cuba), whom we hereby invite to participate in the group exhibition ‘Still Life’ at our gallery in Cologne, opening in early September 2026.

When we launched our call for entries on the theme of ‘Still Life’ a few weeks ago, we had no idea what the resulting online exhibition would look like, as this naturally depends on the submissions. But we had an idea from the beginning of what the physical ‘Still Life’ exhibition in our gallery should look like. And Rafael Triana fits our vision perfectly!

In making our selection (both for the online exhibition and the winner), it was important to us to consider certain characteristics of the classical art form of still life: the depiction/collection of inanimate objects, the compositional arrangement of these objects, the focus on aesthetics and texture, the play of light and shadow, and allegorical meaning. These characteristics are evident not only in Triana's submitted work, but throughout almost his entire oeuvre.

Triana's sculptural still life installation offers a contemporary reinterpretation of this art form: humorous, ironic and subversive. The artist uses vacuum drying technology to encapsulate plastic food, delivering a precise critique of the dynamics of control, dehumanisation and simulation inherent in today's migration and automation systems. In his own words: "The encapsulation, which functions as a formal and conceptual gesture, translates the language of automation and control into an aesthetic medium. Nylon and vacuum not only serve as containers, but also reconfigure the relationship between materiality and absence, prompting critical reflection on the commodification of human existence. Through this strategy, the work not only problematises the dynamics of exclusion and exploitation, but also highlights the process by which life itself is subsumed into a technocratic logic that privileges simulation and reproduction over human beings."

RAFAEL TRIANA

   
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Our final TOP 9 is complete – thank you for participating in our online group show ART MATTERS 14 – Still Life (from top left):

Julie Derbyshire – Harry van Renswou – Christiane Brams

Reinhard Hölker – Raha Rastifard – Diego Azzola

Friedhelm Falke – Rafael Triana – Vanessa Leissring

Tonight at 6pm we will announce the winner of our Art Matters 14 online competition!

About ART MATTERS 14:

For the 14th edition of ART MATTERS, it was once again difficult for us to select only 9 artists for our online show from the many outstanding submissions we received in response to our latest Open Artist Call on the theme of ‘Still Life’.

We hope that this multitude of perspectives and positions results in an exhibition that shows a field of tension, but also a symbiotic dialogue between the individual works of art. An exhibition that fits in with the orientation and philosophy of our gallery, but also definitely brings something new to our programme.

There is so much remarkable art out there, but we can't show it all in our gallery. The ART MATTERS series allows us to present many artistic positions from around the world to a wider online audience for about two weeks, three times a year.

Many thanks to everyone who has been following this project and many thanks also – above all – to all participating artists, especially to our TOP 9 and the 27 Honourable Mentions (some of whom we are still presenting today in our Instagram Stories).

FINALS DAY: Wednesday 16 April

JAKOB LIMMER – WINNER 2/2 "ART MATTERS 13"

The time has come and we are announcing the second winner of our 13th ART MATTERS online competition: We congratulate the German artist JAKOB LIMMER (*1988, lives and works in Leipzig), whom we hereby invite to participate in the 1st physical ART MATTERS group exhibition in our gallery in late 2025 together with Gabriele Ludewig, BERGERNISSEN and Hyein Jang – the opening will take place on Friday 5 December!

What particularly interests us about Limmer's work is how the artist dissolves the concrete, questions its meaning and places it in new contexts. Series and repetitions are a defining aspect of his approach, not as static iterations, but as evolving confrontations. By engaging intensively with a technique, it develops into a symbolic act – an intersection at which social and mental mechanisms become visible.

Jakob Limmer studied media art at the Academy of Visual Arts Leipzig with Joachim Blank in the class for installation and space (2016-2020). He previously completed a degree in Sound Design at the Salzburg University of Applied Sciences in the Multi-MediaArt programme.

‘Structure and order form the field of tension in which my works are created. They appear as reliable systems, but at the same time reveal their rigidity and limits. My artistic research investigates the subtle mechanisms that shape order, abstracts them and transforms them into visual reflections on power and control.
The resulting works operate on the threshold between the familiar and the unfamiliar. My practice also extends to the audience: the materials used create a tactile physicality that simultaneously attracts and keeps at a distance. They point to hidden structures that shape human behaviour and encourage us to question the seemingly self-evident.’

JAKOB LIMMER

   
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GABRIELE LUDEWIG – WINNER 1/2 "ART MATTERS 13"

It's time to announce our decision and the first winner of our 13th ART MATTERS online competition (the second announcement will follow at 6pm!): We congratulate the German artist GABRIELE LUDEWIG (*1956, lives and works in Hamburg), whom we hereby invite to participate in the 1st physical ART MATTERS group exhibition in our gallery in winter 2025! Other participants in the exhibition, which will open on Friday 5 December: Hyein Jang and BERGERNISSEN, the winners of ART MATTERS 12, and the second winner of ART MATTERS 13 (announcement at 6pm).

In her artistic works, Gabriele Ludewig (1988 graduate of the Hochschule für bildende Künste Hamburg (HfbK) under Ulrich Rückriem, Klaus Bendixen and Franz Erhard Walther) is less concerned with representationalism than with the atmosphere that is conveyed in the objects. Her sculptures impress us with an intense energy that is not visible, but can only be felt. By creating new spaces of energetic concentration with shapes and colours, the artist succeeds in transcending the everyday.

‘With her new series of works ‘Balloons’, Gabriele Ludewig creates sculptures of condensed energy. Finely balanced curves of intense colour combine to form comic-like figures that radiate joy and vitality. The piled forms and colours transfer the principle of formulation and response in the painterly process to the sculpture. The balloons are both concrete and inspirational for imaginations that turn them into a society of idiosyncratic characters.’

GABRIELE LUDEWIG

   
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Our final TOP 9 is complete – thank you for participating in our online group show ART MATTERS 13 (from top left):
Eva Dijkstra – Zurab Arabidze – Petko Stoevski
Gabriele Ludewig – Ömer Faruk Kaplan – Sebastian Jauregui
Oliver Schuß – Tae Dong Lee – Jakob Limmer

Tonight at 5pm and again at 6pm we will announce the 2 winners of our Art Matters 13 competition!

About ART MATTERS 13:

Even with the 13th ART MATTERS round, it was not easy for us to select only 9 artists for our online exhibition from the many great submissions we received in response to our last Open Artist Call. But it was a great pleasure to discover and get to know so many great artistic positions!

We hope that this multitude of perspectives and positions results in an exhibition that shows a field of tension, but also a symbiotic dialogue between the individual works of art. An exhibition that fits in with the orientation and philosophy of our gallery, but also definitely brings something new to our programme.

There is so much remarkable art out there, but we can't show it all in our gallery. The ART MATTERS series allows us to present many artistic positions from around the world to a wider online audience for about two weeks, three times a year.

Many thanks to everyone who has been following this project, some for 13 editions already, and many thanks also – above all – to all participating artists, especially to our TOP 9 and the 27 Honourable Mentions (some of which we are still presenting today in our Instagram stories).

FINALS DAY: Wednesday 18 December

HYEIN JANG – WINNER 2/2 "ART MATTERS 12"

The time has come and we are announcing the second winner of our 12th ART MATTERS online competition: We congratulate the South Korean artist HYEIN JANG (*1993, lives and works in Karlsruhe and Würzburg), who we hereby invite to participate in the 1st physical ART MATTERS group exhibition in our gallery in winter 2025 together with the already announced winning duo BERGERNISSEN! (2 more participants of the exhibition will be selected through our next Open Call in March/April 2025! Save the date!!) The young artist's work fascinates us with its impressive emotional depth.

Hyein Jang studied at Kyonggi University in Suwon South Korea and at the State Academy of Fine Arts Karlsruhe, where she completed her master's degree with Professor Daniel Roth. In her textile works, fabric installations are superimposed, creating a 3D effect and making the work appear to be in motion. The imperfection of our feelings and memories is expressed through repeated hand stitches.

Emotions are in a constant state of flux and are constantly being restructured within relationships. In her poetically touching work Wodurch werden sie bewegt, Jang depicts this through ‘fabric-like layers’. Over time, emotions can fade in our memories, but the more the layers overlap, the more intensely and clearly they emerge. These layers of fabric break out of the frame of the canvas and move freely in the wind, symbolising the imperfection of emotions. "The fabrics, which have different lengths, move with the wind caused by people passing by. This shows how emotions change and are influenced by relationships with others. With this representation I have visualised the imperfection of emotions and their reconstruction."

HYEIN JANG

   
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BERGERNISSEN – WINNERS 1/2 "ART MATTERS 12"

It's time to announce our decision and the first winners of our 12th ART MATTERS online competition (the second announcement will follow at 6pm!): We congratulate the artist duo BERGERNISSEN (consisting of Alisa Berger and Lena Ditte Nissen, both born in 1987), who we hereby invite to participate in the 1st physical ART MATTERS group exhibition in our gallery in winter 2025! We are particularly impressed by the artists' subtly critical approach to controversial topics.

BERGERNISSEN have been working together on performative, filmic and curatorial projects since 2011 and deal with subjective mythologies and psychological spaces in their work. "The material of our work are group processes, collectively experienced realities and our relationship to cultural institutions. The illusionistic potential of film and cinema is a source of inspiration for the development of our performances and happenings that simulate realities. At the turning point where reason could destroy the illusion, the illusion solidifies to the point of incorruptibility, while at the same time the illusion appears fragile in precisely those places where it should appear consistent and self-evident."

The work European Sleep, submitted by BERGERNISSEN for ART MATTERS 12, is a hauntingly unsettling installation in which a suspended ceiling is faked and a fog machine is installed in it, which channels its smoke through a smoke detector. Instead of reacting to the smoke, the detector itself produces smoke. The work, which quickly reminds the viewer of a kind of gas chamber with an office aesthetic, reflects the problem of security and vigilance as a prerequisite for the destruction of freedom.

BERGERNISSEN

   
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Our final TOP 9 is complete – thank you for participating in our online group show ART MATTERS 12 (from top left):
Simone Pick – Amédé Ackermann – Julia Oram
Meike Schlemmer – Max Gehlofen Casper White
Marina Pagh & Susanne Schmidt-Nielsen – Hyein Jang – BERGERNISSEN (Alisa Berger & Lena Ditte NIssen)

Tonight at 5pm and again at 6pm we will announce the 2 winners of our Art Matters 12 competition!

About ART MATTERS 12:

Even with the 12th ART MATTERS round, it was not easy for us to select only 9 artists for our online exhibition from the many great submissions we received in response to our last Open Artist Call. But it was a great pleasure to discover and get to know so many great artistic positions!

We hope that this multitude of perspectives and positions results in an exhibition that shows a field of tension, but also a symbiotic dialogue between the individual works of art. An exhibition that fits in with the orientation and philosophy of our gallery, but also definitely brings something new to our programme.

There is so much remarkable art out there, but we can't show it all in our gallery. The ART MATTERS series allows us to present many artistic positions from around the world to a wider online audience for about two weeks, three times a year.

Many thanks to everyone who has been following this project, some for 10 editions already, and many thanks also – above all – to all participating artists, especially to our TOP 9 and the 27 Honourable Mentions (some of which we are still presenting today in our Instagram stories).

FINALE: Monday 19 August

CHEUK YIU LO – WINNER "ART MATTERS 11"

It's time to announce our decision and the winner of our 11th ART MATTERS online competition: Congratulations to Chinese artist CHEUK YIU LO (*1998, based in Hong Kong and London), who will be invited to participate with a selection of her works in our group exhibition “Animalistic" at our gallery in 2025! This is the first time an artist from China has won our competition!

We are impressed by her unique and poetic expressiveness, which her works already show despite her young age. “The Unsung Citizen“ – her resin sculpture of a duck discreetly “dressed“ in a construction worker's waistcoat – calls for a greater appreciation of the overlooked aspects of our urban environment. It highlights the importance of ducks to the ecosystem and urges the viewer to recognise the small, seemingly insignificant contributions that sustain and enrich our society. The sculpture symbolises their important role in pest control, aquatic health and recreation. "The sculpture celebrates their resilience and silent presence and encourages a more mindful and inclusive view of the community and ecosystem by recognising the essential role these ‘unsung citizens’ play in maintaining ecological balance and enriching the human experience,“ says Lo.

It’s Lo’s craftsmanship and storytelling capability that intrigues us, through which her work invites a compassionate understanding of the unseen. She creates a dialogue between the viewer and the silent narratives of those who are frequently overlooked, emphasizing the importance of empathy and social awareness.

We are fascinated by Lo's craftsmanship and her ability to tell stories, through which her work invites a compassionate understanding of the invisible. She creates a dialogue between the viewer and the silent storyteller.

CHEUK YIU LO

   
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Our final TOP 9 is complete – thank you for participating in our online group show "Animalistic" (from top left): Nathan Schönewolf – Björn Heyn – Johannes Rave – Eunjung Suh – Anja Segermann – Cheuk Yiu Lo – Pascal Wild – Camille Theodet & Sali Muller.

Tonight at 6pm we will announce the winner of our Art Matters 11 competition!

About ART MATTERS 11:

Even with the 11th ART MATTERS round (9 regular and 2 Special Summer Editions with thematic specification), it was not easy for us to select only 9 artists for our online exhibition from the many great submissions we received in response to our last Open Artist Call. But it was a great pleasure to discover and get to know so many great artistic positions!

We hope that this multitude of perspectives and positions results in an exhibition that shows a field of tension, but also a symbiotic dialogue between the individual works of art. An exhibition that fits in with the orientation and philosophy of our gallery, but also definitely brings something new to our programme.

There is so much remarkable art out there, but we can't show it all in our gallery. The ART MATTERS series allows us to present many artistic positions from around the world to a wider online audience for about two weeks, two to three times a year.

Many thanks to everyone who has been following this project, some for 10 editions already, and many thanks also – above all – to all participating artists, especially to our TOP 9 and the 27 Honourable Mentions (some of which we are still presenting today in our Instagram stories).

FINALE: Monday 15 April

HEIKE WEBER – WINNER "ART MATTERS 10"

It is time to announce our decision and declare the winner of our 10th ART MATTERS online competition: We congratulate the German sculptor and painter HEIKE WEBER (*1973), who will be invited to participate in a group exhibition in our gallery with a selection of her works in early 2025 (TBD)! This is the first time that an artist from our hometown of Cologne has won!

Heike Weber has been among our ART MATTERS finalists several times in the past and we have been able to get to know and appreciate her work – encompassing concrete spatial sculptures made of ceramic, steel and bronze, as well as wall works made of aluminium and paintings – better and better. It is above all her small-format ceramic sculptures with their concrete curved lines and seemingly effortless compositions that fascinate and inspire us.

By combining individual, similar shapes, Weber creates minimalist objects with interior spaces. The sculptures grow into a new whole, a sometimes seemingly organic abstract object, a spatial work. Through the way in which the connections are made, they develop their own formal language, which we as viewers seek to explore.

Concrete spaces are created through the connection of clear forms, arches form a space, they harbour an interior and form a protective space for the interior directed outwards. Abstract and playful at the same time.

HEIKE WEBER

Our TOP 9 is complete – thank you for participating in our online group show to (from top left): Petra Schmidt – Kirsi Kivivirta – Michael Francis Ryan – Nanou Dupuis – Azim F. Becker – Amelia Nin – Heike Weber – Clara Lemos – Anne Berlit.T

Tonight at 6pm we will announce the winner of our Art Matters 10 competition!

About ART MATTERS 10:

Even with the 10th ART MATTERS round (9 regular and one special edition last summer), it was not easy for us to select only 9 artists for our online exhibition from the many great submissions we received in response to our last Open Artist Call. But it was a great pleasure to discover and get to know so many great artistic positions!

We hope that this multitude of perspectives and positions results in an exhibition that shows a field of tension, but also a symbiotic dialogue between the individual works of art. An exhibition that fits in with the orientation and philosophy of our gallery, but also definitely brings something new to our programme.

There is so much remarkable art out there, but we can't show it all in our gallery. The ART MATTERS series allows us to present many artistic positions from around the world to a wider online audience for about two weeks, two to three times a year.

Many thanks to everyone who has been following this project, some for 10 editions already, and many thanks also – above all – to all participating artists, especially to our TOP 9 and the 27 Honourable Mentions (some of which we are still presenting today in our Instagram stories).

1st Prize: KIRA FRÖSE – Winner Gallery Group Show

Congratulations to KIRA FRÖSE: German artist Kira Fröse (*1992, lives and works in Bochum) is today the second of our two ART MATTERS 9 winners and will be invited with a selection of her works to participate in a group exhibition in our gallery in Cologne in 2024! Fröse's work is emotional and focuses on the longing for haptic experiences. Shiny surfaces, structured flowing forms and dynamic matter - the juxtaposition of stillness and movement fascinates and inspires us. Her works invite us to mistrust our senses and reinterpret the familiar. And in this respect, we already have some ideas for a fun and beautiful presentation with Kira Fröse's works and look forward to working with the artist in the near future!

"Through the use of colour, organic, playful, and dynamic shapes, my work wants to seduce and invite the viewers to experience what is in front of them with their own senses and imagination. Subconsciously influenced by the aesthetics of nature and used objects of everyday life, I create static forms that depict motion and appear to be smooth and light despite the heaviness of their substance. Observing more closely one can perceive that aesthetics can only endure through the presence of unaesthetic detail."

KIRA FRÖSE

quetschbar, 2015
old dishwasher, textile, spray paint
70 x 68 x 50 cm

2nd Prize: ALBRECHT/WILKE – Winner Online Solo Show

Congratulations to the artist duo ALBRECHT/WILKE: The Berlin artists Albrecht/Wilke (Tim Albrecht, *1992 in Berlin and Hannes Wilke, *1991 in Stade) are today the first of our two ART MATTERS 9 winners and will be presented in 2024 with a selection of their works on canvas and paper in a solo online exhibition on our website and our social media channels! Figurative, but also abstract, associative, subjective – the central theme of the works is the examination of the German middle class milieu. To this end, the artists blend the art and (pop) cultural history of the past century with a hefty dose of zeitgeist: We simply love their humorous play with clichés and ironic comparisons and already look forward to the collaboration!

"We are painters. We paint what we see. We paint what's good!" - with these sentences we introduce our manifesto "Good Painting". In contrast to the concept of bad painting, this initially seemingly bold slogan dissolves into a humorous play with clichés and ironic comparisons in the rest of the manifesto, just as we do with painting. Our pictures are an interweaving of formal elements, art-historical quotations and a lot of irony."

ALBRECHT/WILKE

Currywurst (Kommste vonne Schicht, Wat schönret gibt et nich’), 2023
oil and acrylic on canvas
140 x 120 cm

Our TOP 15 is complete – thank you for participating in our online group show to (from top left): Paul Ahl, Jan Jansen, Simone Pick, Jamie Drouin, Stephen Whatcott, Alejandro Javaloyas, Birgit Cauer, Danil Yordanov, Tom Cartmill, Amélie von Heydebreck, Heike Weber, Kira Fröse, Aleksandr Vladimirovich Nuss, Albrecht/Wilke & Xu Zheng.

About ART MATTERS 9:

Even with the 9th ART MATTERS round (8 regular and one special edition last summer), it was not easy for us to select only 15 artists for our online exhibition from the many great submissions we received in response to our last Open Artist Call. But it was a great pleasure to discover and get to know so many great artistic positions!

We hope that this multitude of perspectives and positions results in an exhibition that shows a field of tension, but also a symbiotic dialogue between the individual works of art. An exhibition that fits in with the orientation and philosophy of our gallery, but also definitely brings something new to our programme.

There is so much remarkable art out there, but we can't show it all in our gallery. The ART MATTERS series allows us to present many artistic positions from around the world to a wider online audience for just over two weeks, two to three times a year.

Many thanks to everyone who has been following this project, some for 9 editions already, and many thanks also - above all - to all participating artists, especially to our TOP 15 and the 45 Honourable Mentions (some of which we are still presenting today in our Instagram stories).

ERIC KELLER: Winner ART MATTERS Summer 2023

Congratulations to ERIC KELLER: The German artist (born 1985, lives and works in Dresden) is the winner of our ART MATTERS Summer 2023 competition with his painting “Einfahrt" (“Driveway“, 2022, oil on wood, 60 x 85 cm)!
We cordially invite him to participate with a selection of his works in a group exhibition on the theme LANDSCAPES at our gallery in Cologne in September 2024!

Eric Keller's pictures show places, cities and landscapes, sometimes also people and portraits. However, it is not only about copying a place or a person, but also about observing experienced moments, moods and processes. Keller transfers his visual memories into a painterly fiction, set in a placeless sphere full of moods and feelings. We are fascinated by the almost eerie atmosphere in his work, by the earthy colours and tones of his landscapes, which often seem strangely misty. Reminiscent of dream or film images, his works are certainly not optimistic, but the stories they unfold are very compelling in a peculiar way. Keller's images are ultimately fiction that show us an emotional way of perceiving reality.

"[...] The more intensively one looks, the better one's eyes grasp the transparent, vibrating and iridescent richness of Keller's colour fabrics. Beyond representational depictions, his paintings are also manifestos of what can be achieved with the means of painting. But Keller does not work conceptually. He does not need a theoretical underpinning and does not load his paintings with calculated references. Intuition and the inner visual memory play an important role. Unlike most representational painters today, he does not use photographs as models. "Everything I paint I have seen in real life," Keller explains. "But I don't capture anything in the landscapes and architectures, nor do I take photographs. At that moment on site, I don't yet know that a painting will come out of it." An unconscious saving. When painting, Keller returns to the spaces and topographical situations in his imagination. But he must have actually experienced all the impressions. "Otherwise they don't become usable for me." [...]" (Excerpt from Remembrance of the Present: Sebastian Preuss on the work of Eric Keller)

ERIC KELLER

Our final TOP 9 is complete! Thank you for participating in our online group exhibition (from top left): Lorenz Bögle, Hanna Kaminski, Luis Zimmermann, Maximilian Welz, Lars Unger, Christo Daskaltsis, Eric Keller, Jean/Yohanan Delaunay-Israël & Marc Fiegle.

Check out our last 9 posts further down or on Instagram to find out everything about ART MATTERS Summer 2023 and the 9 artists/artworks we selected via our latest open call!

And check back later at 6pm when we announce the winner of our online competition from the 9 finalists. Today is finals day and we reveal the name of the artist who will be invited to participate in a group exhibition on the theme of LANDSCAPES at our gallery in Cologne.

About ART MATTERS SUMMER 2023:
The first Special Summer Edition of our ART MATTERS series followed our recent 8th Open Artist Call, with which for the first time we set a theme for submissions: LANDSCAPES. In selecting the artists and their works, we did not necessarily focus on classic, figurative landscape depictions. And so we also present abstract, almost minimalist works that often only convey the idea of a landscape and make the exhibition an eclectic overall presentation.

Also for this latest ART MATTERS round, it was not easy for us to choose only 9 artists for our online exhibition from the many great submissions we received in response to our 8th open call. There are so many remarkable things out there, but we cannot show them all in our gallery. The ART MATTERS series allows us to present many artistic positions from around the world to a wider online audience two or three a year for about two weeks.

Many thanks to all of you who follow this project, some of you for 8 issues already, and many thanks also to all participating artists, especially to our TOP 9 and the 27 Honourable Mentions (there are still some to be presented on our Instagram Stories today!).

AUSTIN TURLEY: Winner Gallery Group Show

Congratulations to AUSTIN TURLEY: The US artist (born 1977, lives and works in Portland, OR) is the second of our two ART MATTERS 7 winners and will be invited with a selection of his works to a group exhibition at our gallery in Cologne in early 2024 (TBD)! We are intrigued by Turley’s artistic exploration of kiln-formed, cold-worked glass. The resulting wall objects are intimately small and fragile, yet bold and striking. We already have some ideas for a beautiful presentation with Austin Turley's works and look forward to working with the artist in the near future!

“Spontaneity, improvisation, and techniques of the bricoleur are the result of keen observations, which can lead to finding relevancy in the unexpected. I believe my modes of making are parallel to those of the bricoleur, exploring the notion that science and mystical thought are equivalent approaches to understanding the world around us. I am interested in the transformative character of objects as they evolve, erode, and alter throughout time. As I continue to learn and experiment with the complexities of kiln formed glass, my focus and research revolves around the language of the medium itself, how it behaves, its characteristics, and its properties. I believe emphasizing these rhythms, patterns, and formations possess the capacity to act as a proxy for things beyond itself and its seemingly simple physical existence. This correspondence between the glass is a layered iterative process of unmaking and remaking, engaging strategies of repetition, interference, and disruption. My aim is to create presence within the overlooked and challenge how we view, experience, and navigate our conditions.“

AUSTIN TURLEY

ELIZABETH CHARNOCK: Winner Online Solo Show

Congratulations to ELIZABETH CHARNOCK: The young artist (born 1990 in the UK, lives and works in Berlin) is today the first of our two ART MATTERS 7 winners and will be presented with a selection of her ink drawings in an online solo exhibition on our website and social media channels in late 2023 (TBD)! Charnock's uninhabited spaces and urban situations are hauntingly beautiful. With her focused and clear visual vocabulary, she succeeds in stimulating our playful imagination. Her painterly minimalism also allows for open associations about our modern civilisation. We feel very connected to the artist's work, look forward to the collaboration and are excited to see where it will take us!

"The built environment and urban planning ideologies are common themes throughout her practice. Spatial relationships inform her work at all scales – from entire cities and street scenes, to the seemingly banal small structures which permeate our surroundings. By referencing a large body of documentary photography, she mentally collages multiple urban elements into imagined environments, which are meticulously rendered with multiple layers of ink on paper.
Her work often captures moments ‘in-between’ – miniature snapshots of tranquility before or after human activity. The scenes she creates inhabit realms that are entirely fictional, yet instantly recognisable. The uninhabited spaces evoke feelings of isolation, offering familiarity – but only at a distance – whilst inviting the viewer to reassess their own sense of place within the setting."

ELIZABETH CHARNOCK

Our TOP 15 is complete – thank you for participating in our online group show to (from top left): Stephen Whatcott, Benjamin Schoones, Tom Cartmill, Petra Schmidt, Anja Rausch, Austin Turley, Pascal Ungerer, John Trashkowsky, Nicolas Vionnet, Heike Weber, Sinéad Butler-Aldridge, Nadine Karl, David Mohr, Elizabeth Charnock & Jaewon Kim.

Check out our last 15 posts further down or on Instagram to find out everything about ART MATTERS 7 and the 15 artists/artworks we selected via our latest open call!

And make sure to come back later when we declare the two winners of our online competition. It is finals day today and we reveal:

- at 5pm the artist who will be rewarded an online solo show

- at 6pm the artist who will be invited to participate in a group show in our gallery in Cologne.

About:

Also for the 7th ART MATTERS round, it was not easy for us to choose only 15 artists for our online exhibition from the many great submissions we received in response to our 7th open call for artists. But it was a great pleasure for us to discover so many great artists! There are so many remarkable things out there, but we cannot show them all in our gallery. The ART MATTERS series allows us to present many artistic positions from around the world to a wider online audience twice a year for just over two weeks.

Many thanks to all of you who follow this project, some of you for 7 issues already, and many thanks also to all participating artists, especially to our TOP 15 and the 45 Honourable Mentions (there are still some to be presented today!).

FINALS DAY: Sunday 30 October

MOLLY THOMSON: Winner Gallery Group Show

Congratulations to Molly Thomson: The Scottish artist (*1953, lives and works in Norwich, England) is the second of our two ART MATTERS 6 winners and will take part in a group exhibition at our gallery in Cologne in 2023 with a selection of her works! More about this soon.

The fact that with Molly Thomson, former MA (Painting) student at the Royal College of Art in London, we have a second female winner is pure coincidence. Her work, however, fits seamlessly into our largely abstract-minimalist gallery programme. The subject of "sculptural painting" has interested us for many years and Thomson - primarily a painter - also explores the subject of the painting and its hybrid identities.

"Beginning most often with the simple fact of the rectangular painting panel I place myself in the position of both agent and observer, using acts of cutting, reassembling and pouring to re-form - and respond to - each piece. I am interested not only in the layered facade that is presented, but also in the fact that the painting casts and contains shadows.
[…] Interior spaces are often implicated, even if only glimpsed through the smallest of openings, and I am interested in the quiet question that such breaks in the facade might pose. Sometimes the paintings are layered, suggesting compressed strata of parallel surfaces. Some paintings may quietly allude to what cannot or shouldn’t be seen, while others flex their joints or extend their surfaces with a touch more expansiveness. […]"

We already have some ideas for a group exhibition with Molly Thomson's works and look forward to collaborating with the artist in the near future!

MOLLY THOMSON

Painting with wedged interior, 2022
acrylic, filler, wooden panel
36 x 27 x 6 cm

ROSINA ROSINSKI: Winner Online Solo Show

Congratulations to Rosina Rosinski: The young artist (*1989, lives and works in Dortmund, DE) is the first of our two ART MATTERS 6 winners today and will - in 2023 - be presented with a selection of her paintings in an online solo exhibition on our website and social media channels! More info soon.

With the highest level of female artist participation in our ART MATTERS competition ever, it is only fitting that at least one winner is a woman. Rosina Rosinski's bold paintings and self-portraits feature strong, larger-than-life female figures and are based on Christian and mythological iconography. At first glance garish, colourful and loud, the paintings increasingly draw the viewer in, discussing gender issues and tackling themes of life, death and vanity.

Rosina Rosinski is only our second female winner after Patrizia Kränzlein (ART MATTERS 2). And it is also the first time ever that figurative art has won in our competition. This is also due to the fact that we received and were able to select from more figurative works than in all previous ART MATTERS editions.

Rosinski's works represent a completely new and exciting direction for us. They not only work in physical space, but their vibrant colours and Rosinski's meticulous way of painting clean, print-like surfaces make them perfect for online presentations. We feel a strong connection to the artist's work, look forward to the collaboration and are excited to see where it will take us!

ROSINA ROSINSKI

Home safely (Venus mourning the death of Adonis), 2022
acrylic and airbrush on canvas
150 x 195 cm

Our TOP 15 is complete – thank you for participating in our online group show to (from top left): Zixu Wang, Rosina Rosinski, Molly Thomson, Tomica Radulovic, Christine Lee, Gemma Carson, Brennan Wojtyla, Silvia Giordani, Katya Granova, Heike Weber, Frijke Coumans, Graziela Guardino, Roberto Rivadeneira, Mattia Noal und John Brendan Guinan.

Check out our last 15 posts further down or on Instagram to find out everything about ART MATTERS 6 and the 15 artists/artworks we selected via our latest open call!

And make sure to come back later when we declare the two winners of our online competition. It is finals day today and we reveal:

- at 5pm the artist who will be rewarded an online solo show

- at 6pm the artist who will be invited to participate in a group show in our gallery in Cologne.

About:

Again for the 6th ART MATTERS round, it was not easy for us to choose only 15 artists for our online exhibition out of the many great submissions we received in response to our 6th Open Artist Call. But it definitely was a great pleasure to discover and get to know so many great artists! There is so much remarkable art out there, but we cannot show it all in our gallery. The ART MATTERS series allows us to present many artistic positions from all over the world to a wider online audience twice a year for a little more than 2 weeks.

Many thanks to all of you who follow this project, some of you for 6 issues by now, and many thanks also to – most of all – all the participating artists, especially to our TOP 15 and the 45 Honourable Mentions (there are still some to be featured today!).

We found it particularly remarkable this time that more female artists than usual applied. That there was even more international participation, especially from Eastern but also Northern and increasingly Southern European countries. There were also many more applicants than usual from Asia, North and South America and Australia and even Africa. What pleased us most, however, was that finally more figurative artists applied, as abstraction has always been predominant at ART MATTERS. All this is reflected in the selection of our TOP 15, which is more eclectic than ever before.

Following our 5th Open Artist Call, we launch our new ART MATTERS 5 online group exhibition on Saturday 9 April at 6pm CET. From all the applications received, we have selected 15 finalists, who will be presented with their submitted artworks on our website, Instagram and Facebook, one after the other until 23 April. Every day at 6pm, a new name and artwork will be unveiled so that the exhibition slowly comes together as a whole. The presentation of our Top 15 is rounded off by "Honourable Mentions" in our daily Instagram stories, in which we acknowledge the works of a selected number of artists who just missed the final cut (45, to be exact, posted in our Instagram stories from 10 to 24 April, 2 per day and between noon and 6pm).

On Sunday 24 November at 5 and 6pm, we will announce for the first time two winners of our online competition: One will receive a solo online exhibition, the other will be invited to participate in a group exhibition in our gallery space in Cologne.

About our ART MATTERS series:
Just like with our first four open artist call projects in April and November 2020 and again in April and November 2021, we were aware how versatile and eclectic this fourth online exhibition could be. But it was precisely the idea of an open call that appealed to us: to invite artists from the most diverse directions to apply and submit their work. From this multitude of perspectives and positions, we look forward to get an exhibition that shows a field of tension but also a symbiotic dialogue between the individual artworks. An exhibition that matches the direction and philosophy of the gallery, but also brings something new to our programme.

Sunday 24 April: Finals Day 3/3 - VITTORIO BIANCHI

Congratulations to Vittorio Bianchi: The Italian artist from Milan is the second of our two ART MATTERS 5 winners today and will soon be presented with a selection of his works in a group exhibition at our gallery in Cologne! More information on this coming soon.

Of course, it is difficult to choose a winner or - as in this case - two winners from a large number of beautiful artists who applied through an Open Call. It is not a question of better or worse. Rather, it is about a feeling. As previously described with Arran Rahimian, we feel a strong connection with Vittorio Bianchi's work and believe it fits well into our gallery programme! One of our favourites since the work was submitted due to its inherent textile and also sculptural aspects, we already have a very nice project in mind that we will realise with the artist as soon as possible. We look forward to the collaboration and are excited to see what develops!

Winner 1/2: Vittorio Bianchi

R #6, 2019
polyurethane, nylon, Capaver glass fabric
119 x 83,5 cm

Sunday 24 April: Finals Day 2/3 - ARRAN RAHIMIAN

Congratulations to Arran Rahimian: The young artist, Edinburgh-based artist is the first of our two ART MATTERS 5 winners today and will soon be featured with a selection of his paintings in a solo online exhibition on our website and social media channels! More info on this soon.

We feel a strong connection with the artist's work and believe it will fit in well with our gallery programme and also be beautifully communicable as an online exhibition. We look forward to the collaboration and are excited to see where this will take us!

Winner 2/2: Arran Rahimian

46 Hours, 2022
oil on canvas
76 x 70 cm (framed)

TOP 15

Our Top 15 is complete – thank you for participating in our online group show to (in order of their daily posts): Stephen Wozniak, Bianca Barandun, Stephen Whatcott, Max Geisler, Mika Natri, Elliott Mickleburgh, Arran Rahimian, Tomoko Konae, Alejandro Javaloyas, James OKeefe, Paulus Maassen, Johannes Steininger, Vittorio Bianchi, Jonathan Ducrest and last but not least Johan Van Oeckel.

Check out our last 15 posts further down or on Instagram to find out everything about ART MATTERS 5 and the 15 artists/artworks we selected via our latest open call!

And make sure to come back later when we, Galerie Biesenbach as the jury of ART MATTERS 5, declare for the first time not one but two winners of our online competition. It is finals day today and we reveal:

- at 5pm the artist who will be reward an online solo show

- at 6pm the artist who will be invited to participate in a group show in our gallery in Cologne.

About:

Again for the 5th ART MATTERS round, it was not easy for us to choose only 15 artists for our online exhibition out of the many great submissions we received in response to our 5th Open Artist Call. But it definitely was a great pleasure to discover and get to know so many great artists! There is so much remarkable art out there, but we cannot show it all in our gallery. The ART MATTERS series allows us to present many artistic positions from all over the world to a wider online audience twice a year for a little more than 2 weeks.

Many thanks to all of you who follow this project, some of you for 5 issues by now, and many thanks also to – most of all – all the participating artists, especially to our Top 15 and the 45 Honourable Mentions (still some to be featured today).

Following our 4th Open Artist Call, we have launched our new ART MATTERS 4 online group exhibition on Sunday 17 October at 6pm. From all the applications received, we have selected 15 finalists, who will be presented with their submitted artworks on our website, Instagram and Facebook, one after the other until 31 October. Every day at 6pm, a new name and artwork will be unveiled so that the exhibition slowly comes together as a whole. The presentation of our Top 15 is rounded off by "Honourable Mentions" in our daily Instagram stories, in which we acknowledge the works of a selected number of artists who just missed the final cut (90, to be exact, posted in our Instagram stories from 18 October to 1 November, 6 per day and between noon and 6pm).

On Monday 1 November at 6pm, the winner of our online competition will be announced: He or she will be invited to participate in an exhibition in our gallery space in Cologne in 2022.

We invite you to visit ART MATTERS 4 regularly here on our website, Instagram and Facebook.

About our ART MATTERS series:
Just like with our first three open artist call projects in April and November 2020 and again in April 2021, we were aware how versatile and eclectic this fourth online exhibition could be. But it was precisely the idea of an open call that appealed to us: to invite artists from the most diverse directions to apply and submit their work. From this multitude of perspectives and positions, we look forward to get an exhibition that shows a field of tension but also a symbiotic dialogue between the individual artworks. An exhibition that matches the direction and philosophy of the gallery, but also brings something new to our programme.

Monday 1 November: Finals Day

ART MATTERS 4: And the winner is... Alireza Elahi (*1991, lives and works Tehran) – congratulations! We are pleased to include an Iranian artist in our programme for the first time and to present his expressive abstract paintings in one of our upcoming gallery group exhibitions.

Also for the 4th ART MATTERS round, it was not easy for us to choose only 15 artists for our online exhibition out of the many great submissions we received in our 4th Open Artist Call, and then also to choose a single winner.... It was definitely fun to discover and get to know so many great artistic positions! There is so much remarkable art out there, we can't show it all in our gallery. But the ART MATTERS series allows us to present many artistic positions from all over the world to a wider audience online twice a year for a little more than 2 weeks.

Many thanks to all of you who follow this project, some of you for 4 issues by now, and many thanks also – most of all – to all participating artists, especially to our Top 15, namely (in order of their daily posts: Alireza Elahi, Katja Pál, Bislacchi, Amir Chasson, Mariejon de Jong-Buijs, Aaron Kaveh Ossia, Molly Thomson, René Korten, Stephen Wozniak, Peter Evans, Eva Dijkstra, Beverly Rautenberg, Alan Greenberg, Clemens Gritl and last but not least Sharon Haward.

ALIREZA ELAHI

untitled, 2020
acrylic and spray paint on primed canvas
150 x 100 cm

To curate our new online group exhibition ART MATTERS 3, we have been looking for international visual artists via open call from 14-28 March, 2021. From all applications received, our independent jury, the Reclaim Collective, finally selected 15.

On a daily basis at 6pm CET sharp from Sunday, 11 April onwards, all 15 finalists will be presented one by one with their submitted work exclusively on galerie-biesenbach.de and our Instagram/Facebook accounts. The presentation of our Top 15 is rounded off by "Honourable Mentions" in our daily Instagram stories, in which we acknowledge the works of a selected number of artists who just missed the final cut (90, to be exact, posted in our Instagram stories from 12 to 26 April, 6 per day and between noon and 6pm).

On Monday, 29 April at 6pm the winner of our competition will be announced: He or she will be invited to participate in an exhibition in 2021 in our gallery rooms in Cologne.

About our ART MATTERS series:
Just like with our first two open artist call projects in April and November 2020, we were aware how versatile and eclectic this third online exhibition could be – especially since we decided to have it curated by an independent jury. But it was precisely the idea of an open call that appealed to us: to invite artists from the most diverse directions to apply and submit their work. From this multitude of perspectives and positions, we look forward to get an exhibition that shows a field of tension but also a symbiotic dialogue between the individual artworks. An exhibition that matches the direction and philosophy of the gallery, but also brings something new to our programme.

Finals Day

Group photo with 15 finalists, including 1 winner - please scroll down and read on to find out who won our 3rd ART MATTERS online competition!

First and foremost though, we'd like to thank our judges – the guys from Reclaim Collective – for collaborating with us on this project and putting together such a beautiful, eclectic exhibition! We know how hard it is to choose from all the submissions we received as part of our open call, to select just 15 artists and then also to narrow it down to one winner... But it was definitely an immense pleasure for us to discover so many great artists or to get to know them better!

Thanks also to all of you who have been following this project, some of you since we started it a year ago, and thanks – most of all – to all the artists involved, especially our Top 15, namely: Patia Fa, Isabella Convertino, Jeroen Molenaar, Dorota Goczal, PUTPUT, Vera Saldivar de Lira, Paul Snell, Chris Tille, Stephen Burke, Oliver Cain, Susanne Stähli, Daniel Morata Gressel, Rafael Raposo Pires, Maaike Kramer and last but not least Francisco Valenca Vaz.

But in the end, there can only be one and our jury chose Stephen Burke (*1991 in Dublin, lives and works in Dublin) as the ART MATTERS 3 winner in an extremely close decision. Congratulations! With his submitted work Bump from 2021 (spray paint, emulsion and chewing gum on tactile tiles, steel frame, 60 x 45 x 3 cm) and his statement as well as his overall artistic approach/body of work, he not only convinced our jury and we are happy to invite him to participate in an thematic group exhibition in our gallery in Cologne in 2022. We already have a great project in mind – more information to follow soon!

Winner ART MATTERS 3: Stephen Burke

STEPHEN BURKE
Bump, 2021
spray paint, emulsion and chewing gum on tactile tiles, steel frame
60 x 45 x 3 cm

Monday, 14 December

To curate our online group exhibition ART MATTERS 2, we launched our second Open Call on 8 November with the aim of finding 15 new artists. Until yesterday, we presented the finalists and their submitted works individually every day at 6pm for a fortnight.

Tonight, we are pleased to announce Patrizia Kränzlein (*1987 in Stuttgart, lives and works in Stuttgart) as the winner of our competition and invite her to participate in a thematic group exhibition at our gallery in Cologne in summer 2021. Her sensitive formal language and approach to the medium of paper have excited us and bring new, interesting aspects to our gallery programme.

It was extremely difficult for us to pick out just one from so many remarkable artistic positions. Therefore, we would like to thank all the artists who submitted their works. It was a great pleasure for us to discover these great artists or to get to know them better!

To learn more about Patrizia Kränzlein and the works of the other 14 finalists – in order of their daily presentation: Birte Horn, Armin Mühsam, Laura Jane Scott, Tonneke Sengers, Viktoria Körösi, Sali Muller, Paul Corvers, Stuart Fineman, Katja Pál, Ute Krafft, Evelyn Snoek, Andrew Clausen, Alex De Bruycker & Yoella Razili – please scroll down or check out our Instagram feed.

PATRIZIA KRÄNZLEIN

untitled, 2020
linoleum ink and graphite on paper (mounted on board), 70 x 50 cm

GROUP PHOTO
Final 15

Out of the corona/lockdown situation in March/April – exhibition postponed, gallery closed to the public – our first virtual group exhibition ART MATTERS was created, which could only be viewed online at www.galerie-biesenbach.de and our Instagram and Facebook accounts. Unusual times, new ways!

With an open call launched on Instagram, we spent two weeks looking for new artists and finally selected 15 participants for our group exhibition.

We knew how eclectic this Online Only exhibition could be. But it was precisely the idea of the Open Call that appealed to us: to invite artists from the most diverse backgrounds to apply and submit their work. From this multitude of perspectives and positions, we curated an exhibition that shows a field of tension but also a symbiotic dialogue between the individual artists and artworks. An exhibition that fits the direction and philosophy of the gallery, but which has also brought something new to our programme.

From Sunday, 12 April onwards, one artist was presented with the submitted work every day at 6 pm. On 26 April the winner of our competition was announced and invited to participate in a later exhibition in our gallery space in Cologne. Our choice was Jussi Niva, who will present a selection of his works in the group exhibition "Sculptural.Painting." in January/February 2021.

With works by: Christina Augustesen, Carlos Balbás, Bram Braam, Michael Craik, Alex De Bruycker, Viktoria Körösi, Ute Krafft, Vincent Lo Brutto, Daniel Müller-Jansen, Jussi Niva, PUTPUT, Beverly Rautenberg, Michael Samuels, Jon Thomas & Michael Weißköppel

Jussi Niva

Another Together, 2019
oil on wood, 199 x 53 x 29 cm

GROUP PHOTO
Final 15