Philipp Neßler & Julia Seifried Exhibition: Ordinary Things
The artist duo Philipp Neßler & Julia Seifried has been well known to friends of the Dr. Dorothea van der Koelen Gallery at least since their participation in the exhibition Visions of Beauty, to which they contributed a concrete sculpture. Philipp Neßler – at that time still working as a solo artist – had previously also participated in the renowned Experiments exhibition series in 2021.
For our popular summer festival, which was officially opened last Saturday, August 15, the two artists presented a new exhibition titled Ordinary Things, which was enthusiastically received by the audience.
The title Ordinary Things gives away what the work is about: ‘ordinary, or everyday things’. But these are – sometimes literally – turned upside down.
There is a high-gloss lacquered conductor’s podium lying upside down on the floor, making you want to turn it right side up immediately; in another, box-like object, handrails are mounted but serve as a footrest. But if you were to try to turn the box into the correct position, the golden confetti stored inside would spill out. In the case of a mobile frame consisting of metal rods mounted on a wooden box, the casters protrude upward into the air.
Playing with perception is the theme of the highly creative duo Philipp Neßler & Julia Seifried. They playfully challenge our visual habits regarding everyday objects. This becomes clear in another installation. Using only the exact components of specific furniture models from a Swedish furniture retailer’s lineup, they created imaginative abstract sculptures. Assembly instructions were then produced for these artworks in the exact same style as the furniture manufacturer’s, allowing anyone to recreate the pieces.
Gallerist and art historian Dr. Dorothea van der Koelen spoke with Philipp Neßler and Julia Seifried about these and other works. The result is a very lively artist talk that sheds light on many facets and ideas within the body of work by the duo, who are now studying at the Düsseldorf Art Academy.
Last week, we already presented some excerpts in our ‘Potpourri’. Today, we’re sharing the entire conversation and hope that all art lovers whose interest in Philipp Neßler and Julia Seifried was piqued at our summer festival will enjoy watching it.
