DE

Die Arbeiten von Lennart Foppe (geboren 1991 in Lingen, lebt in Köln) bewegen sich zwischen Malerei und Installation. Das ästhetische Vokabular von Foppe, der Illustration und Fine Arts an der Münster School of Design studiert hat, beinhaltet raumübergreifende Installationen aus alltäglichen Materialien und Objekten.
Diese erzeugen den Eindruck von eigenständig arbeitenden Apparaturen und erinnern an biologische Formen, die nach ihren eigenen Regeln operieren.

Foppes biologisch anmutenden Installationen gleichen Biosphären, in der jede einzelne Zellperiode prozessualen Zeitintervallen unterliegt. Verschiedene Bakterienstufen versuchen sich zu teilen oder werden anderweitig aktiv. Andere Organismen versuchen sich zu paaren und Teil eines größeren Zellkreises zu werden. An dieser belebten Schnittstelle von organischer Aktivität setzt seine Arbeit an und ermöglicht somit einen ungetrübten Blick auf die eigentliche menschliche Existenz: Ein Schnappschuss aus biologischen Oberflächen und urzeitlichen Formen, ergänzt durch eine Vielzahl von technischen Verweisen. Über eine formal reduzierte Darstellung biologischer Prozesse in den Arbeiten löst Foppe diese aus ihrem eigentlich naturwissenschaftlichen Feld und ermöglicht so eine kritische Weise ihrer Betrachtung. Als Konsequenz versuchen die Installationen „alternative endeavors of the unknown“ und „a gathering breaks” biologische Formen zu evozieren, indem sie zeitlich biologisch-wissenschaftliche Momente in eine Räumlichkeit übertragen und sie somit erfahrbar machen. Die Objekte, welche aus synthetischen Materialien wie Schaumstoff, Polyester oder Latex bestehen, sprechen biologische Oberflächen an, die in den verschiedenen interzellulären Prozessen vorkommen. Bei weiterer Betrachtung sieht man die menschlich-technischen Aspekte im Aufbau: Spontan platzierte Mikrokosmen, wo eine genaue Funktion eher abstrakt und somit für den Betrachter undurchschaubar wirkt.

EN

Lennart Foppe’s (born 1991 in Lingen, currently living in Köln) work varies between a range of paintings and installations.
The aesthetic vocabulary of Foppe, who studied Illustration and Fine Arts at the Muenster School of Design, incorporates large scale Installations with everyday Objects, making references to seemingly autonomy working apparatuses and biological forms. They are to be seen as an abstract closed system, which is following its own set of regulations.

Foppes biologically based installations are reminiscent of biospheres, where every period is connected to processual timing. Running stages of bacteria processing to cell division. Other organisms seeking to reproduction as part of a larger cell cycle. At the intersection point of the bustling organic periods his work reveal a closer look to the origin of human existence. A Snapshot of biological surfaces and primeval forms supplemented by a set of technical notes and gadgets. A formally reduced representation of the processes allows the viewer to look from a non-scientific point of view. As a consequence the installation „alternative endeavors of the unknown“ and „a gathering breaks” tries to evoke a world of biological forms by displaying several scientific moments in a spatial experience. The objects, which are made of synthetics such as foam rubber, polyester or latex are somehow connected to different periods of intercellular activity. On further inspection, the objects also seem to have a human technical aspect: Spontaneous placed little microcosms where the function is somehow abstract and impenerable to the viewer.

»With a perceptive feeling towards materials, Lennart Foppe creates an interaction between the synthetic and the organic. His sculptures are an ensemble of contradicting shapes, textures and materials that engage with each other. He plays with their color, sometimes revealing the true characteristics of materials and sometimes hiding them, carefully choosing what he shows and doesn’t show. While some surfaces show shapes, others show prints, as if an object has just disappeared or a process has ended. Open structures show layers, suggesting an ongoing life underneath the surface.

The works visualize an invisible world of biological processes that are of tremendous importance for human life. They remind of drawings that we know from biology books; schematic representations made to explain biological processes that we cannot see with our eyes and would otherwise not understand. The drawings translate this intangible matter into a material language that we are more familiar with. They serve to understand what would otherwise be elusive but are simultaneously far from reality.

The material language Foppe uses, however, is ambiguous. The organic shapes, referring to biological processes and matter, are a great contrast to the synthetic materials, such as foam, silicone and plastics, in which they are carved, shaped and casted. They are known from industrial objects and are almost unrecognizable in another context. All having different properties that are very particular, they need to be properly understood to be of any use. Although the contrast between subject and matter creates tension, the required knowledge to process these materials equals the complexity of the biological elements they represent.

The combination of material and biological elements creates interesting narratives. Looking at the associative forms in Foppe’s work makes us wonder if we are facing a representation or interpretation of an invisible reality. But perhaps we are fooled by our desire to decipher and understand what we see, and the work does not explain to us anything at all.«

Daphne Kramer, 2022