Jakob Limmer

Lives and works in Leipzig, Germany

Artist statement

I create sculptural wall-mounted and freestanding objects in which contrasting materials enter into physical and functional tension. I investigate how structures act upon the body and how spaces for agency can emerge within this relationship. My main interest lies in the ambivalence of structure itself. We rely on systems and constructed environments, while at the same time experiencing them as conditions that constrain and sometimes provoke resistance. This tension is central to both the subject and the making of my work. I use processes of compression, stretching, or suspension to develop form, allowing materials to actively influence the outcome. Rigid structural elements encounter silicone, soft polyurethane foam, and other body-related materials, establishing conditions in which neither the material nor the final shape is entirely under my control. I establish conditions, but the material responds and resists, and ultimately participates in determining the form. Through this process, I create transitional states between stability and dissolution. Their tactile qualities are often suggested rather than directly experienced, making softness and resistance visually perceptible. The resulting objects often occupy an ambiguous space between function and dysfunction. Their forms may suggest holding, supporting, enclosing, or suspending without fully resolving which side ultimately prevails. I seek to create works in which this ambiguity can be experienced intuitively....

Artwork