Alexandra Bircken’s sculptures and installations are breathtakingly rich in the materials from which they are made: the German artist uses everyday objects, such as dye packagings, motorcycles or rocking-horses, hand-woven and artificially made textiles, wood, leather, fabric, tree branches, stone, bone and human hair. While such focus on and appreciation of physicality of materials is reminiscent of the practices of Joseph Beuys and Eva Hesse, Bircken’s work is strikingly unique. Having studied as a fashion designer in Central Saint Martin, London, Bircken uses techniques of weaving, knitting and crochet to form her sculptural language. Her background in fashion further sparked her ongoing interest in the human body, as well as the space around it. Bircken describes her sculptures as observations on human life and its environments: she highlights human vulnerability amidst the pressures of the modern, technological age. Multifaceted and intriguing, Bircken’s practice is an assemblage of everything that makes one human. ...
