Lucia Kempkes
Stone paper is a water-repellent material that slowly disintegrates into dust when exposed to UV radiation (sun or artificial).
In museums and collections, replicas create an impression of the size and texture of past objects. They try to create a relationship between the ephemeral objects, and our bodies, and trigger in us the idea of how we use them.
For this series of replicas, full-size water toys and beach paraphernalia were recreated from stone paper. They show signs of use and patched holes, look half-inflated after a long beach season or lean against the wall as if they were about to be taken to the lake.
Due to the material properties of the stone paper, these sculptures will undergo a process of decay - through artificial or natural UV light they will slowly disintegrate, in exhibitions the curators decide whether they want to protect or destroy the objects.
©Lucia Kempkes
Biography
Lucia Kempkes studied biology and philosophy at the Freien Universität Berlin and then fine arts at the Universität der Künste Berlin and the School of Visual Arts in New York.
In 2014 she founded the art collective Mindscape Universe (2014-2019), which organised projects on notions of simultaneity.
She has been artist in residence at institutions such as the NANJI Residency at the Seoul Museum of Art, Pioneer Works in New York City and the Rote Fabrik Zurich.
She has received grants from the Richard Thomas Foundation London, the Stiftung Kunstfonds and the Berlin Senate Department for Culture and Europe and won prizes such as the Specific Award at The Others Art Fair Turin.
Her work is exhibited internationally and is part of public collections in Berlin, London and Marrakech.
