Stephan Balkenhol
Stephan Balkenhol | |
|---|---|
Balkenhol in 2010 | |
| Born | 1957 (age 68–69) |
| Education | University of Fine Arts of Hamburg |
| Style | Figurative art |
Stephan Balkenhol (born 1957) is a German artist who creates figurative painted wooden sculptures and reliefs.
Early life
Balkenhol was born in 1957 in Fritzlar, Hesse.
Career
He is currently a professor of sculpture at the State Academy of Fine Arts Karlsruhe (Germany). He lives and works in Karlsruhe, Germany, and Meisenthal, France.[1][2]
Artistic style
Balkenhol's work adopts a figurative artistic style, which typically depicts people in a neutral, objective way by removing socio-critical references.[3]
Balkenhol uses a variety of woods, such as poplar, Douglas fir, and wawa wood. He hand-carves each piece from a single block. He uses paint to structure the sculpture.[4]
Artist's public installations
Balkenhol has completed a number of public commissions in his career. Among them are the “Big Head Column”[5] for the Peggy Guggenheim Collection (Venice, Italy), “Big Man with a Little Man”[6] for Pariser Platz (Berlin, Germany), “Man and Woman”[7] for Hamburg Central Library (Hamburg, Germany), “Everyman”[8] for the Edinburgh City Council Offices (Edinburgh, Scotland) and “Toronto Man”[9] (Toronto, Canada).
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'Man on Giraffe' in the Tierpark Hagenbeck
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"Man + Woman" in Hamburg in front of the Central Library of the Hamburger Öffentliche Bücherhallen
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Large column figure in Lörrach
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"Man with deer" in Hanover, Lower Saxony, Germany
References
- ^ Costello, Diarmuid (2025). "'Die Schönheit des Mittelmenschen: Stephan Balkenhol's "everyman" sculptures'". Art History. 48 (1): 132–161. doi:10.1093/arthis/ulaf012. Retrieved 2025-09-28.
- ^ "The Indefinite and Universal Figures of Stephan Balkenhol". 9 February 2019. Retrieved 2025-09-28.
- ^ "STEPHAN BALKENHOL". Stiftung für Kunst und Kultur e.V. Retrieved 2023-08-17.
- ^ Stonard, John-Paul (2000-10-12). Balkenhol, Stephan. Oxford Art Online. Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/gao/9781884446054.article.t096692.
- ^ "Stephan Balkenhol. "Big Head-Column"". www.guggenheim-venice.it. Retrieved 2025-10-10.
- ^ "Art@Site true-self Stephan Balkenhol, Grosser Mann mit kleinem Mann, Berlin". www.artatsite.com. Retrieved 2025-10-10.
- ^ "Stephan Balkenhol: Mann und Frau | Kunst@SH" (in German). 2018-05-29. Retrieved 2025-10-10.
- ^ "Everyman | Art UK". artuk.org. Retrieved 2025-10-10.
- ^ Heather, Rosemary (2019-12-17). "Look closer at the Toronto Man sculpture on St. Clair West - NOW Magazine". NOW Toronto. Retrieved 2025-10-10.
External links
- Stephan Balkenhol.BTHVN at MKM Museum Küppersmühle for Modern Art website