In her sculptures and installations, Kathy Schubert explores social and political phenomena as well as extreme mental and physical states. The fate and well-being of individuals form the focus of her work. She says of her approach: »With my work, I invite beholders to examine social interactions and to recognise the mental or psychological states behind them.« »Art is my outlet: my way of dealing with my biography and my past. The dialogue with viewers is also important to me. They recognise the theme of the respective work of art – or associate entirely different things with it. I find this exciting as it opens up new perspectives to me.«

One of the media she works with is textile materials such as artificial leather, which she sews, stuffs and works into three-dimensional objects. She has now been awarded the Lyonel Art Award, donated by Wiegand Manufactur Weimar, for her diploma thesis entitled »Das parasitäre Moment« [»The parasitic moment«]. In addition to the prize money of €2,000, the award also includes a solo exhibition at NOVA art space in autumn 2019.

»Kathy Schubert’s work impressed the jury with its independent and playful visual language,« explained the three jury members Marianne Dobner, Anna Redeker and Anka Ziefer in their statement. »This is characterised by the masterful approach and interplay of different materials influenced by the contrast of hard, industrially produced fabrics and soft, self-made textiles. Current states of social constructs form the starting point of her artistic work. The artist translates internal creative processes into objects characterised by dysfunctionality and instability. The organic forms refer to processes that evade our control and thus cause discomfort. In this way, Kathy Schubert successfully creates aesthetically powerful schemes of complex emotional states that have a direct impact on viewers.«

Born in Erfurt in 1988, Kathy Schubert first studied architecture for three semesters, which continues to influence her model-like work to this day. In 2013, she began studying Fine Art within the Faculty of Art and Design at the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar. She has now successfully completed her Diplom. She today lives in Erfurt.

About the Lyonel Art Award:

The Lyonel Art Award was donated by Wiegand Manufactur Weimar. »I wish to encourage young artists and to help draw greater attention to art at the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar, in the town of Weimar and in Thuringia as a whole ,« explains company founder Matthias Wiegand. Named after the first master at the Bauhaus, Lyonel Feininger, the Lyonel Art Award will in future be awarded every year to a graduate supervised by one of the Fine Art professorships.

About NOVA:
NOVA is a platform for contemporary art and current questions of artistic practice and its (re)presentation. In exhibitions as well as other experimental formats, NOVA is dedicated to the discourse of, with and about the arts. 

NOVA was founded in April 2019 as part of an interdisciplinary collaboration with students of the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar. It combines academic teaching with hands-on projects ranging from artistic to curatorial practice.

Jury:
Marianne Dobner (Curator, mumok museum moderner kunst stiftung ludwig, Vienna)
Anna Redeker (Freelance Curator, Berlin)
Anka Ziefer (Director, G2 Kunsthalle, Leipzig)

Contact:
Wiegand Manufactur Weimar
Company owner: Matthias Wiegand
Email: presse[at]wiegandweimar.de 
www.wiegandweimar.de

Bauhaus-Universität Weimar
Faculty of Art and Design, Fine Art
Prof. Björn Dahlem
Email: bjoern.dahlem[at]uni-weimar.de 
www.uni-weimar.de

In case of questions, please contact Romy Weinhold, Press and Public Relations Officer for the Faculty of Art and Design (Tel.: +49 (0)3643 / 58 11 86; romy.weinhold[at]uni-weimar.de).

(1) Video still from the clip on career prospects after graduation by Philipp Kämmerer and Juro Carl Anton Reinhardt 

(2) Video still from the clip on the difference between art and design by Regina Kharisova, Valentin Bolte and Sabrina Reis

(3) Video still from the clip on student life in Weimar by Clàudia Villagrasa Pallarès and Lucía Schmidt