Ottmar Hörl - Existence 2015 - Black

This Ottmar Horl Statue called "Existence" is a self-portrait. . Ottmar Hörl's work Existence consists of plastic sculptures depicting the artist himself. The serially produced grey figures do not coincide with the traditional understanding of a self-portrait that emphasises the individuality of the artist. The sculptures play around the boundary drawn between the public and the private: they are displayed in a public space, but with hidden faces, facing the wall. The figures seem to be hanging by their arms from something, as if on their last piece of strength. The grip of their fingers could be released at any moment. Where will the artist fall? Does his existence depend on this frail grasp?

Ottmar Hörl was born in 1950 in Nauheim, Germany. He is a notable German artist, art professor, and writer. Not only Hörl studied at the Städelschule in Frankfurt (1975 / 1978), but also at the Academy of Fine Arts in Düsseldorf (1978 / 1981). In 1985 he co-founded the group Fomalhaut, with architects Gabriela Seifert and Götz Stöckmann.

In 1999, Hörl became Professor of Fine Arts at the Academy of Fine Arts in Nuremberg. Eventually, he has been president of the Academy of Fine Arts Nuremberg since 2005.

A mischievous artist, Hörl’s career has been predominantly about creating public commentary. He used his whimsical sculptures that have a friendly and teasing tone, especially with his gnomes. His work Flying Change staged in Selignstadt in 1994, for instance, placed a thousand blue garden gnomes, smiling and brandishing their middle fingers, all around the city. The intended effect was for the public to take them and move them around, which the townspeople gratefully did. More details on Ottmar Horl Statue - Existence 2015 - Black: